CHAPTER 4
Okay, thank you to everyone who read and reviewed and faved and followed and everything., and just a quick note: This isn't actually slash. It's DxS, if anything. It may seem like there's slash, but that's just because I'm trying to make everyone as uncomfortable as possible.
My hooves clopped against the cool stone walkway leading us out of the square. The sun shone brightly and the sky was a crisp blue, not even a cloud. Humans bustled around, not paying anyone else any attention. One occasionally would notice me and do a double take, but they continued on their way after a few seconds.
The Man, now known as 'Vlad' kept one hand at his side and the other on my leash. He strutted around with an air of importance. He led me around until we reached a street.
Horses and centaurs were pulling carts full of people and goods. I've never seen anything so busy. There wasn't as many people as there was in the auction house, but the activity made it seem like there was.
I felt a tug at my neck and was pulled into the street. Vlad walked in front of me, his shoes clicking with each casual step.
Vlad leads me into another square. This one is full of horses and centaurs hitched up to fancy looking carts just standing around, tied to posts, carts empty. Vlad leads me to the largest cart. Its wheels were black, lined with blood red, the body of the cart was black and shiny, trimmed with the same red as the wheels. I vaguely recognized the centaur as someone who had been in the forest when I was really young, but I didn't know who. He smiled at me briefly when he saw me, but it quickly turned sad and he looked away.
Vlad climbed into the cart, still holding the leash. He looked back at me with an eyebrow raised when I didn't follow him inside.
I've never been in a cart. Or climbed up stairs. This involves both. I couldn't just run off. Skulker would find me again and take my manhood.
"Are you coming?" Vlad asked impatiently. I looked up at him, a frustrated look on my face.
"I'm sorry, I haven't actually climbed stairs before, y'know, with how I lived in a forest my entire life before I was dragged out and sold to some weird human."
Vlad scowled at me and retreated into the cart, my leash still in his hand. He tugged at it, pulling me closer and closer into the cart.
I lifted one leg and cautiously put it on the first step, then another leg. I placed the first leg into the cart , followed by the other, and dragged myself in that way. Climbing stairs is hard work with four legs.
Vlad smirked at my struggle and I glared at him. "You know, Daniel, I am your owner now. And as your owner, I command that you treat me with respect."
I looked at him, my face pulled into a nonplussed expression. "Vlad, where I come from, people don't own other people, and respect is earned, not bought." I narrowed my eyes at him. He only smiled.
"Well, it's a good thing you're not a person then, isn't it?"
I blew up at him. "Excuse me? I don't think I heard you right. Did you say that I'm not a person? I have thoughts, I can speak, I can feel, I can do everything you can do. In fact, because of the way you buy people, I think I'm more of a person than you are."
Vlad frowned at this and his eyes narrowed into slits. "You will respect me, deertaur. I bought you legally and fairly. If you don't stop this ridiculous behavior there will be consequences."
"In my home, it's illegal for people to buy and sell other people. I wasn't captured legally- there's no such thing. You broke the law. My 'purchase' isn't even a little legal."
"Daniel, human society doesn't recognize the myth laws. My purchase was perfectly legal and you are mine now."
"My name is Danny. Besides, what do you even want me for? The only thing I'm even a little good at is running, and clearly, I'm not good enough." Vlad laughed at this.
"Yes, clearly. But you see, you are a deertaur. No human has seen another of your kind in decades. You are a rarity, and I have collected you."
I growled at him. "I'm not something for you to put on a shelf and keep locked up!"
Vlad laughed at this and moved to the front of the cart, whispering something into the driver's ear. A human spirit was sitting next to the driver, flipping something around a finger and smiling. It hopped off and wandered through the centaurs and into the crowd.
All of a sudden the cart jolted into movement and I stumbled. Vlad chuckled and came back towards me.
"Just sit down, Daniel. Home is still a ways away." I glared daggers at the man.
"Your home. Not mine." I plopped myself down on the floor of the cart with a thud.
"It's your home now too, Daniel."
"My name is Danny. Why do you keep calling me Daniel?"
"It is the formal version of your name."
"Yes, and?"
"I prefer it to the childish nickname you used." I threw him a dirty look. If Skulker was uncomfortable with the thought of me having a family, maybe the same thing will work on Vlad.
"I am a child." I stared at the man, watching for a reaction. He only flicked his eyes up at me for a fraction of a second, before his eyes wandered back to the outside.
I sighed. What did I do to deserve this? I was just going to meet Tucker when I was caught. I was just minding my own business, trying to get away from some stupid branches. I am only a child and I was stolen from my home, my family, my friends, my life, and sold to some guy.
"I knew before hand you were coming. I have a contact in the auction house that tells me when rare things are getting in. You came in two days ago and they didn't sell you until you woke up. Your spot has already been prepared."
"I'm not a 'thing'! Wait- two days? What do you mean by spot?" Vlad snickered at me.
"My, you ask a lot of questions, don't you? But yes. I heard of your arrival at the auction house two days ago, called some contractors to fix up a spot in the mansion I think you'll find comfortable." I hmphed and turned away from the man.
I watched the world pass by outside. Sparse trees and crops grown in rows. We were out of the city now, but it still wasn't the forest. The centaurs chatted as they trotted along, ignoring their cargo.
Vlad Masters must be a very rich man. I don't know much about human economics or anything, but from what I've heard, myths are usually sold to higher class people, and they only have one or two. Vlad here is walking around with $100,000 in his pockets and using centaurs to pull his carts around.
The cart jostled over the bumpy road and Vlad grimaced. I gave him a questioning look and he rolled his eyes.
"We're almost there. This part of the road is horrible." Vlad winced as the cart bounced over another ditch in the road.
After nearly twenty minutes of being jumbled around by the holes in the road and an hour of a smooth path, the cart finally slowed to a stop.
Vlad stepped out of the cart gracefully, tugging me along behind him. I clamoured out of the cart and tripped on one of the steps, faceplanting into the dry gravel road beneath. I groaned and slowly stood up. Vlad was chuckling and smiling at me.
"Shut up." I mumbled. Vlad's face fell and he sighed.
"Daniel, I will not tolerate behavior like that. You will respect me. There will be repercussions for your actions."
"Like what? What more could you possibly do to me?" They'd already kidnapped and sold me. What more would they do? Vlad yanked me in the direction of the massive structure in front of us, his pace clipped and fast.
I stared up at the building before me. It was huge, completely made of stone, decorated with banners of green and gold. The plants were all vibrantly colored and shining with health. I saw other myths running around inside the building, some doing chores and others just walking around. A satyr was trimming the bushes meticulously, a dryad was checking the leaves for any sign of disease.
Vlad pulled me inside the building and continued with his threats. "If you continue to act this way I will take off your collar-" my ears perked up at that, "-but you'll have to be branded instead.I may have to remove your antlers as well…" I stopped listening to Vlad after that, preferring to skulk in silence.
Why does everyone want to take my manhood from me? I've been waiting since I was nearly five years old to grow these. I used to check in the mirror every morning to see if I started growing them, and now people have threatened to saw them off twice today. Besides, I think that'd really hurt. I can't feel much in them, it's like a really long fingernail.
And branding? What kind of barbaric thing is that? I can understand the collar if he thinks I'm his property, but a brand is basically there forever. If I'm ever caught again I'm going straight back to this rich weirdo.
I tuned back in to whatever Vlad was saying.
"...You'll be staying in the yard. There is a room that you can use if you so wish, but I figured you'd want to stay outside. The whole area that's fenced in is yours. Nobody else can get in or out."
Vlad kept pulling me along the long winding hallways, each decorated with those horrible shades of green and gold. Not after long, we came across a wall made entirely of glass, blue water beyond it.
"Daniel, this is Star. You may like her. She's a mermaid." Vlad knocked on the glass and waited, his arms down by his sides.
A girl about my age swam out of the blue, her tail a rich orange and her hair a beautiful yellow.
"Star, this is Daniel. He's new." Star looked from Vlad to me and smiled.
"Nice to meet you, Daniel." her voice was warped by the glass. I smiled back at her.
"Nice meeting you, too." Vlad tugged me away from Star, and with a quick wave,we were out of there.
"So you can act friendly, that's nice to know." Vlad said with a smug smirk. I rolled my eyes at him, opting out of saying anything for my antler's sake.
Vlad led me through the 'castle', as he called it, showing me important parts of the building and their functions.
Before long we were in a room full of books. They were stacked high on shelves, ladders on the end of each shelf. Tables with lamps filled the center of the room, and tall windows covered one wall. In the corner of the room was a desk, piled high with books and messy papers. A single lamp teetering on the edge and a tall, bald human with a paunchy stomach sat, scribbling into books with a pen.
"Lancer-" Vlad said," this is Daniel. Register him, please." Lancer nodded and waved me over to him. Vlad followed behind me and sat down at the desk.
"Name?"
"Danny." Lancer sighed.
"Full name."
"Danny Fenton." Vlad blinked up at me, a curious look crossing his face. Lancer wrote in my name on a sheet of paper.
"Age?"
"Fourteen." Lancer's hand slipped at that. I raised an eyebrow at him, but he just cleared his throat and continued.
"Classification?"
"What?" he sighed again, rolling his eyes.
"Species?"
"Deertaur."
"Purchase price?"
I had to think about that one a little. "$100,000" Lancer blinked up at me, then at Vlad, shocked at the price.
"Alright, that's all there is. Welcome to Masters Castle, Danny." Lancer smiled at me as Vlad lead me out of the room.
The castle was like a maze of confusing rooms and corridors, at least half of which were unnecessary. Vlad interrupted my thoughts with a question.
"So, your last name is Fenton?"
"Yes." my voice was clipped and short.
"Is Jack Fenton, that massive centaur, your father, by chance?"
"Yeah… How do you know my dad?"
"We were friends when we were younger. Is your mother Maddie?"
"Yeah. Did you know her too?"
"Yes. We were very close. but then I had to go to the hospital for a little while and we fell out of touch."
"And now here you are, enslaving their son." I snorted at him.
"Yes, here I am."
His voice was strange, carrying unreadable notes and mystery. I huffed and looked away from him.
How could I get out of there?
