Author's Note: I'm not very happy with this chapter. Not because of the end, but there's something I just don't like about it. I don't know what it is. It could just be me.

Mythaven

Recap:

And she didn't want it. She didn't want it at all. She didn't want to be depended on, didn't want to have to take care of dozens of pups, giving advice, but now she didn't have a choice. She'd known she'd be the one to take over after Nenne, but that had seemed so far away. But then she'd suggested they go talk to Akuju.

Apparently, Akuju didn't want to talk. He didn't want to talk so much that he'd sent a creature to kill them both—but Nenne had wounded it in one last attempt to save her pup, and so Kankana lived to take her place.

She had to make sure Joey and everyone got out okay. It wasn't safe. Akuju was much stronger than all of them had thought. And now he could do more damage, with the reptiles on his side—except for the dragons.

But a basilisk had always been decent in battle against dragons, and apparently there was more than one under Akuju's thumb.

Chapter 19

Seto snapped his eyes open and looked around sharply, then lifted his aching wings to peer around. There was no immediate danger. He supposed they were okay then. He had no idea where they were, however. Later, after a few days rest, he'd maybe fly up and take a look around, to see how far from Den they were, but he wouldn't attempt it now. He hurt too much to be able to take Joey with him, and he'd be damned if he left him behind to get caught.

He looked down at the blond snuggled up against him and sighed, then dipped his head to press a kiss to his forehead. "Puppy…"

"Nn… Seto…?" Squirming slightly, Joey looked up at him. "You awake? Are ya okay? Do ya need anything?" He sat up and frowned in concern. "Ya hurt anywhere? I can rub it for ya; I took a few massage classes before the book… Seto?"

The brunet could think of one place he would love the younger boy to rub so it could stop hurting, but he figured that it was neither the time nor the place. …Even if he probably could trick the blond into it. Groaning, he tried to sit up as well. "'m fine. We need to get out of here, though, puppy."

The blond tilted his head. "Huh? Why? Ya might need a little more rest—"

"Akuju might know where we are. We need to get as far away from here as possible before he comes to get you." The Dragon Master groaned loudly as he struggled to his feet, each and every muscle in his body aching as he strained upward. "Oh my God—"

"Ah-! Seto! You're hurt!" Joey hurried to his feet to help him up. "We should stay—"

"We're going, Joey," Seto hissed, glaring at him. "Whether I have to pick you up and carry you or not."

The blond winced a little, then nodded and looked down at his feet, wrapping his arms around the older boy's waist. "Okay. I'm sorry."

Groaning, the CEO turned his head to lean his face into the blond's hair. "No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you."

"…Seto? We're all alone," Joey stated softly, after a few minutes of walking in silence.

Seto nodded. "Yes. We are. But we'll find someone who can help us, Joey."

"…Yeah…"

-x-x-x-

Soumya yelped as he was suddenly tackled to the ground. "Ouch! What the hell?!" Turning, he frowned in confusion when he found a whimpering, crying inugami burying her nose in his side. "Kankana? What's wrong?"

She whimpered and continued trying to wriggle under him. "H-he killed Mother! He sent something and it killed Mother…!"

"Ah… What are you talking about, love? Who did what?" He patted her on the head in confusion. "Slow down. Take a breath. …Stop trying to dig a hole and hide in it, I'm not big enough to use as a cover."

"Akuju sent a basilisk after us and since we're not affected by their eyes, it bit Mother! It was going to go after me, but she bit it—Mother's dead, Soumya! She's gone! I heard her die!"

Soumya stood and began butting his head against her roughly. "Get up. Get up! That explains everything. Kaiba and Joey are in trouble. Come on!"

-x-x-x-

Walking was beginning to hurt. Well, he wasn't so much walking as he was limping, leaning so heavily on the blond that he was struggling to hold him up and move forward at the same time. They'd gone at least three miles, so they were easily able to take a break, but he didn't know where to go to be able to keep an eye on Joey and still rest. He just wanted to curl up somewhere safe with Joey in his arms, wrap his wings around them and cocoon them in their own little world. But he couldn't do that here; there was no guarantee that he could keep him safe.

Joey was getting much too tired to keep helping him though.

"Ah-! Seto!" Joey began to sag under the brunet's weight. Maybe, without the dragon wings and tail, he would have been able to go on longer, but with the added bone, muscle, and cartilage, he was just too weak—both emotionally and physically—to keep going. "S-Seto, I can't-!" He whimpered as he began to sink to the ground. "I'm sorry…!"

Seto curled a wing around him to pull him closer. "No, don't apologize. It's not your fault." Cupping the blond's chin to make him look up at him, he was horrified to find tears forming in his eyes. "Puppy? Why—"

"Ya wanna keep goin' and I'm slowin' ya down," the younger boy whimpered, reaching up to grab his wrist. "Always. I'm always slowin' ya down."

"Don't be silly." The brunet frowned and began to stroke his hair soothingly. "You're the reason I've been able to get this far at all. I… I'm hurt, Joey. I don't want to say it, but I am. I can't move without you helping me."

"We're… we're in trouble, aren't we, Seto?" Joey rubbed at his eyes quickly, trying to wipe his tears away. "I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't cry—it'll just take more out of me—"

The brunet knelt beside him and pulled him into a hug, kissing at his neck softly. "Shhh. Don't talk like that. You can do whatever you like, Joey, as long as it makes you feel better."

"I… Seto, I…" The smaller boy sobbed, clinging to him, before quickly pulling away. "I can't-!"

Seto let out a soft grunt as the blond pulled away, brows furrowing together as he got up and started walking. "Puppy? Puppy, don't leave me-! I can't protect you if you're not—Puppy! Joey!" He watched as the Golden One disappeared between the trees, then sat down heavily. He'd never thought that the puppy—so sweet and loyal—would ever abandon him.

But then, a few minutes later, Joey was back, pulling at his arms weakly. "Come on. I found a place— You'll be able to relax a little. Come on, Seto. It's just a little farther. We can both make it!"

He really, really hurt, and he didn't want to move anymore, but for that cute face, the brunet decided he'd do anything. Struggling to his feet, he couldn't help purring when the blond hugged him around the waist and tried to help pull him up. "Ah… Puppy, that hurts." He nuzzled the younger boy's head as he finally got upright. "Mm… Thank you."

Joey couldn't help a pleased smile, then began leading him to where he'd come from. "Come on, Seto. It's just a little over here."

"Yeah, okay." Seto groaned as the blond stumbled and quickly reached out to cling to a tree so he wouldn't crush him. "Nn-!"

"Sorry, sorry!" The younger boy bit his bottom lip. "We're almost there, Seto…"

"No, it's fine." The brunet closed his eyes tightly for a moment. His body ached so much he thought it would explode. He assumed that if it didn't do so soon, he would go from wishing he could just pass out (which he did not want) to wanting to die (which he also did not want). "How much farther?"

"Not too far. …Like the length of two of your limos!" Joey smiled at him hopefully. "You can make it that far, can't ya, Seto?"

Seto didn't want to say no, but he felt he could only take a few more steps. "Let's just take this one step at a time, okay, puppy?"

The blond looked happy with that. "Okay! Yeah! Just keep puttin' one foot in front of the other and we'll get there soon enough!"

And so they went with that plan. Seto would have to stop every few steps to take some deep breaths to keep from actually passing out, but for once, the other boy didn't seem impatient. He merely held him up patiently, waiting to help him with the next step. When they'd gone a whole "limo-length," the brunet groaned and leaned against a tree, wings sagging further and nearly causing him to fall backward. However, Joey was still helping him, and gently pulled him from leaning against the tree, intent on getting him wherever it was he wanted to get him.

The Dragon Master found himself becoming agitated despite all of his tries to stay calm when he felt it getting humid. But, instead of taking it out on Joey—because obviously, the blond did not control the whether—he merely clenched his hands into fists and dug his long, sharp nails into his palms, determined to get to the place he was being led to.

Hot. Water. Hot water. Hot springs. He'd died and gone to heaven.

Joey frowned and looked up at the brunet in concern. "Seto? Can ya stand up by yourself while I help ya take your pants off?"

Seto hummed thoughtfully, as glowing a little as he imagined different scenarios, but finally shook his head—both as an answer and to shake all of the naughty, risqué thoughts away. "I don't think I can."

"…Then we'll take your clothes off right here and then I'll help ya over t' the spring," the younger boy decided, pushing him to lean his back against the tree nearest to the hot springs.

The brunet watched as the Golden One knelt in front of him to help him take off his shoes and socks, a few fantasies dancing in the back of his mind, but mostly he thought about what Kankana said, and how the Golden One wasn't supposed to have to take care of his or her mate. He was supposed to be taking care of Joey. But now the blond was taking care of him, when all he really wanted was to be taken care of so he wouldn't be hurt anymore.

He felt like trash for making him do this.

Joey hesitated a little when he reached up to unbutton and unzip the brunet's pants, blushing a little. Sure, he'd seen the other boy naked once, but they weren't kissing and touching each other then—well, okay, Seto had kissed him once, but— "…Seto? Is it okay if I…?"

Seto tilted his head slowly, his head fogged with pain and exhaustion, and the humidity wasn't doing much to help him. When he saw the younger boy's hands hovering above his pants, he smiled a little and nodded. "It's not like we didn't have PE together, Joey. …And you saw me when we were staying with the elves."

The blond blushed even more and looked back at what his hands were doing quickly, then squeaked when he realized just where exactly on the other teen's body he would be looking, and quickly averted his gaze elsewhere. "I… I didn't like ya like then like I like ya now, though."

"Mm." The CEO closed his eyes and sighed softly, shrugging. "Might as well see what you're getting attached to, then."

…To Joey, that made no sense whatsoever, but he realized that the brunet didn't quite make sense often. Opening the older boy's pants, he hesitated only a moment more before he began pulling downward on the leather. He made sure to keep his eyes down and to the left, though. He felt as if he was taking advantage of the other boy like this.

Seto hummed softly as he stepped out of his pants, watching as the blond's cheeks turned a deeper shade of red. "You should take your clothes off too."

"Hah?!" The blond looked up at him quickly, eyes wide as if he'd just asked him to… do something extremely naughty. "Ya want me t' get naked?!"

The older boy looked down at him and raised an eyebrow. "You're coming in with me, are you not? Your clothes will get wet if you take them off over there."

Joey frowned, nibbling his bottom lip anxiously, before he slowly nodded his head. "…Yeah, okay." He stood up and made sure the brunet was okay standing, then began to strip his shirt off, at the same time trying to step out of his sneakers.

"Careful. You'll fall." The brunet sighed as the younger boy nearly toppled over, only just barely righting himself. "What did I just tell you?"

"Ha… Shut it, moneybags." The blond finally freed himself of his shirt and turned to glare at him. "I'm fine. See?"

Seto shrugged carelessly, grimacing as his aching muscles protested loudly. "Ooh, an old insult. I'm so scared."

Joey scowled, then huffed and began unbuttoning his pants. "Humph! You're such a jerk sometimes, moneybags!"

"Yeah, but that doesn't stop you from being attracted to me," the brunet replied, and his eyes moved downward as the younger boy began to strip himself of his pants. "Mm. Never really got a look at your ass before. You could bounce a coin off that."

The Golden One let out a squawk and turned to face him sharply, blushing brightly. "D-don't say stuff like that, ya pervert!"

"Hmm… Whatever you say." The brunet reached out for him weakly, just barely grasping his shoulder, then groaned softly as the younger boy led him toward the hot spring. "Thanks."

Joey helped him ease into the pool of hot water, then let out a horrified squeak as the brunet's arm slipped from his fingers. "Oh, shit! Seto!"

Seto resurfaced seconds later, however, and groaned—but this time in pleasure, as the hot water began to soothe his aching muscles. "Oh, God, yes."

"Ah…" The blond blushed a little as the older boy leaned up against the edge of the pool, then slid into the water as well. "…S-Seto? I… I can give ya that massage now. Would… ya like that?" His blush grew darker as the brunet began to purr. "Seto?"

"I'd like that very much," the older boy answered softly, then reached out to grab him and pull him onto his lap.

Joey squeaked softly, eyes growing wide, before he looked away nervously and rested his hands on the brunet's shoulders. "…Are ya sure?"

The Dragon Master's purr grew louder, and he leaned in to nuzzle the blond's neck. "I'm very sure, Joey. Just a while in here, and then we'll get moving again. Okay?"

"…Okay," the younger boy answered softly, then began rubbing the brunet's shoulders.

Seto moaned in delight and relaxed back against the side of the pool, gripping the blond's thighs firmly. "Mmn, that's good… Yes…"

Joey blushed again, lowering his gaze to his lap as he moved his hands down the brunet's arms, tail wagging slowly as the other boy's noises grew in volume. "…Ya… ya like that, Seto? Does it feel good?"

"Mn, talking dirty doesn't suit you," the larger teen moaned, sliding his hands around to cup the blond's butt. "Doesn't suit you at all. But I can talk dirty to you."

The blond gasped softly, blushing again, and tightened his grip on the older boy's shoulders as he began squeezing his ass cheeks slowly. "Uhn-! S-Seto! What do ya-!"

"Do you want me to talk dirty to you, Joey?" Seto hissed, moving his lips next to one of the blond's twitching ears. "Because I will if you want. I can tell you things that would make you blush fire-hydrant-red."

"Oh…" The Golden One blushed further, leaning back a little as he brought a hand to his chest. "I guess… I guess it wouldn't hurt, huh? While I'm massagin' ya. That would be okay, right?"

The brunet hummed and nodded, wrapping his arms around the smaller teen's waist to pull him closer. "Just my shoulders, please. My arms are fine."

"Okay." Joey began rubbing his shoulders again, moaning when he felt soft, warm breath on his ear. "S-Seto…"

"I could just eat you up, little puppy. Just gobble you up like the greedy dragon I am. I want so badly to spread your legs and lick your tiny little entrance, to shove my tongue inside of you and lather up your little hole with saliva so I can stretch you and shove my dick into you as far as I can." When the blond gasped, he couldn't help a soft, deep chuckle. "You're probably wondering what brought this on, aren't you. A few minutes ago, I was adamant about moving on."

The younger boy blushed and nodded. "Y-Yes."

"Because I don't think I'm going to have many more chances to tease you like this. I don't know why. I just don't think I will." Seto frowned and leaned his cheek on top of the blond's head. "Is that wrong?"

"Don't think like that, ya jerk!" Joey exclaimed, scowling, and smacked his shoulder. "We're gonna be okay, so don't think that!" He squeaked softly as the brunet's mouth latched onto his neck, his teeth catching his skin and pulling lightly. "A-ah! Oh…! S-Seto, what're ya—"

The older boy tangled his fingers in the blond's hair, cutting him off by pulling him into a messy kiss. He couldn't explain his desperation to keep him from talking, to keep him from worrying. He had a sinking feeling that he wouldn't be able to take care of him soon—not that he was currently doing a very good job of it right now—but his instincts were rarely wrong.

The blond mewled into his mouth and slid his arms around his neck, unconsciously twitching his legs together bashfully when the older boy slid a hand to his inner thigh. "Mm-!"

Seto trailed his fingers along his sensitive skin, smiling when the Golden One giggled. 'Ah. He's ticklish on his thighs if you touch lightly enough.'

"Nyeep!" The younger teen blushed and pulled back from the kiss, bringing a hand up to his slightly swollen lips. "…Seto…"

He smiled and caught his hand to begin placing kisses on his fingertips, then the back of his hand, and up his arm. His tongue flicked out to catch some of the water dripping down his arm, making him gasp in surprise, then giggle again. "Mm… delicious. You should giggle more often."

Joey blushed a little more, turning his gaze away again. "Don't be so embarrassin'!"

"Mm… so tasty… Maybe I will eat you up." Seto ran his hand down the blond's chest slowly, suddenly frowning. "Joey, if—no. Joey, when we get home, after we go on a few dates, will you go to bed with me? I'll make it perfect for you, I promise."

"W-why would ya ask me somethin' like that, ya pervert?!" He felt as if his cheeks would burst into flame soon, they were so hot and red.

The brunet looked up at him, absently trailing his fingertips over the younger boy's chest. "I just want to know if you'll realize that I care about you, and I worry that you never will. I know… I know you'll only ever have sex with me if you're certain I care."

Joey tilted his head, frowning in confusion. "Seto? I know ya care about me. I… I'd let ya have sex with me now, but I'm…" he trailed off, then blushed lightly and looked away.

Seto sighed. "A nervous virgin. I know."

"…Yeah…" The blond leaned his head against his shoulder, frowning. "…I dunno, Seto. I might, but I can't promise ya anything."

"That's all I need right now, then," the older boy whispered, before snarling and standing up abruptly, hiding the blond behind him.

Joey squeaked and looked up at him in confusion as he pressed back against the side of the pool of water. "S-Seto?"

The Dragon Master growled angrily, glaring at the translucent female figure in front of him. "Who are you?"

"The mistress of these springs," she whispered, becoming one with the water again, before reappearing on his other side. "You need to leave. They're coming for the Golden One. They know he's here. He's like a beacon for the darkness."

Seto growled loudly. "I can't protect him. I'll slow him down."

"My waters can heal anything—that is my special power. Please go, while you still can." She gave each of them one last, glowing stare before disappearing back into the water.

Joey was already out of the water and halfway to their clothes when the brunet turned. He did feel as if his pain had lessened, so he climbed out of the hot spring and trotted over to get dressed as well. "I don't think I can fly yet, so we'll just have to run."

"Uh huh. Yeah. Got it." The blond pulled his pants on and began scrambling to get his socks and shoes on. "Where we gonna go?"

"Away. And we're going to pray we find something on our side before Akuju finds us," the older boy replied, stepping into his pants. Grabbing his shoes and socks—and the blond's shirt—he thrust them into his arms and picked him up quickly. "Come on."

"Eep-! I don't need ya t' carry me, jerk face!" The younger teen blushed and crossed his arms with a huff, holding their clothes to his chest tightly. He squeaked as the brunet began flapping his wings, giving him an extra burst of speed, then closed his eyes tightly and leaned his head against his shoulder. "Seto-!"

Seto continued sprinting until the trees became too dense for him to spread his wings, when he finally slowed to a jog. Joey looked at him and frowned. "I can get down and walk, Seto."

"No."

The blond jumped slightly in surprise. The older boy hadn't used that voice since he'd been attacked by the incubus. Looking up, he saw the brunet's eyes glowing brightly, his eyeteeth having extended past his bottom lip again. He wasn't to the point where the air was crackling with electricity yet, but he was definitely on his way.

"…Seto, I—"

"Mine. Mine. Won't take you 'way."

Joey frowned in confusion. "…Seto, calm down. They haven't—"

Seto snarled as he felt a sharp pain in his back—right between his wings—and stumbled. That was enough time for a half a dozen snakes to slither around his legs and latch on to various roots, trying to keep his legs immobile. He twisted violently to keep from crushing his precious load and let out a furious roar, reaching down to slap at the snakes as sparks began dancing along his fingers. The snakes hissed and ducked away, writhing in pain as their bodies were electrocuted.

The brunet bit his lip as his back twinged again but struggled to his feet, fixing his grip on the smaller boy. "Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, FUCK!"

Joey grabbed his shoulders quickly. "Seto, calm down! You're gonna accidentally hurt me—OHMYGOD!"

Seto let out a yelp as the ground disappeared from beneath his foot and instinctively turned, tossing the blond upward. "Shit!"

Joey reached up and caught the edge of the cliff quickly as his other hand closed around the brunet's, adrenaline shocking his system into a panic. "Oh God, oh God! Seto?!"

The older boy tried to flap his wings, hoping he might be able to save them, but every small movement sent shockwaves of pain through his nervous system that made him want to curl up in a ball and cry. That would be decidedly bad for their current situation.

"Think of somethin'!" the Golden One exclaimed frantically, tears forming in his eyes. "I know ya got an idea! You're a genius, right?! Ya gotta have an idea!"

The brunet had to admit that he did have an idea, but he was wracking his brain for any other plan, because the idea he did have meant that Joey would be all alone with no one to help him. But he could see the younger boy's hand slipping with ever second he took to think. He'd never be able to find another solution fast enough.

"Joey, as soon as you get back up, I want you to run, okay? It doesn't matter where; just run as fast as you can away." He sighed when he was met amber eyes muddied with confusion and loosened the grip he had on the blond's hand. "Can you promise me that, puppy?"

Joey gripped onto his hand tighter. "Seto-! Y-you're not thinkin' what I think you're thinkin'! I know ya aren't! Ya gotta have another idea!"

"…There's no other way, Joey. Just get back up, start running, and don't stop until you can't run anymore." He lifted his free hand to his neck to break off the chain of his necklace, then reached up to place it in the other boy's hand.

"But—Seto—Ya can't—" The blond let out a whimper and tried to wrap his legs around the older boy's arm, so he wouldn't be able to let go as easily, but unfortunately he wasn't fast enough. "Seto!"

He could only watch in horror as the brunet's longer fingers slipped out of his, and it seemed as if his hand was falling away in slow motion. Seto offered him a small, bitter smile as he fell before he wrapped his wings around him. Joey winced as he hit a small outcropping in the cliff, and he continued falling, falling away—until he was gone. Gone.

He was alone.

Joey looked down at the necklace in his hand, and he remembered it as being the second most precious thing to the other boy. He yipped softly as his hand slipped a little and he reached up frantically to keep his grip. He climbed back onto the cliff and whimpered softly, then turned to look back down, still trying to comprehend that Seto… Seto was gone.

He was alone.

Joey turned his head sharply as he heard a loud hiss, then got to his feet and began to run, intent on obeying his friend—even if he was no longer there. He would mourn later, when his life and safety wasn't in danger. But… he just… had to wonder, though…

Would Seto have been more than a friend if he'd allowed it?