Fandom: Loveless
Title: Resolution
Pairing: SoubixRitsuka
Rating: overall- NC17; this chapter- NC17 (sexual act and Seimei creepiness)
Timeline: Future AU Although there are hints at some events through volume 4/episode 12, there is no mention of Septimal Moon or Wisdom Resurrection in this story.
Summary: Can Ritsuka forgive Soubi in time to save him?
AN: My first Loveless multi-chapter fic. This story deals with some dark themes, including (but not limited to) graphic violence, abuse, and murder.
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Resolution
Chapter 3
"The Beast Inside"
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Seimei was the only one for me…
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The battered man slowly staggered up the steps that led to home, clinging to the railing for support and stopping frequently to gather his breath, his body aching at the savage violation he had received at the hands of a monster.
There had been pleasure too, at first. A pleasure that had caused him to cry out until he was hoarse as every muscle in his body contracted by the sheer force of it.
But then it was gone. And only the pain remained.
The pain always remained.
Light filtered from the door and the window out into the night, rendering useless his hopes of finding the teen asleep. Soubi stopped outside of the door to his apartment and leaned his head against the wall, finding small solace in the coolness that touched his skin. He could still feel the sensation of Seimei's touch on him, inside of him, and he shivered in memory of it.
He reached up to his neck and carefully readjusted the bandage there, having had to turn it around so that the blood-stained portion of it was concealed beneath his long, blond hair. It would be no good at all for Ritsuka to question why his Beloved scar had bled; the days of spell battles, in which it had often bled freely when he fought as Loveless, were long gone.
Even those times now seemed like a faraway memory that might not have existed at all.
He sighed heavily and grasped the doorknob-
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- only to find it being turned through his grip. The door flew open and banged loudly off of the wall behind it.
"Where the hell have you been?! I've been trying to call you for an hour!" Ritsuka cried out in a voice that hurt the minute part of Soubi's heart left unblemished by Seimei's disease.
"I wasn't able to get into your house," Soubi began, carefully reciting his pre-planned excuse. "I went over to Kio's to let him know that I would be taking some time away from classes and made arrangements with him to find out what I would be missing. My phone must have died," he concluded, pulling it out of his pocket and pretending to check it, having already turned it off before he met with Seimei.
He could see the teen visibly struggle to accept his words as truth and knew he was in the clear. True, Ritsuka could simply verify his excuse by talking to Kio. But Soubi had to do nothing more than bat his eyelashes for Kio to corroborate his story if need be, although he didn't think it would come to that.
Ritsuka would believe him.
Because he wanted to believe him.
"W-well," Ritsuka stammered. "You need to make sure it's charged from now on," he finished, standing back so that Soubi could enter and closing the door behind him. "How many years now have I had to get on your case about answering when I call you?"
Soubi gently cupped his lover's face in his hand, causing a light blush to spread across Ritsuka's cheeks as he nuzzled his face into the palm of the older man's hand.
"I'm very sorry that I worried you," Soubi said softly.
Ritsuka shook his head and covered Soubi's hand with his own. "It's okay," he said quietly, casting a pleading gaze into Soubi's eyes. "Just… just come to bed."
Soubi smiled kindly and nodded. "I want to wash-"
- off the stench of Seimei's touch-
"- up. I'll just be a minute." He reluctantly pulled his hand out of Ritsuka's and carefully walked into the bathroom, trying to ignore the pain that ravaged his body as well as the weight of the stare that followed him.
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Ritsuka looked at the closed door.
After a moment, he quietly crawled back into the bed and waited for Soubi to join him, stubbornly shutting out the questions before they could surface.
Soubi was home.
And nothing else mattered.
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Soubi turned off the hot water and sucked in his breath as freezing droplets rained down over him. He closed his eyes and shuddered as his body temperature began to drop and found himself thinking of Natsuo and Yoji, of all people.
This was a different kind of pain, one much more preferable to his internal discomfort but still unpleasant overall. Still, he resolved himself to endure it, as it would be the first of many ice cold showers to come if he was going to be able to withstand Seimei's parting command….
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In the days following Misaki's funeral, Ritsuka was finally able to retrieve his belongings and move them into Soubi's apartment. His father ultimately surfaced long enough to lay his wife to rest and expressed no overwhelming desire to take the boy under his wing, which suited the seventeen-year-old just fine.
The police were still searching for the killer.
Ritsuka returned to school and settled back into a normal routine. Yuiko and Yayoi teasingly ribbed him about joining the Earless Club and the three friends made plans to make their monthly visit to Hitomi-sensei who had finally joined the club herself about a year ago.
On the days that Soubi did not have an evening class, Ritsuka would return home from school to the smell of cooking food. The couple would eat dinner and talk about their day, and then, after cleaning up, Ritsuka would settle down to do homework while Soubi painted or excused himself to go to Kio's place or the library. At night, they would curl into each other's arms and fall asleep, only to repeat the process again the next day. It was almost everything Ritsuka had ever wanted… almost...
… except for the fact that they hadn't made love since that night…
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… and he could stand it no longer.
Tonight was going to be the night.
Ritsuka slowly dried a plate and began to devise a plan to seduce Soubi. Well, not so much a plan as an outright assault. He kept his head down as he wiped the plate, not wanting Soubi to see the blush that crept into his cheeks over the thought of pinning him down and-
"Ritsuka?"
The plate, which had been completely dry for minutes now, slipped from Ritsuka's grasp and fell onto the floor where it thankfully managed not to shatter.
"Sorry!" the flustered teen exclaimed, kneeling down to get it. As he reached out to grab the plate, Soubi's hand quickly covered his.
"Are you alright?" Soubi asked with concern, kneeling down beside him.
"I'm fine," Ritsuka insisted, although his crimson face showed otherwise. He stood up and quickly realized that the outcome of his previous thoughts was straining heavily against the front of his pants and was now directly in front of Soubi's face-
"I'm fine!" He exclaimed again, quickly turning away and proving that he was anything but. He grabbed another dish and proceeded to wipe it while Soubi stared thoughtfully at him.
"Ritsuka," Soubi said softly, reaching out with both hands and grabbing onto the teen's waist, turning him around and unzipping his pants.
"Soubi!" Ritsuka gasped, feeling the man's warm fingers wrap around him and free him from his boxers, almost climaxing from that alone.
Soubi gently pushed Ritsuka back against the sink and took him into this mouth, slowly teasing every inch of him with his tongue until Ritsuka did come, hard into Soubi's mouth, crying out and grabbing onto his hair, arching backward, the tail of his shirt dipping into the sink water, shuddering uncontrollably as he felt Soubi swallow around him.
"Sou…" was all he could manage in a breathless whisper as Soubi gently zipped him back up. He remained at the sink, bracing against it for support and uncertain his legs would allow him to walk anytime soon. Soubi grinned in that melodic way that made Ritsuka's heart soar.
He stood up and pressed his forehead against Ritsuka's, taking great care to keep distance between their bodies.
"I have some work I want to get done before it gets too late," he said.
Ritsuka pulled back and frowned. "Now?? But… what about you?"
"I'm fine," Soubi reassured him.
It was a lie, of course; he was in absolute agony.
"Shall I carry you to the bed or can you make it on your own?"
Ritsuka scowled, causing Soubi to grin again. "I can walk," he muttered sheepishly.
"Good. I love you, Ritsuka."
Soubi could see relief bloom on the teen's face and once again felt the distant part of his heart that he'd fought so hard to preserve from the torment of Ritsu and Seimei cry out to him.
But it was already too late… much too late... to pay it any mind.
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This time, Seimei had graciously decided to forego the bondage.
Sometimes, it was simply enough for him to have Soubi just stand there in one spot, with his head down. There were times in the past when Soubi would stand there for hours on end while Seimei sat and watched him. Sometimes- very rarely- he would be forgiving and let Soubi leave with only a sore neck. Other times, those stationary moments were merely a precursor of whatever perverted festivities the elder Aoyagi brother had in mind.
Soubi stared at the ground, having long since memorized its every nuance. Seimei stood directly in front of him and Soubi found himself yet again with a range of warring emotions, each dueling for dominance in his heart and body… and to his own disgust, he discovered that lust was quickly winning out over the rest.
He wanted Seimei. He had always wanted Seimei. As much as the Sacrifice owned him, Soubi had wanted to own him in return. His desire to take Seimei's ears had nothing at all to do with love, although there was love there- a twisted, demented love that bordered on something much darker. Deadlier. Before Ritsuka came into his life, this obsessive love/hate was all he had ever known.
Perhaps those rare moments of clarity and lucidity were the true sickness…. Now that Seimei had come back to him, Soubi no longer knew for sure.
The Sacrifice tenderly, almost lovingly, swept back Soubi's hair, tucking a lock behind each ear to keep it out of his face. He then leaned forward and grazed his nose against Soubi's lips, breathing them in. Soubi squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his teeth in anticipation and fear- and want- of what he knew would happen next.
"Open your mouth," Seimei commanded.
Soubi parted his lips slightly. He felt a hand brace each side of his face and pull him down. Seimei's tongue flickered just inside of Soubi's mouth before probing deeper, tasting the remnants of what had been there earlier.
He finally broke away and Soubi collapsed to his knees, trembling violently. There was no way, no way on earth that he would be able to stand again until the pressure that had been building inside of him for the past week subsided. He would have gladly welcomed any punishment that would take his mind away from the maddening ache of being denied gratification.
But instead of a reprimand, he was met with a hand that rested on top of his head.
"I'm sorry, Soubi. I know this must have been very painful for you." The young man's voice was so full of compassion that it was almost impossible to believe it belonged to the same person who had so casually ordered the murder of his own mother.
"I needed to know that I was still first in your heart. Because I'm a very insecure person, you see." He reached down and cupped Soubi's chin in his hand, pulling his face upward. "You've made me very happy."
Seimei released Soubi's chin and walked toward the door. "More importantly, the time has come…"
Soubi gazed questioningly at his master, but was not quite yet in a position to speak.
"I didn't come back just to watch you play with Ritsuka, after all. We have work to do. And I've decided that Breathless will be first."
"First…" Soubi croaked.
"We're going to kill them," Seimei said.
He smiled sweetly.
"We're going to kill them all."
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I know my soul is under siege
Can't somebody stop me now
'cause I'm losing control
I want to resist - but I can't hold it back
The beast is unleashed - it's got to attack
Again and again the force is too strong
It's breaching the chains
"The Beast Inside" by Accept
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AN: Yech. I really kinda need a shower after writing this.
Just a quick note about pairings: as you'll notice, Seimei and Soubi do not exactly have a platonic relationship in this story. But I do not deem them a pairing for purposes of this story because their interactions are more about master/slave/dominance/humiliation and all that happy-go-lucky fun as opposed to love. Just thought I'd point that out in case anyone was wondering.
See you in 4.