Title: Murderer's Touch

Author: I_nv_u50

Rating: PG13

Disclaimer/Claimer: Do I really have to say it again?

Warning: Slash!! Whee!!

Author's Notes:  Apparently I write my guys too feminine. Do they seem feminine to you? Personally I don't see how I could write them any other way because I've never been a teenage boy, no matter how much I'd like to try out the idea. So I apologise if they are too feminine. I really can't help it T.T

The Golden Dragon  ~  Hamlet's a case of real teen angst… I could never do that to my muses… they annoy the hell out of me sometimes but to do Shakespearean stuff to them – that's going too far :D A couple of breakdowns on the other hand, I'm all for.. Don't worry. They get together soon. (I hope) Neither of them have enough will power to stand up to something they both want so bad but refuse to admit ~le sigh ala sappy fangirl~ hope this is soon enough for you :D I only got four hours of sleep last night… course I blame it all on the rather intriguing stories there are online but… feh, you'd suppose I'd learn when to go to sleep :D … anyway, dun worry! Brynn and kylan will get together soon ^^ …. They'd better . thanks for reviewing!! ^^

ola  ~  If you remember it, please do point it out O.o; cause that would help a lot :D …. And …. You know… O.o;;; I had a point in there somewhere O.o; Brynn's a sucker for those coldly planned revenges, even when his sappy affectionate starved inside is telling him to cool down. Heh. It's all good XD I don't run out of ideas :D I'm more likely to put them in completely unrealistic situations which make people inevitably wonder why everything always happens to those two XD … and I do mean everything. I'm too fond of focusing on the main couple and trying to force them together with situations that would usually take weeks to happen, not hours like in this story XD … Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you found the time :D Me, I'm usually the one people end up waiting for… I wonder what it's like on the other side…? XD

etcetera-cat  ~  Whee!! House hunting!! I like doing that! Unless of course, the people don't tidy up their house and then it looks all run down and dirty and gross and stuff O.o; Not much more on Shaelin until she dies. Then kylan suffers another minor mental breakdown. Which inevitably happens a few days after this chapter, which means we're going to be time hopping soon :D Mwahahahaha!!! I have plans for Jesalis :D Unfortunately, they don't involve kylan, cause he's a bit too obsessed with blood… on another note, have you read the interview? Weird stuff there O.o; anyway, jesalis comes into it more in the sequel, which is gonna be a continuation of this story with the same characters, but different main ones… that ones still in planning though… but that's why she can't choose kylan T.T don't worry! I'm sure you'll like her chosen just as well!! (if you're still reading by then O.o;;;) thanks for reviewing, hope you do it again ^^

psycho tabby cat  ~  heh ^^ thanks ^^ I also wanna know. And my muses aren't helping, what with their lazy ways… ah well.. they're a lot better than some other muses I could mention but who will remain unnamed… :D thanks for reviewing, please do it again!! ^^

DARKMEW13  ~  Thanks ^^ Felt like I rushed through it somewhat but it doesn't look any worse than the others do, so I guess it's all right ^^ Thanks for reviewing, please do it again!! ^^

Annnndd…. I hope you all read the interview. It's got a few spoilers for Kylan's past… which might be quite annoying, come to think about it O.o;; anyways, that's about it. Thanks for encouraging these stupid muses to work. I know they'd be a lot harder to convince if there were less reviews, so read, enjoy, and please review!!!

PS: Yes, I am quite pathetic. T.T

Kylan's smirk faded into a genuine grin again once he got within sight of the proper stables. No more uncanny people in horse bodies, these were horses through and through, born and bred from generations of what had to be the best of the best in the country.

He approached a desk in a small office next to the main stable building and waited for the girl behind it to pay him attention.

When she noticed him, she perked up immediately, in a way that was not unfamiliar to the blonde, but that now seemed strangely unappealing. He grinned back responsively though, and flirted a while for fun before asking about a horse he could ride.

"There's one saddled for you over there," the girl said, pointing roughly in the direction he had come from. Kylan glanced over and blinked.

Standing by the fence, with a groom by her head, was a downtrodden looking mare, which seemed to grow more dejected as he watched. She had plainly been extremely high quality when she had been younger, but now… It was a wonder they hadn't retired her yet.

He turned back to the girl, trying not to let any expression show on his face. "Excuse me, could I request another mount please?"

She blinked at him, clearly surprised. "Well, I don't know… Herald Elan said…"

"Herald Elan," Kylan interrupted hotly, biting out the name, "has never seen me ride. Please. May I have another mount?"

She gave him another dubious look.

Kylan winked and grinned at her, watching her melt dispassionately, feeling nothing. It wasn't that she wasn't pretty, it was just that… he didn't need her.

Not like he needed Brynn.

"All right," the girl smiled and flirted lightly with her eyes. Kylan smiled back absently, his thoughts elsewhere.

The girl pouted, piqued by his wondering expression, and stood up, grabbing a hold of his wrist. "Come with me then, and we'll see if we can't get you something more appropriate to ride."

Kylan had enough time to feel disgust at what might have been a crudely disguised lewd comment and then the girl dragged him off down the stable aisle, pointing out horses who were a lot better than the old mare, but still dull enough to be boring.

Kylan sighed and pulled his arm away from her grip, planning on returning to one of the lesser evil looking horses that had been at the beginning of the stable. As he turned, however, his eye caught sight of another mare.

This one, however, was different from the one outside. She was a glossy chestnut, her coat gleamed, obviously in excellent condition, and there was an animalistic intelligence in her eyes, not a scrap of that creepy human intelligence Companions showed.

"That one." Kylan pointed to the mare. "I want to ride her."

The girl turned around, and paled slightly, although she made a valiant effort to hide it. "Um… All… all right I guess… I'll just go get her tack… Do you know how to tack her up?"

Kylan nodded and lifted a hand to offer it to the mare as the girl darted away. The mare snuffled his palm for a second before a tongue flicked out for the natural salt there. Kylan laughed softly. "Don't make a habit of it," he told the mare conversationally, nevertheless letting her continue. "This is only a greeting gift."

The girl reappeared, lugging a saddle and bridle with her, which she gave to him with a soft noise of relief. Then she glanced up at the mare. "She has a soft mouth, so don't jerk too hard at the reins."

With the small bit of advice, the girl scuttled away again. She was almost out of hearing before Kylan thought to ask. "Hey! What's her name?"

The girl looked back at him over her shoulder. "Firefly."

Kylan looked up into the intelligent eyes again and hummed thoughtfully, preventing himself from actively thinking about anything. While he was looking forward to proving that he could ride, he was dreading the actual ride. He didn't want the questions that would surely come. He tickled Firefly behind her ears and slipped into the stall to tack her up, determined not to answer anything that he didn't want to.

Once they were ready, Kylan led the mare out, relieved that her hooves sounded normal on the cement of the courtyard in front of the stable. That in itself surprised him, as he hadn't realized how nervous the Companions made him before. Except for Shaelin. Kylan doubted anyone could feel nervous around Shaelin, if they knew she liked them.

Shaking the thought out of his head meant that he met the incredulous eyes of Brynn as the Herald sat quietly to one side and waited for him.

"Are you sure you can ride her?" Brynn asked, sounding strangely concerned.

Kylan scowled at the reference to his riding skills, which Brynn had no right to assume, and then smirked. He mounted Firefly in one smooth movement, one that was certainly as smooth as Brynn's own practiced technique.

As Brynn gaped at him, he checked the stirrups, adjusted the leathers and his grip on the reins, and nudged the mare into a walk, directing her towards the Main Gate.

After a moment, Brynn followed, Devoni's ears flicking curiously. "Where'd you learn to ride?"

Kylan glanced at him uncomfortably, unnerved by the question. "Ca – … Someone taught me."

Then the blonde flushed, feeling Brynn's curious stare and fiddling with the reins to avoid it. Firefly was a good mount, and seemed extremely eager to get out. Kylan shortened the reins a bit.

"Who taught you?" Brynn asked again quietly, once they were actually in the streets. The guard at the gate had glared at Kylan, but hadn't made any direct move to stop him, probably thinking Brynn was all the chaperonage the murderer needed.

Kylan paled, and had to stop for a second, because his head was suddenly spinning unpleasantly. He leant forward until his forehead touched the coarse mane of the mare, ignoring it when she carried on prancing forward, trying to catch his breath. He didn't want to talk about it at all.

A hand touched his shoulder and he flinched away without thinking, averting his eyes from Brynn's silently accusing ones in apology.

"What's wrong?" Brynn inquired almost kindly, and tenseness that wasn't his ricocheted through Kylan, making him sway unsteadily.

He turned to stare at the Herald once his head had cleared slightly, but Brynn gave him a blankly concerned expression and Kylan wasn't skilled enough to read beneath it yet.

The blonde paused, hesitating. "I'm fine."

Brynn glanced at him wordlessly, and Kylan scowled in return.

"Leave me alone," he insistently snapped, and Brynn looked away agreeably, making the younger boy feel less mature and more pettish.

"Where do you want to go?" Brynn asked after a few moments.

Kylan looked at him, then shrugged, nudging Firefly between two carts. "Don't care."

Brynn sighed, and then Devoni abruptly changed direction, veering sharply off to the right. Kylan started to follow, then froze, jerking back hard enough on the reins to ensure that firefly threw her head up in protest.

"I'm not going there."

Brynn glanced at him curiously over his shoulder. Devoni slowed to a halt. "Why not?" Brynn inquired calmly.

The tone of his voice implied that he thought Kylan was being an idiot, and Kylan blushed accordingly. "I'm just not, all right?" he snapped back childishly, and kicked Firefly into a trot, careening her down the street.

A few moments later a familiar chime rang out behind him, and Kylan was unsure whether to be relieved or frustrated. Things were all so confusing lately…

"Kylan! Wait! Hang on, we'll go somewhere else!"

Kylan slowed Firefly down forcibly and glowered back behind him at the approaching Herald. "Can we leave the city?"

Brynn looked tempted, but shook his head. "Sorry. I need permission for you to leave before we can go anywhere worth going."

Kylan scowled blankly at the sleek brown ears in front of him. "Why am I being treated like a prisoner? I won't kill anyone now."

Brynn merely looked at him. "You expect people to believe that? You really are naïve."

"Shut up," Kylan countered, ignoring the prick of what could only be tears behind his eyes, brought on by what seemed to be Brynn's disbelief. "I wouldn't. You know I can't. You said so yourself."

Brynn sighed, and Devoni stopped, turning his head to block Firefly's route past him. Once Firefly had paused, disconcerted with the immovable obstacle, Brynn trailed his fingers down Kylan's face softly, gently.

Kylan melted.

"Sorry," Brynn whispered quietly, pushing his fingers a little further back to trace Kylan's neck below his ear.

Kylan managed to get his mind to stop reeling pleasantly when Brynn's fingers paused, and he looked up to see a thoughtful frown on the Herald's face.

Then the considering gray eyes locked onto his blue ones, and Kylan forgot to flinch away.

"What's this?" Brynn caressed the same spot on his neck.

Kylan remembered what Brynn was feeling, and jerked away, almost overbalancing. "N-nothing. Leave it alone."

Brynn cocked his head, lifting his brows. "Really?"

"Yea," Kylan mumbled, and cursed himself, unable to hold back the sudden blush.

Brynn smiled a secret smile that undoubtedly looked suspicious at the same time, and Devoni started moving again. Kylan held Firefly back to follow the Herald and his Companion, not wanting to be caught in the eyes again, not wanting to find out the reasons for that particular smile.

Unfortunately, the most disturbing thing about the smile was that it intrigued Kylan almost as much as it fascinated him. And that, in itself, was very suspicious.

Brynn led the way to what appeared to be a park. At least, it tried to be a park. There were trees and bushes and benches and resting places, but it wasn't anything unusually special, not since Kylan had seen some of the Palace Grounds.

He glanced around, then stopped completely, swinging a leg over Firefly to dismount, before realizing that he couldn't run off because he hadn't anyone to hold her. Brynn was watching him with hooded, curious eyes, so he was obviously going to be no help.

Kylan asked him anyway. Brynn shrugged. "I don't plan on getting off here."

Kylan scowled at the tone of utter carelessness that Brynn had adopted, then smirked, trying to put into his face the fact that he didn't care.

He dropped Firefly's reins near Devoni's front hoof, and darted into the bushes, ignoring Brynn's sudden, startled cry from behind him.

Kylan was actually a fast runner when he wasn't emotionally scarred, and he used that advantage now, sprinting for all he was worth after his quarry: another boy around his own age.

"Oi! Thaelin! Stop running you idiot! It's me!"

The boy in front of him slowed, but didn't stop, didn't even look around. Kylan felt a flash of foreboding. He skidded to a halt and waited, somewhat nervously. He was near the edge of the park now, and could see the carts and people crossing on the streets just beyond the boundaries. He knew they wouldn't help him if he called out. They'd pretend to be interested, but he had learnt from experience that no one came to help when you called for it… or even when you screamed for it.

Kylan shook the memories away determinedly and waited.

Sure enough, Thaelin's tousled black head poked up from behind a bush set just inside the park's borders. He was grinning the same grin he always had, which had been enough to scare potential bullies away.

Kylan smirked back demonically, knowing that Thaelin would approach. It was one thing no one had ever been able to train out of the other boy: his insatiable curiosity.

Thaelin stepped out from behind the bushes, made a great show of brushing himself off, and started swaggering towards Kylan, his grin playfully teasing. Kylan allowed his smirk to grow into a similar grin.

"Oi, what are you doing here? I thought you'd be caught." Thaelin called out once within hearing distance.

Kylan cocked his head and winked extravagantly. He needed information, and Thaelin was probably the best sort. "Me? Caught? You kidding?"

"Nah," Thaelin ran a hand through his disheveled hair in what appeared to be an attempt to dust the leaves and dried grass from it. It didn't work.

Kylan felt his grin grow more genuine.

"It's just that they said you didn't do your job right," Thaelin continued.

Kylan felt his body tense automatically, still not used to letting these people close without a fight. "Have I ever done a job wrong?"

"Well," Thaelin smirked, "I'm sure you remember the time you –"

"All right, all right," Kylan cut in hastily, not wanting to remember those times. They were embarrassing… and still held a lingering pain for him. "I meant recently."

"No," Thaelin agreed easily. "You don't fail anymore. But they still want to know why you haven't returned." The grin faded into a scowl. "Those rumors are getting serious, Kylan. I suggest you go meet them now and tell them…"

Thaelin trailed off, his eyes growing wider, his expression distinctly panicked. "Oh shit man. Shit. Damnit, you planned this!" Thaelin screamed.

Kylan winced. He had been so close to getting away with it all. He didn't need to turn around to know what had changed Thaelin's mood so suddenly.

He already knew who was behind him, whose hot breath was puffing against the back of his neck with accompanying warning snorts.

He already knew.