Tears pricked in Yuuri's eyes and a lump formed in his throat. They were going to sell off the fairy's virginity like he was not capable of feelings. How could they do this? It was absolutely appalling.

"Now, who would like to start off the bidding?" Chaotic shouts and shoving broke out as people clamored to be heard.

"30,000!"

"45,000!"

"50,000!" Nausea rolled throughout Yuuri. "100,000!" Silence swept over everyone, and a huge man stepped forward. Judging from all the scar tissue on his flesh, he'd been in numerous fights. He grinned triumphantly, displaying missing teeth. He was so gigantic and rough, whereas Viktor was so thin and delicate… Images of grotesque injuries flashed through the Japanese man's head, and panic clawed up his throat. What could he do? He couldn't let this happen to the poor fairy.

"Going once, going twice-"

"400,000!" Yuuri yelled without thinking, determined. All eyes shifted to focus on him, and he gulped. Nobody uttered a word, only stared in shock at such a large amount of money. His face and ears were burning from all of the attention and humiliation, and his hand started fidgeting nervously.

"Going once, going twice-" The auctioneer sounded mildly amused. "Sold to the man with the striped shirt!"

Shaking, Yuuri commanded his legs to carry him to the stand. Viktor stepped down gingerly and placed his kimono-covered hand in the dark-haired man's without making eye contact. Now with the garment touching his skin, the human could tell that it wasn't really silk and was only cheap imitation fabric. The pair walked over to the entrance of the brothel. They both let go and then pulled off their shoes. A pair of geta sandals and black boots joined the line of footwear. Some looked like they had been there for years, dirty and faded.

Viktor took Yuuri's hand again and then pushed the door open, leading the human into the dark brothel. Outside, the noises of the auction continued. The fairy's face was hard to read underneath the smile that was clearly false. The warmth of his fingers was sending what felt like sparks through the Japanese man's system. He was afraid that the lovely creature beside him could feel how fast his pulse was racing, how much his palms were sweating. Through his dream-like state, Yuuri could register that something felt… off about the way those fingers gripped his own, although he was feeling too dizzy to be able to deduce exactly what it was.

The hallways were cramped and had a low ceiling, dimly lit by sporadically placed candles on the floor. On either side were curtained-off rooms and muffled animalistic grunts were drifting from within some of them. The air was filled with the scent of incense, which was doing little to mask the smell of sweat and must and mold. Yuuri's nose burned and he sneezed, only barely managing to cover his mouth and nose in time. He thought he might die of shame.

"Bless you," Viktor told him kindly. The two of them came to a stop in front of a thick purple curtain. The fairy moved it aside and guided Yuuri into the tiny room behind it. The only furniture inside was a bed with scarlet comforters and a side table with drawers. The human's heart was racing in trepidation as the other man drew the curtain closed. What should he do now?

Viktor kneeled down on the bed gracefully, then beckoned Yuuri over. Sick to his stomach, the other man obliged. The fairy laid down and then gently pulled the human on top of him, his wings splayed out and his hair everywhere. Yuuri's legs were straddling his pelvis, and seeing the fairy right there in front of him felt unreal, like a dream. But in his dreams, he hadn't felt this ill. Against his will, he felt his groin stir slightly. Viktor's fingers, still wrapped in the sleeves, began fumbling with the buttons on his tan vest. The Japanese man was too nervous and frightened to move. His eyes shifted down to look at the fairy's face.

The smile was still present, but misery and fear was evident in those aquamarine eyes. The crudely applied powder on his face was growing thin in some places, and the rouge was too heavy over his cheekbones. His crimson lipstick and smoky eyeshadow were smudged, increasing his appearance of naivety. This felt so wrong. Viktor looked just as bewildered and scared as Yuuri was. The fairy began undoing Yuuri's vest, and the human tried to work up the courage to say something. His top opened up, and his bare chest was exposed. Slender fingers moved down to his trousers. The digits were trembling.

Panic surged up inside of a Yuuri like a tidal wave.

"Stop!" he cried. Viktor's movements immediately came to a halt. A tear rolled down the dark-haired man's cheek. "I can't- I can't do this to you." He had only wanted to save the fairy, not steal something so precious and intimate from him. Viktor had soft confusion in his eyes.

"Why would you care about a fairy?" he asked with counterfeit lightness and a certain evenness about his tone.

"You're a person too! You have feelings.." Yuuri hated the tremor in his voice, hated the fat droplets of water dripping onto the fairy's kimono.

"But a fairy's feelings don't matter," Viktor recited.

"Well they do to me!" the Japanese man sobbed, and took off his fogged-up glasses to rub his eyes. The silver-haired fairy looked as if he had no idea what to do, surprised.

"Please lie down, sir."

Yuuri obeyed, sniffling pathetically. Viktor tenderly pulled worn blankets over him and gently took the glasses from the human's hand to set them on the side table.

"I'm sorry that I failed you," he whispered quietly, still smiling.

"You didn't fail me!" Yuuri argued tiredly. The long day of traversing the city was catching up to him, and he could feel his eyelids growing heavier with every passing second. The fairy laid down beside him as he drifted off into a troubled sleep.