Chapter Two: Thoughtless

The room was far better than Ritsuka had imagined. There were no chains dangling from the ceiling, no weapons of torture decorating the walls. There was nothing that seemed out of the ordinary, if one ignored the sensors on the windows. Nana had really taken her security measures overboard – making sure there were sensors were on all the windows, and the camera in the hallway was focused directly on the doorway to Ritsuka's room. There would be no mistakes.

The room was more of a suite. Upon opening the door, Soubi paused to sweep his eyes over the small living room. It was equipped with a couch, a small television, and a desk. On the surface of the desk, a laptop sat dormant, the cord coiled neatly on top of it. Soubi moved farther into the suite, his eyes taking in the small kitchenette. Ritsuka followed him down the hallway to the only bedroom.

There was one bed, and it was huge.

"Pervert," Soubi whispered into the darkness of the room as he flicked on the light and dropped the bags.

A dresser and two nightstands on either side of the bed were the only other additions to the otherwise bare expanse of the room. A large bathroom was attached to the bedroom. It was there that Ritsuka took his refuge, taking the opportunity to splash his face with cold water. This wasn't a dream. He was giving up his freedom and what little chance he had at creating his own destiny in order to keep Soubi by his side and out of his elder brother's hands. With a shake of his head, he moved into the bedroom.

They settled down for the night, no words spoken between them. There was nothing to say. The decision had been made and the time for arguing was over.

"Ritsuka?"

"Hm?"

"I love you."

Ritsuka closed his eyes, deciding to ignore the comment rather than state his obvious displeasure at hearing it. It was one habit that Soubi had never broken, and one that no amount of ordering could force him to give up. It was the sentence that broke Ritsuka's heart every time the lie passed through those perfect lips. He buried his head in his pillow and curled his body in the usual ball. It didn't matter. He had gotten very good at ignoring his fighter.

Soubi kissed the top of his sacrifice's head before drifting into a peaceful sleep. His arm rested across the lithe waist, but there was no other physical contact between the two. The night crept along, Soubi sleeping soundly, as Ritsuka stared out the arched window at the school grounds. Peaceful rest was not something he had been granted this night. It was easy for the young sacrifice to slip from Soubi's grasp. He opened the door, eyeing the camera that was posted in the hallway. As the lens pivoted to take in the image of the hallway, Ritsuka made his move. He went down the opposite end of the hall before the camera could capture his image, drifting out of the door.

The night air was cool and crisp. With a small smile decorating his face, Ritsuka took a deep breath. The faint breeze ruffled his hair as he padded barefoot down the stone path. It was a beautiful place, if you ignored all the bloodshed and the secrecy. Cherry blossom trees and weeping willows created a canopy of foliage along the path. Other types of flowers bloomed along the way as well, though Ritsuka paid them no mind. He made his way up the hill.

Solitude had once been his enemy, and now Ritsuka found it was the only respite from the thoughts that whirled in his head whenever he was trapped in Soubi's presence – whenever he was reminded at all of the current situation, to be precise. He continued on, making his way to a weeping willow and took a seat, staring out at the broad expanse of land.

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Soubi groaned as his eyes drifted open. Something wasn't right. Something didn't feel right. It had nothing to do with the empty space in the bed, or the fact that Ritsuka had so conveniently vanished. Soubi was used to the strange habits his sacrifice had taken on in the years since they had met. Ritsuka had become a restless creature, unable to sleep for more than a few hours at a time, and often plagued by nightmares. Even Soubi's presence and sweet murmurings in his ears had done nothing to soothe the other boy.

Soubi sat up and glanced around the room, but the figure was absent. With a deep sigh, he grabbed his glasses from the nightstand and put them on, already drifting down the hall to see if his sacrifice had taken up reading in the small living room, or was fiddling around on the computer again. I've lost my touch, Soubi thought in the safety of his own mind. I have no power over him anymore, no influence. I lost him long ago.

He wasn't surprised to find their suite empty of any sign of life other than his own. Soubi changed his clothes quickly, donning a pair of regular jeans and a black turtleneck before heading out the door. He winked at the camera once as the device locked onto his form before heading out. He moved down the hall, taking the same path Ritsuka had done. His instincts and suspicions had never proven him wrong in the past. He had an uncanny way of knowing exactly where Ritsuka had gone.

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Ritsuka drew his knees up to his chest, hugging them close as he stared out at the carefully trimmed grass. He allowed his eyes to slide closed as he felt the cool breeze stir once again. It felt nice to be away from Soubi, to be away from the expectations so many were piling on his fragile shoulders. It was nice to pretend he had an ounce of freedom, though reality had taught him that he was hardly better than any of the caged animals they kept on display at the zoo.

"I miss you."

Seimei's voice startled him out of his reverie. Ritsuka's eyes widened and he turned his head to stare over his shoulder at the familiar face of his brother. Seimei: the one who had saved him. Seimei: the one who had condemned him to this fate.

"How did you get past the security system?" Ritsuka questioned, turning his head stubbornly away from the sight that made his heart ache. He lay back on the soft grass of the lawn, gazing up at the stars through a haze of green leaves. "You shouldn't be here."

Seimei settled on the grass beside him, his eyes following the same constellations as his younger brother. "You need me to be here."

"I don't understand you anymore," Ritsuka whispered, his voice holding a small quiver that betrayed the bitterness he was trying to portray. "I don't understand how you could do this to me."

"I didn't force you to come here." Seimei smiled softly, his fingers tracking the pattern of a particular series of stars. "Ritsuka, do you remember when we were younger and I would take you to the park at night? We would look up at the stars together and I would teach you the name of all the different constellations."

"I remember, Seimei." Ritsuka sighed deeply and closed his eyes. "Don't try to distract me. You did force me to come here and give my life over to this place and whatever destiny they wish of me. You used Soubi against me until I had no choice but to figure out a way to make him mine."

Seimei laughed lightly, but not in a mocking way. "Baby brother, you can't just make a fighter your own. Soubi belongs to me, and no amount of schooling on your part is going to change that. Ritsu can never teach you to be as cruel as I am." He moved closer to his brother, stroking a smooth cheek gently. "Ritsuka, I'm going to save you from this place. This school does horrible things to the most innocent of students. The teachers take the ears of their students." He placed a gentle kiss on Ritsuka's forehead. "I love you, Ritsuka. You're the only one who understands me."

"But I don't understand you, Seimei!" Ritsuka burst out, pushing his brother away. "I thought I knew you, that I knew everything about you. I thought you were a good person who loved and cared for people. Everyone has been telling me that I'm wrong!"

"Ritsuka, are you going to believe your own heart or them?" Seimei sat up and looked down at the prone body. "What does your heart tell you?"

"I don't know anymore!"

"Seimei."

The deep voice had Ritsuka shooting up. He turned and stared at his fighter as a slow smirk spread across Seimei's features. "My pet," Seimei greeted. "Sit down beside me."

Like an obedient dog, Soubi moved to Seimei's side and sat down on the grass.

Seimei patted his lap. "Rest your head here." When the head was placed obediently in his lap, he ran his fingers through the silken blond strands. "Ritsuka, you're the only one who understands who I am. Soubi understands only an image, a mirage, a part of myself I enhanced in his presence to garner his absolute obedience." He tugged on Soubi's hair, forcing his former fighter to gaze up at him. "I did not abuse him. Soubi was used to physical pain. It was the only tangible way for him to understand limitations and restrictions."

"You hurt him!" Ritsuka clenched his hands into fists as he glared at his brother. "I saw the scars on his back."

"Soubi, tell Ritsuka how you got those scars." Seimei's voice was full of authority.

Soubi didn't break eye contact with the man who had once been his sacrifice. "Ritsu did it. He taught me not to cry out or have my mind clouded by pain. Pain is only a sensation; it is the body drawing the mind's attention to a problem. Nothing more."

Ritsuka stood up. "Soubi, come." He stood up and stalked away a few steps before turning and glaring over his shoulder. Soubi hadn't moved. "Soubi, that's an order."

Soubi shifted and looked at Seimei, as if asking permission to obey Ritsuka.

"Soubi, stay where you are." Seimei continued to run his fingers through the long strands of hair. "Ritsuka, go back to bed. In the morning, you will begin to learn how to fight and defend yourself, but it won't be enough. Soubi can never belong to anyone but me. Tonight… I'm going to remind him of that lesson."

"Remind me," Soubi whispered, his eyes closing as a small smile played at the corners of his mouth.

Ritsuka walked away. He hated Seimei. He loved Seimei. He trusted Soubi. Soubi couldn't be trusted. His heart couldn't decide what options were right, what images were true and which were false. Only time would be able to provide those answers.

Author's Corner: Here's the edited version of this chapter. Thank you to my beta reader! I seriously don't know where I would be without KyoHana. Probably still making grammatical errors of all kinds and without spacers. Anyways, here is your nibble of icecream. I think this one is... mint chocolate chip. Yes, I'm going to start giving each chapter a flavor now. It makes me smile.