Merry Samhain/Halloween everyone!
Here is the next chapter that I promised this month! This is also my first try at writing a squabble kind of confrontation, so please be gentle! I'm still learning…
And thank you all for the R&R! I really appreciate it! And cyber-hug to by beta and co-NaNoWriMo challenger!
'Thoughts'
"Speech"
Last Chapter:
"Yugi, drink my blood"
Chapter 6 – Healing grace
"Ya can't be serious!" Joey yelled, still holding his bleeding cheek.
Yami didn't listen as he tore into his own wrist with his fangs, leaving behind a mess of torn flesh and a powerful stream of blood, pumping from his veins.
He tried to force his wrist into the werehounds mouth, but Yugi turned his head away, refusing his alphas blood, even in his pain driven state.
The vampire king had had enough of the young ones refusal. He grabbed Yugi by the jaw, in a bruising grip, forcing his mouth open and letting his own blood drip into his mouth.
Yugi tried to push the arm away, but the blood loss had already weakened him too much.
As the thick liquid rolled off of Yamis wrist and fell into the young werehounds mouth, his eyes fell blissfully closed. His small hands grabbed the offered arm and pulled it close, letting the sweet, red fluid fill him. The pain in his neck slowly subsided as the ambrosial warmth covered the inside of his abused throat.
During all of this Joeys face painted a perfect picture of abject horror. Fear was dancing in his eyes as he watched the scene unfold, as if any moment now the werehound wouldn't be satisfied with just his friends' wrist anymore. The tiny hairs on the back of his neck stood up on their own.
His instincts were telling him to get out of there.
Joey shook under the strain of seemingly trying to force himself to stay put and not leave Yami alone with the threat in the room, while the smell of his own blood wafted to his nose like a sick fog. Even though he was putting pressure on the slash marks on his cheeks, the blood flow wasn't stopping.
Thin rivulets of blood were decorating Joeys arm as they added to the already present bloodstains on the formerly white carpet, joining the already drying puddle, that had been left by Noahs corpse.
The sound of Yugi lapping up the blood filled the room, while Yami watched in amazed alarm as more of his blood poured out of his wound. It should have closed by now, but the blood was still flowing strong, too strong.
He tried to pull his arm out of the grip of the young werehound, only for Yugi to pull the arm in closer, not letting go.
Slight panic came over Yami as he noticed how strong of a hold the seemingly weak wolf had. If Yugi didn't want to let go of him, he would have to possibly seriously hurt the boy to free himself.
Just as Yami was beginning to wonder if the young one had lost control over himself, Yugi opened his eyes…
The formerly amethyst colored irises were overwhelmed with a metallic silver color; the only trace of the once beautiful color that remained was a pastel hue around the rim, which only seemed to intensify the silver color.
Where the eyes once seemed warm and inviting, they now only held a creepy feel that had Yami bighting back a whimper of his own.
They seemed to be burning his very soul with a mere glance.
Even Joey was instantly terrified. His every base instinct was telling him to run from the more powerful predator in the room or submit.
He had thought he could take on the small wolf when he had first seen him, but right now he was pretty sure he would have been dead.
Yugis gaze shifted to meet the crimson gaze of his alpha, while he slowly moved his head back towards the wound he had been feasting on.
The young werehound let some of the still oozing blood collect in one of his hands, while he still kept Yami in his sight.
The vampires' instinct to fight of the obvious threat before him was starting to kick in. Even if Yugi had asked him to be his alpha, it could have all been a ploy and he was now using it against him.
He wanted to move and maybe go for the blade in his boot again, but with the werehounds gaze locked on him, he was almost helpless. He would be dead before his hand even managed to touch the hilt of the blade.
The young wolf slowly raised the appendage he was holding hostage towards his mouth.
Yami was already flinching, awaiting the pull of his blood being sucked from his flesh. His eyes closed in inner horror, when he felt something wet cross over his wound…
Shocked he opened his eyes only to see Yugi licking at the seams of the torn skin, as if he were cleaning his wound. The king was about to try and pull away again, but the werehound moved away from the bloody buffet long enough to let Yami survey the damaged arm.
There, where Yugi had licked the wounds, the same spectacle was playing out as it had on the young werehounds wound. Tiny specks of skin seemed to stretch out towards the respectively other side of the wound and pull both sides of the wound together, closing it up tightly. Within seconds there wasn't even a sign that there had been any damage to his arm at all where Yugi had licked it.
He wasn't trying to drink more of his blood, he was actually healing him!
Yami had no idea a werehound could even do something like that. From all the stories and tales he had heard he thought werehounds were creatures that could only destroy mindlessly. And yet, the young one in front of him was proving him wrong yet again.
Yugi tilted his head back towards the wound, asking if his alpha would allow him to heal the rest of his wrist. Still somewhat under shock, Yami gulped and gave a shallow nod; watched yet again, as the rest of his skin turned back into its former pearlescent perfection.
When Yugi let go of his arm he put his now free hand on his alphas chest, leaning in towards his face.
Yamis eyes were still peering into those silver eyes, while the young wolfs lips were coming ever closer to his.
The king harshly inhaled a shaky breath, unable to get himself to move away. They were only mere inches apart; their breaths playing an intricate dance in the barely existing distance between them.
Just as they were about to touch, Yugi tilted his head to the side, so he could heal the marks on the vampires cheek.
Yami exhaled the breath he had been holding, confused by the feelings the action had evoked in him. It…it felt almost like disappointment…
The vampire king felt how unstable the young one was in this position, as he shifted to one of the lower cuts on his cheek and wrapped an arm around him, to steady him. A soft blush colored his pale skin, but then again, who wouldn't be if they had this beautifully naked creature in their lap?
As the young werehound was finished with his task, he nuzzled the underside of his alphas jaw, trying to apologize for the harm he had caused. He once again had that impossibly potent kicked puppy look on his face, but with the now silver eyes, it didn't hold quite as much cuteness in it as it had earlier that night. The former pitiful look now had more of a hypnotic note to it…
"That was freakin' disgustin'", the older wolf said.
The king looked over to Joey, who still seemed to be incapable to comprehend what was going on. He still had a look of disgust painted on his face from watching Yugi lick up the blood as if it were his first taste of candy. A slight greenish tint to his skin was even visible in the pale light of the moon.
"He was healing me Joey"
"I know dat! Doesn' mean I gotta like seein' it! I mean that was friggin' gross"
"I wouldn't say that if I were you. The way the mark on your face is looking he's going to have to do the same to you"
"Aw hell no! No way I'm gonna let him lick my like dat!"
"Yugi can you heal him without licking him?"
A thoughtful and somehow impossibly pouty look crossed the werehounds face as he tried to come up with a way to do what his alpha had asked him. After harming him he didn't want to give him any more reason to throw him out. He may seem willing to overlook the incident now, but he doubted Yami would let another mistake go so easily.
He slowly climbed off of Yami and walked over to the older werewolf with short unsure steps. Noticing the cautious steps, the vampire stood up and walked behind him; giving him silent reassurance.
Yugi stopped in front of Joey, who inched away from the younger wolf. He really didn't want to be anywhere near this kid.
The silver eyed wolf stood up on his tiptoes and looked closer at the wound he had accidently inflicted with a thoughtful expression.
"Joey, I think you need to let him see your cheek"
"I told ya Yami! No way am I gonna let him lick me. It's just not right. He aint no pack a' mine. The healers can take care of it"
"Joey…move. hand. now." Yami ordered.
The werewolf slowly removed his hand, while staring down the other wolf in the room, as if the stare alone could keep him at bay. The silver eyes took in the damaged skin and torn muscles that were now visible within the gaping slashes. Licking the wound closed was out of the question, as the werewolf would probably fight him and he wouldn't stand a chance against him if it came to a real fight, but it was the only way Yugi knew how to heal others…
Watching as his alpha and the werewolf were bickering back and forth a sudden idea came to him.
Acting upon it in an instant, Yugi spit into his blood free hand and used all of his speed to quickly smeared Joeys cheek with it, before instantly hiding behind Yami for protection.
The older wolf barely registered that anything had happened, until he saw the werehound hiding behind Yami.
"Hey! What the hell did ya' just do?!" he growled at the smaller teen.
"He healed your cheek"
"What da ya mean he healed it?!"
"Touch your cheek"
Joeys blood stained hand returned to his shredded cheek, only to find a smooth layer of skin now covering the prior carnage. The werewolves' eyes widened for the fraction of a second, before a fierce growl tore from his throat.
He lunged towards the younger wolf, sidestepping Yami and lifted him up by his neck. The blood Yugi had collected in his hand splashed against the wall, due to the hard impact.
"How dare you lick me!? Filth like you's no pack of mine!" Joey growled out viciously.
Yugi closed his eyes tightly, too afraid of the werewolf to do anything, let alone contradict him. His breathing, what little he could still do, was no more than petrified tiny gasps.
A cold sweat brock out on his skin as the foul taste of bile rose in his mouth as his stomach seemed to want to flee from his body in terror.
Out of nowhere a clawed hand came up and grabbed the enraged werewolf by the back of his neck, yanking him off of the small werehound, who fell to the floor in a frightened, heaving mess.
Before Yugi managed to fight of the daze he was in from dropping to the floor a chilling growl rang through the room that made Yugi want to put his tail between his legs, even if he didn't have one in his human form…
"You will not harm him"
There, with an almost lethal looking grip on Joey, was a furious Yami, fangs protruding from his full lips, with sharp claws, threatening to pierce the delicate skin of his preys' neck, while his crimson eyes seemed to glow in bloody murder.
Where the once gentle vampire was, was now one of the most imposing figures alive; a true king.
Joey froze at the grip on the back of his neck like a pup, who was being picked up by its parents. He instantly whimpered and turned his head to the side in submission.
Joey was acting on what little he could do and the only thing that came natural to him as a werewolf. Problem was that the vampire wouldn't necessarily see it as a surrender on his part, vampires didn't really do the entire submission thing, but it was the only thing he was taught to do in a situation like this, to maybe save his skin.
He had never seen Yami so dominant before. He would normally be resigned and passive, but seeing him right now would have most alpha-wolves submitting. By the wolf god he was terrifying.
Forget the werehound; Yami was the one he should really be afraid of.
"You will apologize to him now"
With slightly panicked eyes and with what little breath he could get under the unyielding grip of the king Joey quickly followed the order without question.
"I…I'm sorry!"
"Good "
Yami let go of him and let his friend stumble away from him, as he closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. Only once he looked like he was back to normal again Joey gathered enough courage to finally state a question.
"Dude! What the hell was that?!"
"He didn't lick you Joey. He simply used his saliva to heal your wound by putting it in his hand and smearing it on your cheek", the king tried to state calmly, ignoring the werewolves question.
The vampire knew perfectly well why Joey had reacted violently, but here it was out of place.
For werewolves licking was an intimate thing that was reserved for only the closest pack members. Doing something like that outside of the pack or letting someone else do it to you, was considered conduct worthy of a traitor or a slut, since it often initiated courting between two wolves. Both were brands that no werewolf ever wanted to carry and getting rid of them was almost impossible.
But Yugi hadn't crossed that line. In fact, he may not even know what licking someone meant. True, he had been found within the werewolf territory, but it didn't mean he had also picked up their customs. He may not even know the first thing about pack behavior. Then again what did he know about Yugi?
"You mean he smeared his spit on me?!" Joey asked in utter horror, before he started to wipe at his cheek with his sleeve, as if something poisonous was on it.
Ignoring his friend for the umpteenth time that night Yami looked behind Joey at the young werehound, who was currently looking at him like he was the greatest hero in the world.
The boy looked around 13, but it wouldn't be the first time that he came across someone who looked older than they really were. In his mind he couldn't be older than 9, since that was when all of the others of his kind had gone insane and had to be dealt with. The real question was how close Yugi was to that age…to being put down.
Yami walked over to the young werehound and knelt down in front of him, so he could look into his eyes, when he noticed their color. Somehow they had turned back into the beautiful amethyst color they were before. He wanted to ask about them, but he had more important answers he needed to get answers to.
"Yugi tell me, how old are you?"
The younger opened his mouth to answer, when an uncertain look crossed his face and he looked up to Yami, hoping he would understand what he was worried about.
"You're afraid that you'll bleed again aren't you"
A quick nod was enough of an answer for him.
"I want you to try; if you start to bleed again I'll give you more of my blood"
"What! You just gave 'im a heck of a lot of your blood!" Joey protested.
"I think he needs blood to heal Joey…It's true isn't it Yugi? You can't heal yourself without someone else's blood" Yami asked, silencing his currently really annoying friend. He knew it was out of loyalty, but sometimes Joey needed to learn how to simply hush up for once.
With an astounded look Yugi nodded again.
"Ok, so now Yugi, try and answer me"
Yami was ready for just about any response he thought he would get to that question, but what he heard let him feel the cold touch of death on his heart…
"I…I'm sixteen"
16…..16….no, it couldn't be. He couldn't be sixteen, there was just no way! He just couldn't be!
Every werehound had gone insane by the age of nine. How in the world was this possible?!
His own mind was trying to reject the information it was receiving, but doing that while the very proof of it was crouching right in front of him was something even he couldn't do.
16!
As he finally started to digest the information, a sickening thought crossed his mind.
If Yugi had managed to stay sane all this time, then what was to say that some of the other werehounds couldn't have managed the same? Yami himself had killed werehounds for fear that they would later turn into wild, incontrollable beasts. He had killed children, children who could have been innocent…
With a shaky voice, Yami asked another question that could shatter his very being.
"Yugi…do you know other werehounds…who are teenagers?"
Yami lifted his gaze back to the young werehound, with an almost pleading look in his eyes.
He could live with the countless lives he had taken on the field of battle, the blood of both the young and old warriors on his hands, but children? They were a totally different matter.
Yami had only ever managed to sentence the two werehounds that were brought to his court to death, because he thought that would be a more merciful then slowly loosing oneself.
He had not raised the blade himself, but as a king, everything the executioners did, was his doing as well.
If that wasn't true, the information alone could destroy him.
He awaited the answer that could change everything, as the decisive word hung in the air like a lead weight…
"…Yes"
That's it for this chapter! Next time: See what Yami does about what he just learned and read about the spy getting back to Atem with troubling news…
Please R&R!
It tells me I'm doing something right!
And I'm sorry, but the next chapter probably won't come till December, since I am trying my hand at NaNoWriMo.
For everyone else who is participating: Good luck and may the ninja-plot-bunnies be on your side!
-LGK