Chapter 31: Balts

"Let me in."

Bor showed his teeth, lips curling back inhumanly far. He resembled a stereotypical devil this time, black body, pointy tail, goat hooves. His sharp fingers curled over the doorknob, scratching away some rust in the process.

"No can do, boy. I told you nothing good can come from visiting that room. I made sure to lock it up extra tightly this time."

"Fuck you, ass! This is my mind, and I won't allow you to keep any secrets from me!"

Bor flashed his forked tongue, like a lizard.

"I can do however I please. Because you see Alfred, I am growing stronger. Thanks to you."

"What…?" Alfred breathed, stumbling backwards as his eyes widened.

Bor chuckled darkly.

"I own you," he whispered, and suddenly the creature wasn't near the door but right in his face, a huge figure leaning over him and grabbing him by his neck. Alfred screamed as those fingers left burning trails down his throat, struggling to get free, to awaken, struggling even more when he heard someone call his name, knowing it was that child, he needed him, he-

Bor heard as well, dropping Alfred to the ground and making for the door instead. "Quiet, you!" he yelled, slamming his hand against the surface, causing it to rattle wildly.

"Noooooooo!" Alfred shouted, leaping forward and latching himself onto the other's back. If Bor touched even one hair on the kid's head, he swore he would kill the son of a bitch.

He still couldn't believe that demon had once tried to lull him into a false sense of security. He now knew not to trust him anymore.

But how to get rid of him when he wouldn't even remember this once he awoke? How to get rid of a being that lived inside your mind, that apparently fed of your fears, your memories, your dark thoughts and desires?

What was Bor, and how did he get here?

If only he knew the answer to that…

xoxox

Ivan woke up at approximately three pm, human daytime. Instead of waking up feeling refreshed, slowly letting the state of consciousness fall over him, he startled awake with a shock, muscles tensing and eyes flying open to shoot over his surroundings. As soon as he had established that he was lying on the suede divan in his room and that there was no one else present besides him, he allowed himself to slowly relax.

'Dammit, I slept again,' the demon thought.

You see, sleeping wasn't an absolute necessity for Ivan. Well, sleeping every day at least. Ivan preferred staying awake, as he could restore his energy by consuming it from his precious sunflowers (which is also why he was the sunflower demon). They were his life as long as he took proper care of them, and he made great use of that. The times Ivan did sleep were usually when he was ill or weak, when one of his own sunflowers underwent hardships (meaning a piece he had made a bond with, something bordering on an emotional connection or a relationship, which was the case for the flowers surrounding his house and the ones at school) or lately, when Alfred had taken a bit too much blood away.

The demon slowly let his limbs uncoil from the foetus position in which he usually slept, stretching his back like a feline to feel the joints pop. He didn't like going to sleep. Not only because it left him in such a defenceless state, but because of the nightmares he always got. Because of him, that treacherous being who just wouldn't let him be.

Ivan flung his legs over the edge and sat up, wiping the sleep out of his eyes, blinking the last parts of his feverish dream away. He swiftly got rid of the particles of ice indicating where he'd lain, so that it wouldn't melt and wet his makeshift bed. He pushed himself up with a groan and shuffled over to the thick black curtains, opening them slightly to reveal a brightly shining sun. After taking a moment to praise that big ball of light (and supposedly warmth) as he did every morning, he put on some fresh clothes and left his bedroom, locking the door behind him.

He had a certain task to fulfil today. Before he could though, it was time for his daily morning routine (or evening in this case).

Ivan tried to make as little noise as possible when he peeked inside Katyusha's bedroom. Everything was peaceful and quiet in here, his big sister sleeping soundly. Satisfied, he moved over to the other door and did the same with Natalia. She too was safely sleeping, small movements indicating a vivid dream (and Ivan hoped with his entire being it was a pleasant one).

Afterwards he went down to the second floor and did the same with Eduard, Toris and Raivis, making sure nothing was wrong there. Finally he went down the last two sets of stairs, heading for the basement where his new attendant lived.

Alfred was sprawled over the couch they had transformed into a bed. His feet peeking from beneath the blanket covering his teenage body, hair messy and a small trail of drool leaking from his mouth. He was gnawing a bit on his pillow, meaning he must be dreaming about blood or hamburgers, his eyelids shifting restlessly. Ivan tip-toed over to him, softly pushing him into a more comfortable position and resituating the blanket so that it fully covered him. Alfred moaned a bit, but didn't wake up. The Russian chuckled to himself as he cautiously let his fingers glide through those wheat-coloured locks, counting the barely visible freckles on his nose.

"Sleep well, dorogoy moy," he whispered, placing a soft feathery kiss on the vampire's forehead. Alfred mumbled something in response but kept on sleeping.

After making sure everything was safe, Ivan went outside, locking up behind him.

It was time to do something he should've done long before.

For Alfred.

xoxox

Alfred woke up with what felt like the worst headache in history. Disorientated and nauseous, he blinked himself awake. His muscles were tense and adrenaline was still racing through his body, for whatever reason.

Alfred frowned, thinking hard. There was something he was supposed to remember, something nagging at the back at his head, something extremely important…

Then he took notice of his surroundings, of the dark cellar he had been sleeping in. Oh, right. He was living with Braginsky now. That was probably what had tormented him in his sleep. At least, that is what he thought…

"Alfred! Are you awake?" came Katyusha's friendly voice.

"Yeah, coming," he called back, deciding to forget about it for now.

The last few nights had gone by in a flash. Leaving his home, getting installed in the basement, making appointments with people from court to check on whether they kept to their end of the agreement. Katyusha hugging him and crying, worry written all over her kind features. Raivis, Eduard and Toris giving him their condolences, as if someone had died. Natalia not really caring, as long as she didn't have to change her way of living. Ivan…

Ivan. They hadn't really spoken that much these past few days, the demon often going out to hunt for them all and to sign contracts and prove he was a dependable guard for the young vampire. Alfred hadn't had the time to ask him why he was doing this for him. It was an act of kindness he wouldn't have expected from anyone in the monster society, especially not from that strange creature he once called an enemy. Heh, once upon a time. What a twisted fairy tale this was.

Alfred wandered up the stairs and into the dining room. The Baltic demons were present this evening, greeting him with smiles or nervous nods – seriously, Raivis should get that trembling looked at. Natalia was sitting in her usual chair, only looking up to grumble under her breath at him before returning her attention to the newspaper.

"Good evening Alfred! Did you sleep well?" Katyusha asked, coming in with a bowl of fresh fruits and a special package reserved for Alfred – Ivan had drawn some blood from himself for the moments where Alfred wanted to feed and he wasn't present. Alfred didn't know if Kat was aware that she was currently holding her brother's blood in her hand, but as long as she didn't say anything Alfred wasn't going to start talking about his eating habits either.

"Where's uh, where's Ivan?" Alfred asked as casually as possible, taking his own seat and ignoring the glare of Natalia burning holes in his head. He really had no idea why she hated him so much, but maybe she hated everyone who wasn't her brother or sister, as she sometimes seemed to act the same towards Eduard, Raivis and Toris.

"He wasn't there when I woke up, but I'm sure he'll be back soon." Katyusha tried to sound soothing, but Alfred didn't miss the hint of worry in her voice.

"Brother has gone to take care of unwanted person," Natalia commented, sipping her coffee.

Alfred wanted to ignore her nonsense, but couldn't help himself. "What? You mean he's gone out to kill a guy or something?"

"Exactly."

Alfred laughed, but the room's temperature suddenly dropped to below freezing point. Not literally of course, seeing as Ivan was still nowhere to be seen. But the Baltics were now exchanging worried looks, Kat stiffening in her chair as she almost crushed her mug between shaking hands.

"Sestra, eto pravda?"

"Da."

In an instant, Katyusha was up and away.

"Where'd she go?" Alfred asked, confused as to this sudden change of mood.

"Sestra is worried," Natalia replied, shrugging. "Does not want Vanya to kill. But I support, if killing is necessary."

"Wait, you're serious?"

Alfred could feel the blood draining from his face when she nodded. True, he'd seen Ivan kill before. But that was for feeding, and even then he hadn't exactly felt comfortable with the whole ordeal. Now, with Katyusha reacting the way she did, and the way Natalia smirked as she read an article in her newspaper, he couldn't ignore the wave of dread washing over him.

"How do you know?"

She sighed, irritated. Turning the paper around on the table surface, she pushed it towards him.

"Read. And you should be thankful. Was your bully, da?"

His bully-

No.

Ivan hadn't.

Alfred would have been sweating if he still could. His fingers trembled when they touched the greyish paper. There, the article in the top corner.

Ivan had.

Teenage vampire Alice Vaduva found murdered in her apartment. The only suspect, Constantine Vaduva, was arrested last day and escorted to prison. Vaduva's adoptive daughters claimed there could be no other perpetrator but him.

And then the article went on for a while, telling the story of Constantine's crimes against humanity (hum hum). But Alfred had all the info he needed.

Alice was dead. And she hadn't been killed by her father.

He… He didn't really know how to react. True, Alice had bullied him for years upon years, assaulted him even. But to want her dead… To have Ivan kill her…

Oh no. He did not agree with this. Not one single bit.

xoxox

It was already past midnight when Ivan unlocked the front door. The house felt quiet, peaceful. Katyusha was probably working in the garden, now that winter was turning into spring, and he never much cared for what Natalia did in her free time, as she had some strange hobbies. He knocked on the door to the basement and stepped inside.

"Alfred? Are you there?"

Alfred was there. But he didn't exactly seem himself. Surely he didn't look as depressed and troubled as he'd been these past few weeks. He also didn't seem sad, or stupidly happy. There was a strange anger hanging over him, something new to Alfred yet somehow familiar to Ivan.

He squinted his eyes, wondering what it was that made Alfred look so, so…

Demonic.

"So. You're finally back huh?"

Ivan closed the door behind him. Yes, it was certain that Alfred was angry now. Yet Ivan could feel the little hairs in his neck stand on edge. What was it?

"Why are you mad, dorogoy?" he asked sweetly, eyes kind but stance predatory as he slowly made his way over to the vampire.

Alfred got up from where he had been sitting on the couch, eyes dark and lips tightly pulled back.

"Why'd you kill her Braginsky? She never hurt you," he growled, the creature flexing his muscles as some sort of silent warning not to come too close.

"Not me, you," Ivan slowly explained, never looking away, not even blinking. "I did it for you. Now she can never get to you again."

As if that had been a trigger, Alfred was suddenly on top of him. Ivan's razor sharp reflexes hadn't even perceived the fall, yet here they were, the smaller monster pinning him to the ground. It was both alarming and oddly exciting.

"I don't want you killing my old bullies, Braginsky. I'm not a damsel in distress, I don't need your help. If I wanted her dead, I would've done it myself."

"Alfred. You do not sound like yourself."

"Do I?" Alfred giggled, eyes glinting maniacally.

Ivan stiffened. He knew that sound, knew this kind of behaviour. But where had he seen it before, where? The memory was only just out of grasp… But something inside of him reacted greedily to these strange actions.

Ivan let his nose trail up along the other's exposed neck, arriving at his mouth. Alfred stilled, suppressed energy pumping through his veins. Oh yes, he definitely wasn't himself, otherwise he already would have pushed Ivan away. The demon knew he shouldn't be doing this. He didn't want Alfred to act like this, he wanted the normal Alfred, his Alfred. Yet he couldn't help himself as his own grin grew.

"You sound sexy."

As if his body had a life of its own, he quickly pressed his lips to the other's. Alfred didn't allow it for long, but at least he could finally get a taste of this again. Kissing. Such a wonderful sensation.

Ivan knew the vampire was himself again when he suddenly jumped off, racing to the other end of the room as fast as his legs could carry him. Alfred crouched down, back curled, eyes big and feverish.

"Did you- did you just kiss me? Again? After killing somebody?"

His voice sounded a bit hysterical. Ivan didn't like his voice when it sounded like that. Bad memories were linked to the notion of hysteria.

"You never have to worry about her again," he insisted, growing a tad agitated. Couldn't Alfred just be grateful? Getting rid of the source was the best way to deal with problems. That is what the general had thought him, all those years ago. One of the only lessons he wanted to remember.

"Get out."

"Chto?"

Alfred hissed. "Get. Out. And don't give me your blood anymore either. I don't need it, I don't need you. I don't want to be taken care of by a murderer."

The word stung, but not more than the hatred filling those beautiful eyes.

"…Fine."

What use was it forcing Alfred when it would only bring more hatred? He didn't want that, he wanted something else, something more.

He wanted friendship, happiness, that lovely spark he had experienced so long ago. He wanted Alfred to look at him like that again, call him handsome, compliment his eyes, feel at ease around him. He wanted to feel alive.

Alfred was no longer the human he was before, Ivan understood that. But since he couldn't bring that boy back, this Alfred would have to do. Still the same, yet so different. A stranger in a familiar body.

Making someone trust you was the hardest thing he had ever had to do.

xoxox

May those eyes of yours never see red again.

xoxox

He couldn't take it anymore. He simply couldn't take it anymore. It had been a whole week, for Pete's sake. A week! Well, technically even longer since he'd last fed directly from Ivan, but since exactly a week ago he'd run out of blood bags as well, and Ivan refused to refill them as long as Alfred didn't want to talk to him.

He felt weak and shivery all over, fangs sending non-stop pulses of need to his brains. It felt like if he didn't feed today, he would explode.

Luckily for the young vampire, Ivan seemed to be thinking quite the same.

That morning, after another night of splendid isolation, the demon suddenly burst into the basement. Alfred didn't even have the energy to hiss at him.

Ivan reached the other with a few swift strides, after which he caught his hands.

"Alfred," he whispered, and his needy voice sent shudders all through Alfred's body.

He let out a soft choked keening noise when Ivan shrugged off his shirt, and Alfred no longer had the will to stop him. Instead, he helped his partner get out of those forsaken clothes, focussed on the blue veins under a layer of thin pale flesh. Ivan pushed Alfred up against a wall and brought himself closer, eyes burning with feverish intensity.

"Bite me," he muttered hoarsely, and Alfred let out a trembling sigh before complying.

Ivan exhaled sharply, eyes fluttering close the moment he finally felt those teeth slip into his shoulder again. Oh, how he had yearned to feel like this once more, to be made whole, him and Alfred, connected into a single being.

Alfred's mind was clouded over, his eyes hooded and his body shivering with each drop of blood that entered his system. A wave of euphoria washed through his veins when he heard Ivan let out a moan, his sensitive ears transforming the sounds into something extremely erotic. But this was just part of feeding, especially after so long of going without a single sip of ecstasy…

Alfred groaned when his insides started warming up, triggered by, by…

"What are you doing?" he gasped, finally becoming aware of the hand on his crotch.

Ivan instantly cut him off by covering Alfred's mouth with his own, taking advantage of the moment to unbuckle the vampire's belt. He bit down on his own fingers and slipped them inside the other's mouth, distracting Alfred while ravishing his body.

Alfred moaned and panted, feeling that hand palming his erection while the other was captured between his teeth and tongue, and it was a heavenly combination of scents, tastes and sensations.

"Aaaaaaaaah-" he drawled, voice muffled by the hand and eyes rolling up to see white.

He slid down the wall, satisfied in every way possible, drowsy and overwhelmed. Ivan leant against the wall above him, panting as well. Then, before Alfred had the time to recover, the demon got up and left the room as quickly as he had come.

When hearing the door click shut, the young vampire started coming to his senses again. All of his senses.

Vanilla and an irony salt flavour in his mouth. A content warmth sizzling in his gut. The scent of arousal still hanging thickly in the air. And his pants… down on his knees, showing the evidence of his little outburst to the world.

Alfred took in a deep breath.

This had not just happened.

This had not just happened.

He had not just come by the hand of Ivan Braginsky.

xoxox

Tip of the day
Song: Don't Mess With Me - Temposhark
Story: He's my roommate - Niki-the-awesome (Someone has created a document announcing a union between Russia and America. Now the two rivals much find out who did it while trying not to kill each other.)

Words:

Balts: White (Latvian)
Eto pravda: Is that true?