Is This Love - Chapter Six - The Devil Is In The Details
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Hey all~ Sorry for the delay on chapters, there's been entirely too much stuff going on (some but not all related to the release of Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days the other day, and my friend giving me back my Sims 2 disc). Anyway, here it is!
But before I forget, is anyone reading this a good artist taking commissions on Gaia? I have a friend who offered to pay up to 200,000 Gold for some art of Yuki for my birthday~ so if that interests you, send me a PM there?
As always, thank you to my reviewers and watchers, and leave a review if you like it!
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The next morning, Yuki awoke with the sunlight shining in on his face. There was no one else in the room; there was silence save for the occasional twitter of birds as they flew past his window. As he turned his head, he spotted the bottle of potion on the bedside table, and started to move to reach for it. The sheets fell off of his body as he did, revealing his lack of clothing, and something moved against his neck. His hand froze mid-motion as he tried to look at the thing that was there, and his hand ran across it until he realized just what it was.
The leather collar was snug around his neck, and as he tried to find the clasp on it, meaning to throw it into a fire, the metal buckle sent a vicious shock through him. He yelped, but tried again, to the same result. Finally, with an almost whimper of defeat, he turned back to the potion on his bedside table, and the piece of paper that was there.
'Dear Yuki,' the note read, 'sorry about the collar. Dumbledore sent it up this morning and said that you would need it for later. I think it'll shock you if you try to take it off, so it probably wouldn't be a good thing to try. The potion's here in case you feel light-headed, we already gave you some last night. See you later. Harry.'
Yuki crumbled up the note and threw it across the room, igniting it with a thought. As the ashes drifted to the floor, he stumbled out of bed and over to his wardrobe, dragging out clothes for the day and ignoring the spinning of his head. The common room was empty as he passed through it, and he glanced at his watch. Nearly noon – he made his way to the Great Hall for lunch, leaning on walls and holding tight to banisters as he headed downstairs. A sense of stubbornness drove him, and his thoughts were in turmoil.
He just left me there...him and that other guy, Cedric... Why me? This isn't fair! Just left me a note...didn't even bother to stay and see if I was okay or anything... His inner monologue paused a moment as his mind drifted to the events of the previous night; much as he hated to admit it, it had felt good... He shook his head. He just treats me like I'm some kind of pet...the rest of them too. I didn't...I don't want...
He was nearly to the Great Hall when the spinning of his head started to make everything go black. There was noise all around him as the rest of the school let out for lunch, and he thought he heard his name being called nearby. As he started to fall forward, warm arms caught him, and he felt someone shaking him.
"I don't want this..." he managed to whisper before passing out.
A short while later, he found himself coming around again. His head was resting on someone's lap, and the rest of his body on a hard bench, and there was the smell of food all around him. Slowly, he opened his eyes, first noticing that he was in the kitchens once again. The second thing he noticed was Draco Malfoy's face hovering above his, and the surprise made him sit up abruptly...for a moment. His head spun again, and he found himself lying back down with a groan.
"You should stay still," the other boy told him. "They're bringing some food...now." There was a small commotion, and house-elves brought platters of food their way. Before he could sit up to try and eat something on his own, Draco picked up a piece of chicken from the plate and lowered it to his lips.
Blushing just a little bit, Yuki ate it, and the next, feeling his strength returning to him slowly as Draco fed. For a moment, it reminded him of the way Harry had fed from him, taking nourishment as he needed...except this was different. Completely different...
When he could eat no more, both he and Draco were blushing, and he sat up slowly. His head felt better, and he thanked the silver-haired boy quietly.
"It's fine," Draco told him, smiling slightly. "What did Potter do to you this time?"
Yuki froze in the act of reaching for a glass of pumpkin juice. He could still vividly remember the pleasure of the night before, but thinking of it now, in the presence of the only person he thought of as a friend at the school, it made him feel....dirty. Used by the emerald-eyed boy who he was supposed to think of as his master...
"...nothing," he finally managed to whisper, looking away. There was a hot feeling rising in him, shame and the anger from earlier in equal parts, and his hands gripped at the table. "It's nothing."
There was a pause, and he thought he sensed a hand coming near his shoulder. The touch never came, though, and he tried to shrink in on himself even further.
He doesn't know! You don't have to tell him, just forget about it and get on with your life! Even as he tried to reassure himself, but he couldn't make himself believe the words. A smaller voice inside his head countered, It doesn't matter if he doesn't know, he wouldn't want you anyway, you're just a...
His train of thought derailed abruptly as arms wrapped around him tightly, surprising him. Draco was hugging him, and his arms came up automatically to wrap around the other boy's back. His heart was pounding wildly, and the misery of a moment before was chased away by a feeling of euphoria...
...he...cares?
"Yuki... I know what it's like." Yuki, about to ask, was stopped as Draco went on. "To have someone mark you, making you do whatever they want..." There was a moment of silence, and a shudder ran through the body holding him. "If you need to talk to someone...please..." The invitation trailed off, and Yuki managed to nod slowly, his mind reeling in shock.
When Draco moved away, they were both red and unable to look at each other, though there were little smiles on both their faces.
"Thank you," Yuki finally said, almost too quietly to be heard.
They looked up as the sound of students moving nearby reached their ears, and Draco finally said, "We should get to Defense Against The Dark Arts. You haven't met our Head of House yet, have you? Professor Snape?"
Yuki reached down to grab his bag as they stood. "No. I heard them talking about him though...is he really that bad?"
Draco snorted. "Maybe to the Gryffindors. And he's been after me lately, but...he's a good man. You should like him."
Yuki, about to reply, suddenly froze. Though his eyes continued to watch the kitchens, with the house-elves going about their business and Draco moving for the door, another scene was playing out in his mind. Harry and a group of Gryffindors were crossing the castle lawn to the greenhouses for Herbology, and all seemed normal. To them, all was normal, except...he could see the oncoming threat. Shadows lurked through the forests near the school, stalking his master, so close to killing him...
"Yuki? Yuki!" was the last thing he heard before his vision went red.
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I swore I was never going to end a chapter on a cliffhanger... oops? Like it? Review it!