A/N: Drizzt and co. are not mine. Everyone you've never heard of, and the
places they inhabit are.
Warning: Slash and implied rape, read at your own risk.
My thanks to the people who have sent me reviews. This is my first fanfic and you've been very encouraging. If you have a chance, please drop me 2-3 words about what you liked or didn't like about this story. I would really appreciate it.
Thanks.
*********************
Brionne reached his fingertips towards the leafy canopy above him, feeling every inch of his body stretch. It felt good. The scent of the forest reminded him of his childhood, before he was a possession. The trees were beautiful, dark silhouettes against the glittering starry sky.
He glanced over at his traveling companion; he seemed more at his ease here, head tilted back as if to catch a scent on the breeze. He seemed free, and strong, and if possible, more beautiful. The white of his hair seemed to shimmer in the pale light.
Brionne smiled softly over at him, feeling shy for the first time in almost two decades. The dark-skinned warrior smiled back, just a hint warily at first, then with real warmth.
Nala tugged Brionne's sleeve, breaking the moment. He glanced at her, read her body posture and knew what she needed.
"Drizzt? Wait for us a moment?" he asked, stepping towards the woods. The Fae looked like he would follow, but Brionne stopped him with a gesture.
He helped Nala into the woods, untangling her skirt when a fallen branch grabbed at her. He helped her with everything, like she was a child. He remembered how she had been before, how bright and gentle and kind. A confused girl from the country, forcibly bought from her parents for a reason she didn't understand. Brionne sighed. There was nothing he wouldn't do for her. It was his fault, after all, that she was this way now.
Leading Nala, he stepped back towards the road. The warrior stood there, looking relaxed in the starlight. Brionne smiled, stepping from the treeline...and suddenly saw the lithe black form pacing around the man. Nala made a little squeak, and he stepped in front of her, between her and the beast.
The giant cat yawned and bumped it's head into Drizzt, who reached down to scratch idly at it's ears.
Brionne's panic started to fade just a little.
Drizzt smiled softly over at him. "Brionne, Drizzt, friends." He said, making a hand gesture between them. "Drizzt, Guenhyvar friends." He felt himself relaxing, starting to smile again, when the animal came over to sniff at his fingers. It stared up at him with more-than-animal wisdom. He tried not to shiver, tried not to show fear. After a few moments the cat seemed to grow bored of him and went back over to Drizzt. The two seemed to have an only partially spoken conversation before the cat turned and headed for the woods.
Drizzt smiled at him again, speaking in unknown words. The tone was important though, and Brionne heard what sounded like approval and respect.
Finally Drizzt pointed down the road and asked a question. Brionne nodded and they started walking.
Tomorrow, he told himself, tomorrow I start learning his language.
********************************************
Drizzt followed the young pair, and found a smile on his lips. He liked the young man, he was surprised to realize. He might not be a fighter, but his love for his sister was apparent. He would have braved Guenhyvar for her.
They walked in the dark in silence until Nala began to tire. Brionne looked back at him, then motioned off to the side of the road. Drizzt found them a campsite and they settled in as the sky began to lighten in a small clearing with a stream running through it. The air wasn't cold enough to require a fire. They sat in a circle, eating from Brionne's bag of hard bread.
It was companionable, but Drizzt wished he could talk to them better. There was so much he wanted to know, to ask. Finally, after Nala curled up and fell asleep against Brionne's side, he came up with a question.
"Brionne?" The young man looked up at him, eyes bright with curiosity. He realized the boy was probably as hungry for words as he was. "Nala speaks?" He had heard her make noises, but none that sounded like words. He made the hand gesture that Brionne had used the previous day.
Brionne shook his head. "Nala doesn't speak." He said, sadly. He touched her hair gently, then picked up a small twig off of the forest floor. "Nala was broken." He snapped the twig in half, then pointed at his heart. "Broken."
For a moment Drizzt wondered what his life would have been like if he hadn't been his mother's youngest child, if there had been someone else to protect. Would he have left sooner or not at all?
He sighed and stretched out, trying to find a soft place to rest. Beside Nala, Brionne did the same thing. The glow of the morning sun was just beginning to lighten the horizon when sleep finally took him.
***************************
Drizzt was woken by the sound of a struggle. He came awake all at once, hand going for his weapon, eyes squinting at the morning light. Guenhyvar's back was to him, her posture alert, but the panther wasn't moving. Beyond her, he could see Brionne on the ground, twisting, fighting....nothing.
Confused and concerned he ran over to the young man. His beautiful features were twisted with agony beyond words. Drizzt could tell the pain was hitting him in waves, like the fall of a whip. At every wave, his body would buckle and twist. In between, he would have just a second to take another harsh gasp of air before the agony would return.
Dropping his scimitar, Drizzt moved to the young man's head, desperate to do something, anything to ease his torment. As he lifted Brionne's shoulders in his arms, the silver eyes met his lavender ones, begging him silently for help. Brionne's fingers went for his own throat, desperately clawing. Blood welled up in the shallow scratches.
"No," Drizzt told him, pinning his hands before he could injure himself. He tore open the young man's tunic, suddenly worried that some sort of poisonous snake or insect was attacking him.
What he saw was so much worse than any viper.
Thin lines covered the young man's skin, blacker than any tattoo Drizzt had ever seen, and slightly raised from his skin. It was like the thinnest wire had been fused to his flesh in beautiful and intricate patterns. The design was most dense around Brionne's throat, and just before every pain- filled convulsion of the boy's body, the strands around his throat would turn a glowing red, and then pulse that color down the lines to where they disappeared under his clothing. It was a thing of dark beauty, and it made Drizzt's stomach twist to see it.
And then as suddenly as it had begun, it was over. Brionne rested in his arms, panting for breath, covered in sweat. He lay there, too exhausted to move, for long minutes. Drizzt tried to pull his shirt closed, but it was torn beyond repair.
Finally the dark lashes fluttered open, silvery eyes meeting lavender again. "Thank you," he said, and the tone in his voice left no doubt to what the words meant. The after-shadows of pain and sadness lingered in the young man's eyes, but he shed no tear.
Gingerly Drizzt reached out to touch the lines at Brionne's throat. He expected them to burn with heat, but they were only warm to his touch, as the nearby skin was. He tried to calculate the evil that had to go into putting something like this on any sentient being, the effort and cost. He glanced at the younger man's eyes again, questioning.
Brionne licked his lips. "Collar," He said softly. Drizzt touched his chest, in a place with no lines. "Slave," the young man whispered.
Warning: Slash and implied rape, read at your own risk.
My thanks to the people who have sent me reviews. This is my first fanfic and you've been very encouraging. If you have a chance, please drop me 2-3 words about what you liked or didn't like about this story. I would really appreciate it.
Thanks.
*********************
Brionne reached his fingertips towards the leafy canopy above him, feeling every inch of his body stretch. It felt good. The scent of the forest reminded him of his childhood, before he was a possession. The trees were beautiful, dark silhouettes against the glittering starry sky.
He glanced over at his traveling companion; he seemed more at his ease here, head tilted back as if to catch a scent on the breeze. He seemed free, and strong, and if possible, more beautiful. The white of his hair seemed to shimmer in the pale light.
Brionne smiled softly over at him, feeling shy for the first time in almost two decades. The dark-skinned warrior smiled back, just a hint warily at first, then with real warmth.
Nala tugged Brionne's sleeve, breaking the moment. He glanced at her, read her body posture and knew what she needed.
"Drizzt? Wait for us a moment?" he asked, stepping towards the woods. The Fae looked like he would follow, but Brionne stopped him with a gesture.
He helped Nala into the woods, untangling her skirt when a fallen branch grabbed at her. He helped her with everything, like she was a child. He remembered how she had been before, how bright and gentle and kind. A confused girl from the country, forcibly bought from her parents for a reason she didn't understand. Brionne sighed. There was nothing he wouldn't do for her. It was his fault, after all, that she was this way now.
Leading Nala, he stepped back towards the road. The warrior stood there, looking relaxed in the starlight. Brionne smiled, stepping from the treeline...and suddenly saw the lithe black form pacing around the man. Nala made a little squeak, and he stepped in front of her, between her and the beast.
The giant cat yawned and bumped it's head into Drizzt, who reached down to scratch idly at it's ears.
Brionne's panic started to fade just a little.
Drizzt smiled softly over at him. "Brionne, Drizzt, friends." He said, making a hand gesture between them. "Drizzt, Guenhyvar friends." He felt himself relaxing, starting to smile again, when the animal came over to sniff at his fingers. It stared up at him with more-than-animal wisdom. He tried not to shiver, tried not to show fear. After a few moments the cat seemed to grow bored of him and went back over to Drizzt. The two seemed to have an only partially spoken conversation before the cat turned and headed for the woods.
Drizzt smiled at him again, speaking in unknown words. The tone was important though, and Brionne heard what sounded like approval and respect.
Finally Drizzt pointed down the road and asked a question. Brionne nodded and they started walking.
Tomorrow, he told himself, tomorrow I start learning his language.
********************************************
Drizzt followed the young pair, and found a smile on his lips. He liked the young man, he was surprised to realize. He might not be a fighter, but his love for his sister was apparent. He would have braved Guenhyvar for her.
They walked in the dark in silence until Nala began to tire. Brionne looked back at him, then motioned off to the side of the road. Drizzt found them a campsite and they settled in as the sky began to lighten in a small clearing with a stream running through it. The air wasn't cold enough to require a fire. They sat in a circle, eating from Brionne's bag of hard bread.
It was companionable, but Drizzt wished he could talk to them better. There was so much he wanted to know, to ask. Finally, after Nala curled up and fell asleep against Brionne's side, he came up with a question.
"Brionne?" The young man looked up at him, eyes bright with curiosity. He realized the boy was probably as hungry for words as he was. "Nala speaks?" He had heard her make noises, but none that sounded like words. He made the hand gesture that Brionne had used the previous day.
Brionne shook his head. "Nala doesn't speak." He said, sadly. He touched her hair gently, then picked up a small twig off of the forest floor. "Nala was broken." He snapped the twig in half, then pointed at his heart. "Broken."
For a moment Drizzt wondered what his life would have been like if he hadn't been his mother's youngest child, if there had been someone else to protect. Would he have left sooner or not at all?
He sighed and stretched out, trying to find a soft place to rest. Beside Nala, Brionne did the same thing. The glow of the morning sun was just beginning to lighten the horizon when sleep finally took him.
***************************
Drizzt was woken by the sound of a struggle. He came awake all at once, hand going for his weapon, eyes squinting at the morning light. Guenhyvar's back was to him, her posture alert, but the panther wasn't moving. Beyond her, he could see Brionne on the ground, twisting, fighting....nothing.
Confused and concerned he ran over to the young man. His beautiful features were twisted with agony beyond words. Drizzt could tell the pain was hitting him in waves, like the fall of a whip. At every wave, his body would buckle and twist. In between, he would have just a second to take another harsh gasp of air before the agony would return.
Dropping his scimitar, Drizzt moved to the young man's head, desperate to do something, anything to ease his torment. As he lifted Brionne's shoulders in his arms, the silver eyes met his lavender ones, begging him silently for help. Brionne's fingers went for his own throat, desperately clawing. Blood welled up in the shallow scratches.
"No," Drizzt told him, pinning his hands before he could injure himself. He tore open the young man's tunic, suddenly worried that some sort of poisonous snake or insect was attacking him.
What he saw was so much worse than any viper.
Thin lines covered the young man's skin, blacker than any tattoo Drizzt had ever seen, and slightly raised from his skin. It was like the thinnest wire had been fused to his flesh in beautiful and intricate patterns. The design was most dense around Brionne's throat, and just before every pain- filled convulsion of the boy's body, the strands around his throat would turn a glowing red, and then pulse that color down the lines to where they disappeared under his clothing. It was a thing of dark beauty, and it made Drizzt's stomach twist to see it.
And then as suddenly as it had begun, it was over. Brionne rested in his arms, panting for breath, covered in sweat. He lay there, too exhausted to move, for long minutes. Drizzt tried to pull his shirt closed, but it was torn beyond repair.
Finally the dark lashes fluttered open, silvery eyes meeting lavender again. "Thank you," he said, and the tone in his voice left no doubt to what the words meant. The after-shadows of pain and sadness lingered in the young man's eyes, but he shed no tear.
Gingerly Drizzt reached out to touch the lines at Brionne's throat. He expected them to burn with heat, but they were only warm to his touch, as the nearby skin was. He tried to calculate the evil that had to go into putting something like this on any sentient being, the effort and cost. He glanced at the younger man's eyes again, questioning.
Brionne licked his lips. "Collar," He said softly. Drizzt touched his chest, in a place with no lines. "Slave," the young man whispered.