Pairings: BernardoXGian, IvanXGian, LuchinoXGian, GiulioXGian, AobaXClear, AobaXVirusXTrip, AobaXRen, AobaXKoujaku, AobaXNoiz, AobaXBakshi, VirusXTripXGian, AobaXGian
Warning: Contains minor hints of rape, violence, extreme swearing and heavy scenes of smut.
Disclaimer: I do not own Dramatical Murder or Lucky Dog 1. All rights go to the respectful owners
Chapter 26 - None to the Count
Mink sighed as the three of them got out of the car. They had all arrived safely at the farm without having to stop along the way because of traffic lights. Mink noticed that less and less cars had traveled the road they were on the closer they got to the country side. Noiz had been busy sending out random messages through his wrist coil during the drive down there.
The janitor had told them that there would not be anybody to help escort them to the farm but he tried to reassure them by telling them how dependable he could be should there be any problems along the way.
Ragtliffe was not your ordinary human being and Mink was finding it hard not trying to compare the man to Noiz. The way he smiled gave him an uneasy feeling while at the same time, convinced him that they could believe in what the man said.
When they had arrived at the farm, it was as Mink had been expecting. A regular farm with regular animals that needed to be tended for. The pigs were kept inside a large reddish-brown building that had fenced-in pens for the pigs to stay in. The ground itself was also what he had expected; muddy.
Luckily for him, he was wearing boots while Noiz came prepared with his own pair. He had to admire the younger man for coming prepared for just about anything. "Well then, shall we see how my little piglets are?" The janitor asked them. He was already dressed for the occasion and was wearing a black apron-like cover that was sure to shield his jacket from getting dirty.
Mink still could not get used to how someone could wear such a puffy jacket with their hood on but then again, he had seen the weirder fashions on their own island and thought better than to judge. The man gave them each an apron and a pair of gloves. He then put a medical mask over his face so that it covered only his mouth.
"What are we really going to do? This can't be the only reason we were coming here." Noiz asked him. It was true that anybody would be able to see that Bernardo did not look fit to really be on a farm and seemed more attuned to working on electronics.
The janitor chuckled and took off the black gloves he had already been wearing and put on the ones that looked more appropriate for the job of handling animals. "True. You're here to fill in for mister Ortolani. And because he is very skillful at what he does, he usually only helps with fixing my phone wires."
"You two will be helping both with just my animals. I noticed your friend here seems quite capable to pull this off." The janitor was looking in Mink's direction as though to point him out as the cause of why they had to do the work.
Once Noiz received the answer he wanted, the janitor went straight for the building that was next to the pig's pen. It was old fashioned yet classic and modern at the same time but only had two windows on either side of the door. It almost looked abandoned at first glance and one wouldn't know that it was actually being used as a livable space.
"Wait here for me." The man stated and proceeded to go inside of the building, leaving the other two behind outside.
Mink could hear the squealing of the pigs and the different kinds of grunting noises they were making. He hadn't been to an American type of farm so it was all new to him as he had only grown accustomed to his own way of living when his tribe were still alive. He took off the gray jacket that he had been wearing and put the apron on as well as the black gloves.
The gloves he had worn back on the island had been long since gone but he kept the jacket as a bit of a memory since it was a part of the image he had when he first met Aoba. Since meeting the younger man, he felt as though part of him had disappeared while at the same time, gained a new image for himself.
He had gotten rid of the shackles that were around his wrists and neck but he kept a hold of the jacket. He set the clothing aside and got to work in tying the apron strings around his back. The bracelets around his wrists just barely fit with the gloves.
Noiz was the last to get ready and did not have to take off much except for his office shoes and suit and tie. He set his own clothing items aside as well and put on his boots that he had packed away in his suit case. He kept his watch on however as it was his backup coil should something happen to the other one.
He noticed that Mink was watching him with a stern look, the same he had on when they had first met each other. "Now what." Mink could see that even though the man was different compared to three years ago, he still had the same brazen attitude that he had when they were together as a group.
"Nothing." Mink said and began to walk around, examining the area.
There were two tractors that were sitting side-by-side in one of the nearby sheds and looked as though they had not been used in some time. there were lots of things that looked like they had not been used in years which got him to thinking as to why they were asked to help at a pig farm that seemed to have not bee used as much as the janitor made it out to look.
Cobwebs covered the corners of the building and along the dusty ground of the shed while some of them ran along the sides of the tractors. As he went to look inside a bit closer, the man appeared back outside. "I'm sorry to keep you waiting, but I just had to tell mister Ortolani that we had arrived safely so he won't have to worry about his little 'secret' getting out."
The secret, being them, was to remain secret until an appropriate time for them to come out into the open. Bernardo clearly wanted them to be kept hidden at least until the right moment for when things got ugly so as to show that they had a hidden trick up their sleeves.
When Mink and Noiz didn't say anything to this, the janitor continued. "This is all that I ask for you fine men to do for me..." Ragtliffe held up a large bag that was mixed with oats and seeds. He then kicked a bucket of water with his foot and then another bucket that had what Mink thought to be broth, with his other foot.
"You will be mixing all of this into one tub, over there." The janitor jabbed his head in the direction of the large tub-like container that looked like it was used mainly for washing things such as clothing.
"And then we feed them and go home. Simple, isn't it?" He smiled and set the bag down, pulling a small pocket knife from his apron.
He cut the bag open from one side to the other and then picked the bag up again, handing it to Mink. "Hmph, good luck." Tori, who had been quietly witnessing the event, flapped his large wings and took off for a nearby branch of a tree that looked to be on its last bit of life.
Ragtliffe watched the bird in fascination for a bit before returning to handing out the buckets to Mink and Noiz. Mink was given the bag as well as the bucket of water while Noiz only had to carry the bucket with the mixed food. It contained both corn and carrots with what looked to be very fine, chopped broccoli.
The smell was incredible once it reached Noiz's nose and the smell of it made his eyebrows pinch together as his way of being disgusted. But he did not say anything and followed Mink over to the large tub while Ragtliffe went inside the large pig pen of a building.
Mink poured the oats and seeds in first and then the water. After that, it was Noiz's turn to pour in the broth-like substance and they both waited for it to melt in together. The janitor came back out and walked over to them, holding a giant iron rod.
He gave it to Mink obviously believing him to be the stronger out of the two of them. Mink held it firmly in his hands and punctured the top of the slop of food. He had not done something like this before so the technique of mixing food in such a way was new to him.
Mink leaned forward and pushed on the rod so that it reached the bottom of the tub. He did this several times before the janitor stopped him and showed him that he now had to turn the rod as though stirring a pot. Mink sighed and put in more of his power into stirring the iron rod.
It was a messy bowl of goop that was unfortunately sticking together because of the dry oats mixed in. But the water was also helping to keep it apart. When the tub of goop was slowly becoming easier to stir, Mink stopped and let the iron rod sit a while in the middle of the slimy food before finally pulling it out of the tub.
"A splendid job, you two. Now let's go feed them." With the help of Mink, the janitor picked up one side of the tub with Mink on the other side.
They carried it with a bit of help from Noiz and stepped inside the wall-less building that was the pig pen. There were at least four rows of pig pens on either side of them, resulting in eight in total but they were filled with quite a lot of pigs.
Some of the pigs were lying down while others were still little piglets running about around the mothers. Ragtliffe and Mink carried the tub over to one of the pens and set the tub down gently.
The man then pulled out what looked to be a large-sized ladle out of his apron pocket and scooped up some of the slop. It made a bit of a splash to Noiz's boots and most likely on Mink's as well. The janitor did this for all the pens and although it did not look like it would be enough it also did not look like it would end.
In short, it looked to be the right amount for each pen with a bit left over.
Ragtliffe and Mink continued to hold the bag over each and every pen while Noiz was supposed to shoo some of the pigs out of the way so that they could pour it out. After doing this for each pen, Ragtliffe stood back to admire the work.
"I'm surprised we managed to get it done just in time." The man said and was looking at a watch wrapped around his wrist.
Noiz and Mink followed the man outside and waiting for them was Ivan and Giulio. Alongside them were a bodyguard both dressed in the way that their respective bosses were dressed.
Mink collected his coat and his gloves back from Ragtliffe who had picked their clothing up off of the ground. They washed their arms and hands before putting their things back on. "Oi! Hurry up!" Ivan called out to them.
They looked at each other before following the man's demand. Neither of them said anything unless they were spoken to as they did not seem all too thrilled about talking to begin with and were soon riding in silence on their way back to the hotel.
Back at the hotel, Bernardo and Gian were busy with the phones as usual but with Gian nodding off and on while doing a bit of paperwork at the coffee table that was in the center of the room. Luchino had come in earlier to update them on their guests and how they were currently eating the breakfast that they had missed out on due to worrying about Aoba's return and safety.
They could imagine that they would be depressed right about now seeing as they only had one lead to go on. Bernardo let out a huge sigh as he slumped forward against his desk, letting his forehead bang against the surface of the table.
"Sir!" One of the men who were assisting them in the office showed his concern for Bernardo.
"I'm fine. We're halfway done with this new deal so it should be fine." He expressed his exhaustion by picking his head up off the table and instead put his arms in front of him so that he had is head on top of his arms.
Gian held back a laugh as he quickly looked through the pile of paper still sitting next to him on the sofa. Pretty soon the ringing of the phones stopped and the silence was then interrupted by Giulio and Ivan who had just returned from their small escort mission.
"What are you guys doing back so soon?" Gian asked with a puzzled look on his face.
Giulio looked back behind him and the two extra guests they were supposed to pick up were now standing in the doorway of the office. "Signor Gian, we have finished our task. They wanted to know if..." As though the man was pondering about whether to continue or not, he looked down in thought.
"-If we've found the blue freak yet." Ivan finished Giulio's sentence while sitting down next to Gian, disregarding the pile of paper that was obviously sitting in plain sight.
"Can't be any more freaky than what we've seen here." Noiz retorted as though to stick up for the man who couldn't be there.
Mink silently watched the two of them argue with each other. "Enough, Ivan. Giulio...your grandfather wants to meet with you later tonight. Will you be accepting his offer?" Bernardo asked. He had successfully changed the growing argument into a serious conversation.
Ivan and Gian were both silent and both had very serious expressions once they heard the bit about a grandfather. Mink had to assume it was a man of very large importance and was obviously not very well liked for them to make such faces. "Yes. I will go later on tonight." The man at first looked as though he were in shock from something but had regained his composure and was back to being the quiet and soft-spoken man.
"Very well. I'll let him know in advance then. As for you two, you're friends are currently eating breakfast in the guest bedroom. We'll try our best to find your friend." Bernardo smiled politely but Mink could tell it was in an apologetic way.
He nodded in approval to this and he and Noiz both left without anything more said.
Sounds of a coil ringing through the air was being ignored as Virus was too busy with something more important. Sly had disappeared and had once again left Aoba behind. But he didn't mind the man and pretty much found himself falling slowly attracted to the innocent but desperate side of Aoba.
At the moment he was quietly watching Aoba sleeping. Every once in a while, Aoba's toes or hands would twitch and his face would make a distorted expression. He was having a nightmare and Virus could only assume it was because of the recent events.
He had sent Trip and Welter to deal with the G.D. members that had decided to visit them that day out of the blue. It was to confirm their acceptance of investing in Honus's proposal. Virus sat himself down next to the sleeping body. Although they had finally seen Sly after 6-7 years, he had to admit inside his head that he was slightly happy that Aoba was back if even for a little while.
Sly was not unwanted but he was a difficult person to deal with despite them both having almost the same ideals and goals. Virus stroked the man's blue hair. Aoba's body flinched and then ceased its movements. "So there are things you remember after all, Aoba-san..." Virus said quietly and continued to stroke Aoba's head as he slept.
The mood was ruined once Welter made an appearance at the door, scratching the door to get his attention. Virus quickly got up off the bed without disturbing the man's sleep and opened the door.
"Has Trip finished with the nice men?" He asked, smiling. The lion flicked its tail and gave him a low growl.
Welter then rushed past Virus and went toward Aoba. Virus watched as Welter licked Aoba's hair as though to groom him. He sighed just as Trip appeared at the door. "You'll be happy once you know that they're finally gone. Hersha saw them to the door for us."
Virus continued watching the lion. "Hopefully they won't impose too much on our fun..." Virus stated. Soon Trip slipped inside as well.
"Welter missed him so I sent him on ahead. Sorry, were you already in the middle of doing something?" When Virus shook his head 'no', Trip sat down on the bed allowing Welter to continue licking the boy's hair.
"Mn...ng..!" Aoba stirred in his sleep. His hands were gripping whatever was close by, one hand had firmly grasped onto Welter's fur while the other was on the bed sheet.
The lion let out a small growl out of annoyance of having been grabbed out of the blue. "Must be some nightmare." Trip said and he grabbed a hold of Aoba's hand that had been holding onto Welter's fur.
He pried the hand apart from the fur and kept holding it. "He's been having one since I first came in as well. Our poor Aoba-san having to re-live our passionate moments are quite exciting in itself." Virus smiled and joined Trip by sitting down gently next to Aoba on the other side of the bed.
He then grabbed Aoba's other hand that had been holding the sheet of the bed. Now both the men were holding his hand as he squirmed uncomfortably from the nightmare he was having. Virus lifted Aoba's hand and kissed the back of it while Trip put Aoba's other hand to the side of his face.
"He's crying...how sad." Trip pointed out a tear slipping from the corner of Aoba's eye.
The lion seemed to have grown tired of being ignored by them and growled as he pawed at Aoba's mouth, pressing one of his paws on Aoba's lips while the other rested on Aoba's crotch. This had certainly woke Aoba up.
"Hey...who said you could start first?" Trip asked and soon had to let go of Aoba's hand since the man was slowly waking up.
Aoba squeezed his knees together because of the pressure on his lower half but the lion's paw was keeping him from covering this bit. "Vi..." Aoba breathed.
He unwillingly grabbed onto Virus's shirt on his upper arm. "Trip, Welter, perhaps next time I'll have you both in on it but for now, would you kindly leave us?" Virus asked.
Trip, although looking slightly disappointed, complied to the order and he and Welter both left the room. "Aoba-san, I'm so happy you picked me." Virus held onto Aoba's hand while pulling the man's other hand off his sleeve.
"Virus..." Aoba said his name once more. Aoba slowly sat up and patted his hair down.
He could have sworn he felt something tugging at his hair. "Welter was concerned about you. Your face was showing us a terrible expression so he thought grooming you would calm you down in your sleep."
A blatant lie if he had ever heard one and he had heard so many. Aoba then felt a bit of wetness on the side of his cheek. If the lion had licked him too, it would not be as wet as this, right? Aoba rubbed his sleeve over his cheek to wipe the wetness away.
Virus wasn't doing anything except for staring at him as though he were waiting for something. This wasn't like him. He would usually bide his time such as now but this was different from waiting for him to get into the mood.
"If only...it was just a dream..." He told him. Aoba could remember the dream vividly.
He had dreamed about his twin and about Desire who had been showing him images of all the past events of when he used scrap. The first being Ren, then Koujaku, after that it was Clear and Mink and then lastly, Noiz. He could feel the same dull aching pain of a small headache coming on.
But this time it was not as severe as the past few days and just seemed normal all-in-all. "Aoba-san. I love you." What surprised Aoba was not the sudden declaration of love from Virus's mouth, but the fact that Virus was suddenly embracing him and not holding him down like he usually did.
"I'll say it as many times as need be." Virus breathed into his ear and as Aoba predicted, the man began to lift his shirt up.
'I knew he was cheesy...' Aoba thought but he was too tired to fight back since he used most of it on fighting back against Trip last time.
That and the fact that if he decided to fight, there was a chance of Welter or Hersha coming to Virus's rescue. But it did not mean that Virus was not powerful himself. The man was slightly smaller in build compared to Trip but he also had the power of Trip and would easily hold him down whenever he struggled.
He closed his eyes and tried to imagine something else entirely. Noiz's face popped into his brain once he started doing this.
A/N: OK, before anyone asks if anyone at all...it is just of seeing a whole other side of Virus but this doesn't mean he goes all soft and mushy, no no, remember who they are first.
And you may think Aoba is being un-Tsundere and all that, BUT technically he is smart in to thinking that really, he doesn't know his way around the city, he's stuck with two men who can easily overpower him and they have allmates who act more animal than Ren.
So he is just slipping into his dreamland while the bad stuff happens. He doesn't like this so technically it is a bit rapey on Virus's part. Also, the whole thing with Clear and Koujaku, they're not weird around each other it's just Koujaku used to seeing Clear constantly excited so to see the guy all pouting and whatnot, he acts as a big man while Mink is gone cause technically he is second eldest I think?
But yea, this was a longer chapter than most but in the next one we will get to see more of Mizuki and how he deals with Trip and Welter and really, just deals with life in general!