A/U. Kharl, successful business CEO, lives peacefully with his, er, housekeeper Garfakcy. However, when he is seduced by a local highschooler named Rath, their life takes a sickening turn for the worse.
Notes: Ummmmmmmm...O_O There's a LOT of skipping around from different days and times in this. It will often be confusing in the very beginning of the chapter as to exactly when the events are taking place, but it'll all be explained in a few paragraphs...I love confusing people...^O^
Shitsuren Kodomo: Ooooo, what am I doing wrong? T_T Do tell! And what, a SPOILER? xD I love spoilers...*-*
Ellabel: xD Ellabel-san!! Without Rath (no matter how evil and how good of a pancake he makes), where would the adorably angsty love triangle be? x3 *Cuddles the malnourished chibi Viaresu* So cute...and malnourished...and cute...;_; I LOVE HIM...AND YOU~
PikaCheeka: I love writing ditzy and naively uke Kharl-sama, yes I do. XD And Rath...I find him rather easy to do, far easier than Viaresu for instance. x_X Writing bitchy Rath comes naturally to me O_O;
Rin: Lol, humor is good. ^^; But not only do I suck at it, I don't think it really fits into this angsty little soap. x3; I have a few implied tidbits, tho...o_O;
Kweeee. Anyhow, I'm only answering actual QUESTIONS/things I feel I need to respond to...I do appreciate all the reviews, but answering all of them is too much. x3;
Everlasting
Chapter Three: Death
SEARCH QUERY:
Iryuuzaa+Rath
0 RESULT(S)
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SEARCH QUERY:
Iryuuzaa+Rath+Servants+Union
0 RESULT(S)
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The fingers on the keyboard paused, then, trembling ever so slightly, typed out a few more words onto the waiting screen.
SEARCH QUERY:
Iryuuzaa+Rath+death
1 RESULT(S)
Search more?
Garfakcy bit his lip, hard, and a warm trickle of coppery-tasting blood filled his mouth. He guided the pointer over the link, where it hovered, blinking impatiently at him. Why was he so surprised? Ever since Kharl had come home two days ago, excited and rambling on about Rath,
Rath. Rath. Rath rath rath rath...rath?
Garfakcy had had a bad feeling about all of it.
"Rath! He...look...see...Rath, there...?! Dang—Rath!"
The brown-haired boy shook his head violently to clear the cobwebs. Fragments of a memory, drifting about like windblown weeds. Useless and completely annoying. Almost fiercely, he clicked the link.
LOCAL TEEN SUSPECT IN MAIMING CASE
Tokyo, Japan—Police patrolling the Servants' Union sector late Sunday night brought in local high school student Iryuuzaa Rath, who is now being held on ground of serious first degree assault on a fellow student. The injured, Nakegawa Gil, suffered several serious abrasions, slashes, and the loss of one eye. Police officials have refused to release more information on the case, but have implied that Mr. Iryuuzaa is to be
"Hello? Anyone here?"
Garfakcy jumped, startled. He quickly pushed himself away from the computer desk. "Kharl-sama, I'm in the comp—" He stopped short. "How did you get in?"
"The door was unlocked," the taller boy before him commented calmly, brushing a stray strand of black hair away. He gave Garfakcy a fleeting once-over, then, seeming to find nothing of interest, turned his gaze to the room. "Nice place. Must have cost a bundle."
Garfakcy flushed angrily as that gaze swept over him, aloof and dismissive. "That gives you no right to walk in like that!" His fists clenched; whoever this was was becoming very annoying very fast. "Get out."
"Hey, hey, hey..." The dark-haired youth held up his hands, grinning disarmingly.
Condescendingly. Garfakcy's dislike increased.
"Cool it, will you, little boy? I'm actually here on...an appointment."
Little boy? Garfakcy repeated numbly, instinctively reaching out to catch the small square of cardboard that was flipped to him. He recognized it immediately: one of Kharl's business cards. And scrawled on the back in an all too familiar handwriting was this very address. Garfakcy stared at the dull, inconspicuous little thing as his heart sank another notch or so.
"You must be Rath." The words grated unpleasantly on his tongue as they were forced out, tasting dry, bitter. Garfakcy suppressed the urge to gag.
"Mmmhm. And you're the CEO's servant boy."
It was, of course, true; a simple fact of Garfakcy's position. So why did the way Rath said it make the simple fact into an insult?
"Yes." Brusque, quick, inviting no further conversation. Garfakcy's already frayed nerves sizzled dangerously close to complete breakdown. Rath, seeming to sense this, said no more. A tense silence filled the room.
"What's that?" Rath asked suddenly. He stared fixedly at a spot behind Garfakcy's head, and the boy realized, all too late, that the computer screen still glowed.
"None of your business." Garfakcy leapt toward the screen. "It—" But in two long strides, Rath had covered the distance to the computer, blocking Garfakcy from it.
Shit. Garfakcy glared nervously at Rath's back. There was nothing he could do now except wait for the other boy's reaction. His muscles tensed as Rath turned. The high schooler's eyes glowed, narrowed into near slits as he threw back his head,
Laughing? What the...?! But Rath was laughing, shoulders twitching in silent giggles. Garfakcy stared, nervously alert. Somehow, Rath's laughter was more disturbing than any other alternative.
"I guess I'm famous, eh?" Rath steadied himself, leaning back against the swivel computer chair. "Funny. Never thought someone would be doing research on me." The mirth died away suddenly from his blood red eyes like a candle being snuffed out. "Funny," he repeated, but there was nothing humorous about his tone of voice.
"Is it true?"
"It depends on whom you ask."
"I'm asking you. Did you do it?"
A pause. Rath surveyed the short boy before him, leaned closer as if to reveal a secret. "You really want to know? The answer," he smiled, "is—" His lips moved to form the next word, and Garfakcy knew, cold fingers creeping slowly up to his heart, that the word would be yes.
"Garfakcy!"
The spell was broken. Rath turned away, freeing Garfakcy of his cold, hypnotic eyes. As the highschooler walked out of the room, Garfakcy slumped back. A single cold bead of sweat traced its way down his forehead even as his cheeks flushed angrily. "Dammit," he swore quietly. "Dammit dammit..."
A low lull of voices rose and fell in the nearby rooms. Rath's, then Kharl's.
"...dammit dammit damn it all..."
Kharl's voice, high and happy, excited. Garfakcy could picture his master's face perfectly in his mind: pale violet eyes flashing with the newfound ecstasy that had surfaced during those past few days, face animated and alive.
"...Damn..." Garfakcy finished in a hoarse whisper, the furious wave of energy dying away in slow, flowing ebbs. The empty room responded with a knowing silence.
The voices faded away, heading out to the living room. Garfakcy slowly picked himself up and tied on an apron, heading for the kitchen.
*****
"Kharl-sama, there's something I want to tell you." Garfakcy stood, picking idly at a loose thread on the curtains as he waited for his master to look up from the company reports he was writing. Or at least he thought they were company reports. Garfakcy shifted a little closer to the table and craned his neck to get a better view while trying not to look too nosy. He still couldn't see anything, and edged even closer, careful not to attract the CEO's attention. He doubted Kharl would notice, though, so intent was the man as he scribbled words furiously onto the paper.
Since when has Kharl-sama been so zealous about writing those things? Garfacky wondered suspiciously, recalling the numerous complaints and bitter mumblings from his master about the dry, tasteless papers he was forced to produce every year. Kharl mumbled something to himself and smiled absentmindedly.
Most definitely not a company report.
"Kharl-sama," Garfakcy repeated, louder.
"Hm? What is it, Garfakcy?" Kharl didn't bother to look up.
Garfakcy frowned. He thought he should have his master's full attention while he was telling him this, but...he continued. "It's about Rath—"
"Rath?" Kharl's head snapped up. He leaned back in his chair, relaxing, smiling benevolently at Garfakcy. "Yes...?"
The same unnamable feeling in his stomach had crept back. Garfakcy continued slowly, hesitating, wondering if Kharl's reaction was warning him not to do this. But he had to.
"I've been doing some background study...on Rath. And I found out—"
"He is quite interesting, isn't he? I've been taking some notes on the subject myself—"
So that's what he was writing.
"—and discovered that..." Garfakcy scowled as he was interrupted for a second time. He crossed his arms as his master's voice chattered on, sickeningly effervescent, in the background. At last Kharl paused for breath, and Garfakcy quickly jumped in.
"There was an article I found on the net, about Rath. He was suspected of attacking another boy about two years ago, and the police..." Garfakcy trailed off, not liking Kharl's expression at all.
"Garfakcy." The man's voice and expression were cold. "You didn't believe those, did you?"
"Well, well..." He faltered, then, realizing the gravity of this situation, spoke with more force. "Yes, I did! And—" Kharl was trying to speak, but Garfakcy refused to listen, pushing onward before he could be interrupted again. "Kharl-sama, I believe those because I've met him. He told me himself that he did it—or he almost did, but then you came home and...and..."
Kharl sighed, the same sort of resigned annoyance that Garfakcy remembered from that night he'd come home after wandering for hours at night. Suddenly, the boy knew without a doubt where his master had been.
"Garfakcy." Kharl shook his head slowly. "I'm not going to listen to this anymore. I think you're confused about Rath...really. Go think about it and...please leave me alone."
"But—"
"Garfakcy!" Kharl never raised his voice, but he had now, face closed to anything Garfakcy might say. "Just...go!"
The boy bowed, a formality that had been discarded years ago. His mind whirled in dazed confusion and anger as he stepped out, wandering without a destination, thinking the same words over and over again.
Rath...Rath...Rath...
Garfakcy's dark mood wasn't helped at all by the sight of the computer screen, still on, and the article staring out from it. But he hadn't finished reading it yet...Frowning stubbornly, Garfakcy scanned quickly through the rest of the article. Something about a protest from the rest of the Servants' Union...Rath had been let off for political reasons, and the case dropped, since Gil's family hadn't been able to afford a decent lawyer...
He leaned forward to switch off the computer when a last line of unread type at the bottom of the screen caught his eye.
Gil died at 3:34 PM in the critical ward at Memorial Hospital a month after the initial maiming. Doctors say he slipped suddenly into a coma on the 8th and never regained consciousness.
Garfakcy clenched his fists, fear and frustration giving way to a bloodred anger.
...Rath.
End Chapter Three
O_O; 3:34 is when my school lets out. XD; Why did I kill Gil? O_O;;;;; Ummmmm...to have a good excuse for what will happen in the next chapter, I suppose. ^^;