When the sudden light hit his face Yuki recoiled, briefly blinded after the impenetrable darkness.

He was sitting on the bed, wrapped tightly in the thin blanket. Instinctively he pushed himself into the corner, curling up securely, away from the light rushing hungrily towards him from the surprisingly open door.

Gentle hands were on him, easing his limbs apart.

Then more hands.

Voices and movement he couldn't make sense of.

Then one voice which came clearer than all others.

"Come my sweet," it murmured, "Lets get you out of here."

Akito. A part of Yuki wanted to hide, to make himself very small and invisible, to be safe from that voice's reach. Another part of him wanted to run to it, to scoop it up and hold it closely. If Akito was here... he was leaving? Leaving solitary?

The voices seemed loud and invasive forcing themselves on him, and he couldn't make sense of them. There were too many stimulants suddenly, overwhelming his senses.

He was being supported somewhere. Gradually he opened his eyes. They were in the corridor. Staff members surrounded him, gently guiding him.

When they reached Akito's bedroom they deposited him in the armchair and stood back. Akito entered a moment later. Yuki gazed around, awestruck. His eyes and his mind were still adjusting to the sudden brightness, the persistent noises, the overwhelmingly intricate detail of everything around him.

"No he's filthy" Akito was saying, "Wash him immediately!"

Three men escorted Yuki to the bathroom. His sweat and vomit-stained shirt had begun irritating his skin weeks ago so he had discarded it. The staff now stripped him of his rancid trousers and guided him into the shower. He sank to the floor and they allowed him to do so. Slowly they washed him and slowly he began to feel human again.

They scrubbed him thoroughly and washed his hair several times to ensure it was suitable. The hot water felt scalding, but he could feel it which was amazing enough for him. It seemed to burn the life back into him, and it felt so good to feel... alive.

The men toweled him dry without a word and brought him back to the bedroom. They sat him on the bed wrapped tightly in a towel and left the room. Beside him on the bed was a neat pile of clothes.

Akito advanced slowly.

Yuki glanced around nervously, feeling strangely exposed by all the light in the room. Darkness could be frightening, but it could also provide a welcome cover, a shadow to hide in, a tender caress... It felt to Yuki now that there was no safety in the light, only vulnerability.

Akito stopped just short of him. His reserved eyes examined the dilapidated form before him.

Yuki squeezed his legs tighter together, clamped his arms to his sides. He was more concerned to be again in the light than to be wearing only a towel.

"So, how was solitary?"

The question was asked casually and fluttered its way to Yuki's understanding as lightly as petals in the wind.

He had no words to form an answer. No words he had learnt would do justice... no words in existence would do justice.

He shook his head jerkily.

Akito nodded, smiling smoothly. "As expected," he said, "But as deserved, I'm sure you'll agree?"

Again it took a long time for him to process the words which reached him individually, waiting to be pieced together into an intelligible sentence. When he understood he nodded furtively.

He was out now. He was out. And he could feel- actually feel- the softness of the towel. He could smell the shampoo used in his hair and hear the birds outside. All these things meant he was living. And he wanted that. He would agree with anything Akito said at this point.

"An interesting situation has arisen my dear. It is the reason you are out of solitary now."

Yuki waited. Akito watched carefully, gauging his reaction.

"Miss Honda has visited the Estate, and asked to buy... your freedom." Akito's tone was flat, betraying nothing.

One by one the words entered Yuki's consciousness, petals landing lightly. And he was sure he had heard wrong. Convinced he had misunderstood.

"What?" he managed to ask. His voice was rough and hoarse from lack of use.

Akito smiled slightly. "Tohru has offered me everything she has, and more, if I release you from your contract." He gazed expectantly at Yuki.

Yuki couldn't believe what he was hearing.

Tohru... was here. But she said she wouldn't... why would she come here? What did it mean to buy his freedom? His freedom? He felt giddy. The thought of his freedom hung before him, a glittering prize waiting to be snatched, which would always be just out of reach.

"It is a shame," Akito continued slowly, "That everything she has is practically nothing." He smirked at Yuki, as though they were sharing a private joke.

Yuki didn't know what to say. Many opposing thoughts competed in his mind for dominance and attention.

Tohru had tried to do that for him...

Akito didn't seem furious...

Should he act like he didn't want his freedom?

More than anything else Yuki's attention was focused on the intoxicating sensation of just feeling. He brushed the bath towel lightly with a hand. He would do anything not to go back in solitary.

"I removed you from your special room so we could discuss the situation, like adults, like partners... I hear you've hardly been eating the past week. It doesn't look good on you Yuki, you don't wear it well."

Yuki's toes curled. He blushed. How foolish he must be for such a small slight still make him want to hide away.

"It is a shame," Akito continued, "That she doesn't have enough money. If she had more money... you could go with her. You wouldn't have to work at the Estate... and you wouldn't have to go back to solitary..." His gaze was piercing and he raised a challenging eyebrow.

Yuki's mind was working furiously, with thoughts too fast and confusing for him to keep up with.

He couldn't go back to solitary. He couldn't. That would kill him. If Tohru had more money... if Tohru had more money... that's what Akito had said...

"Take my tips!"

He had blurted this out before he could filter it. Now he froze, terrified of Akito's reaction. Akito however, smiled bemusedly.

"What was that my dear?"

A part of Yuki wanted to apologise, to deny he had said anything. But another part convinced him that he may as well continue now; the instinct to avoid solitary won.

"My tips that you've been putting in the bank for me, you can have them all... add them to Tohru's money?" His voice faltered at the end and he shifted away from Akito subconsciously.

"How interesting." Akito murmured quietly.

He reached out to Yuki and drummed his fingers lightly on Yuki's shoulders. Each finger seemed to take a hundred agonising years to fall.

He couldn't move. He could hardly breathe... waiting...

Finally Akito stopped and drew back. He stared for a long moment at Yuki's face, his dark eyes boring into Yuki's own. Evidently he found what he was looking for, for he nodded with a small smirk.

"Very well. I shall accept the amount agreed upon with Miss Honda, as well as your amassed tips from the past three years... and you shall be free."

Yuki was soaring... flying. Had he... had he heard right?

He was free?

He was free.

Free

free

Was this another cruel hallucination? Would he wake up in a moment wrapped in sweat and tears in the special room?

But he didn't wake up. Akito was still watching him closely with a guarded expression. Yuki didn't know what to say... what to do.

If he wasn't grateful would Akito withdraw the offer? Or if he was too grateful would Akito withdraw the offer?

"Thank you" he whispered, and he was surprised to find his voice husky with emotion and his vision blurring.

"Hmm..." Akito seemed pleased. "And happy birthday Yuki, it was two weeks ago."

Yuki stared. He hadn't even realised. So he was nineteen now? Birthdays had never meant much to him. The others celebrated enthusiastically, birthdays meaning they were one year closer to the end of their contract. Yuki had never had that freedom to look forward to. But now...

He couldn't stop the tears which escaped as he contemplated this. He had never imagined freedom...

And now it was his?

"Miss Honda will be here tomorrow to finalise matters. So... would you like to go back to your special room? Or spend the night with me?"

Yuki was ashamed of how quickly and desperately he answered.

"With you!" he begged, and the blush painted his cheeks rosily.

Akito smiled widely. "Of course, my sweet."

That night Yuki clutched tightly to Akito, clung to his body dearly, so grateful was he to experience contact with another person. He fell asleep quickly and deeply, quite surprisingly content to be in Akito's arms. Akito lay awake for several hours, holding him closely, humming gently as he stroked his fine hair.

.

It was certainly an interesting day for Akito.

He woke up alone, to discover that Yuki had gone to that stupid bench. Really he should just make the damn thing into firewood. That would be amusing.

He went to Yuki that morning, through the early-morning mist which shrouded the Estate like a cloak. Yuki jumped anxiously when he rested a hand on his shoulder.

"Is it real?" he whispered up at Akito, eyes wide and nervous behind his thick lashes. Akito didn't know if he meant the scene before him or the deal with Tohru; either way he nodded.

"It's real." The boy's face visibly relaxed, smoothing out as the tension left it.

.

Tohru arrived earlier than their arranged meeting time but Akito admitted her into his office anyway. He sat behind the desk and Yuki and Tohru sat in front of it. Akito saw how Tohru's eyes were perpetually fixed on Yuki. Yuki's gaze strayed between Tohru and Akito.

He examined Yuki in the light of the morning and was... regretful. Yuki looked awful. His skin was sallow and spotty. His cheeks and collar bones looked like they had been hollowed out. His hair hung lank and dull. He alternated between extreme stillness, where his eyes were glazed and far away, and restless activity, where his hands would twist and his eyes darted wildly.

It would take Yuki several weeks before he could see the clients again anyway... why not have him recuperate on the outside, with this girl?

Akito barely concealed his smirk as Tohru told him she had set up the transfer between their bank accounts. It was so amusing- no no no, that wasn't it... it was fucking hilarious... to watch this girl stress over a few thousand pounds.

She had taken on another job, she said.

She had sold her laptop, she said.

She had borrowed from her grandfather and friends, she said.

fucking hilarious.

Akito had to smother his laugh.

Everything this girl had was nothing... but it was still everything to her... so he would take it all. And seeing as it was being offered he wound take Yuki's tips too. That would leave Yuki penniless and more dependent on him than ever. It certainly was amusing that this girl could work so hard, give so much, try so valiantly... and it would all be for nothing.

He accepted the envelope of money from the girl's trembling hand and told Yuki he would empty his savings account. Yuki's eyes were dancing sporadically.

"Well Yuki, that's it." He addressed him directly and his eyes stilled, holding Akito's.

"Is this real?" he whispered again. Clearly the boy was terrified this peculiar string of events was a hallucination or a dream. How amusing.

"It's real," he confirmed for the second time that day, "You're free to leave now."

Akito sat back and watched as they rose and left the room. His diamond was leaving. He could never have expected this would happen.

But he knew he would be back.

A gutter rat must always slink back to the gutter. This was Yuki's world... he didn't belong in the world of light. He would realise this and return...or Akito would retrieve him. It made no matter which.

.

Yuki couldn't believe it. He really couldn't.

As Tohru and him left the Estate he felt a great rush of emotion. He giggled, without understanding why.

He was free? He was free. He could never have imagined this.

He had only a carrier bag of possessions and he didn't look back as they walked down the street in the late summer sun, their hands clasped securely together. He didn't even consider Haru or the others. All his thoughts were on solitary and freedom. One was black and the other white. To avoid one he had to plunge into the other, and there was no room in his mind to consider the grey in-between. He looked at Tohru, and looked forward, towards their new life together... and he felt an intoxicating spike of hope.

.

The first week or so was spent in recuperation.

Yuki was dangerously weak from his time in solitary. He was worryingly thin and nearly always tired. His asthma had returned, causing him to break off in the middle of a sentence as he struggled to breathe. In the first few days he was often convinced he was dreaming or imagining this world... his freedom. He would ignore Tohru, muttering, "No you're not real... you're not real." When he realised this was his reality he was always exceedingly apologetic to her.

And there were the nightmares. Yuki woke several times a night in the beginning. Sometimes he would writhe and whimper, twisting the sheets around his body like a fly trapped in a spider's web. Other times he snapped upright in bed with a tortured scream. Yet still other times he would jolt awake into such a heavy, deep silence, and say nothing, nor do anything, only gaze blankly. These scared Tohru the most because she couldn't imagine the thoughts which tormented Yuki to the extent that he was trapped in his nightmares like this.

In the beginning there were a lot of adjustments to be made. Tohru lived with her grandfather, in a small two-bedroom apartment. Her grandfather had graciously and warmly welcomed Yuki into his home. He had left now to stay with relatives for a time. He said he was long due a visit to them, but Tohru knew he was trying to give Yuki space, and she loved him for that.

Yuki had only his small weathered tin of treasures, so there was no issue of him moving his stuff in. Tohru cleared a drawer in her bedside cabinet and he carefully placed the tin there. Settling him in however, was another matter.

With his nightmares, ill-health and frequent belief that he was hallucinating, they were both exhausted in the beginning. Yuki seemed unable to comprehend that he could leave when he wanted, do what he wanted, say what he wanted. He waited in Tohru's bedroom to be told it was time to eat, time to shower, time to sleep. And he did whatever she asked, obediently. It was more like having a puppy than a boyfriend... if that's even what Yuki was...

.

After one week of resting, Tohru returned from work and asked if he would like to go for a walk. He had been healing gradually, eating and sleeping and slowly regaining his strength. He was feeling alive and light and invigorated... in a word, free. A walk sounded like exactly what he wanted so he jumped up eagerly. They walked down the streets and Yuki couldn't help but marveling at everything. The houses... the people... the trees... Was this the scenery of his world now?

Yuki knew where they were going just before they arrived. The park where they had first met. He smiled shyly at Tohru and she returned it. She offered him her hand and he took it gratefully. Her small, soft fingers fit perfectly in his. They walked together to the bench where they had first met and as one they sank down upon it. Yuki released a deep breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding and felt as if all the tension was ebbing from his body. He sighed contentedly.

Out here, in the fading summer sun which basked everything in a warm light he imagined he had hung his soul from one of the old oak trees. He felt the way it was cleansed by the gentle breeze and the warm light. The darkness dripped from it like oil, leaving it clean and fresh.

Tohru bought them ice cream from a nearby van and they ate happily. Yuki watched as Tohru struggled to catch the escaping trickles of ice cream with her tongue. The fading sun made her hair shine, showing him a whole world of colours hidden within it. The small wrinkles gathered at the corners of her eyes when she smiled.

On impulse Yuki suddenly leaned forward and kissed her. Her lips were cold from the ice cream and her mouth tasted of chocolate. It was perfect.

Tohru drew back and held his gaze. They were almost nose to nose and Yuki found himself lost in the maze of freckles on her cheeks, making maps out of them. Tohru smiled, and then she was returning the kiss.

Yuki's ice cream fell first, forgotten as he tangled his hands in her glowing hair.

Tohru's followed soon after as she cupped Yuki's neck tenderly, drawing him closer.

People around them noticed. Some snickered, some smiled warmly, some cat-called.

But Yuki and Tohru didn't notice, and they didn't care.

Because they were young and together, and free and in love. And what else was there? That was all they cared about in that moment... that was all there was in the whole world for them.

.

During the next few weeks Yuki experienced things he had never imagined.

Tohru still worked at the vets several days a week, attended university several days a week and now worked as a waitress in the evenings, but when she had time off they went to colourful markets, beautiful parks, historic buildings. Anything free and interesting and they were there.

They went shopping and bought Yuki new clothes. There were no suits or serious constricting clothes. Everything was loose and comfortable and Yuki loved them. Yuki saw so much and he learnt so much. There was life all around him, many lifes, more life than he could have imagined. He soaked it all up. And above all, he soaked Tohru up.

They ate plain pasta or packets of instant noodles, but they didn't care. They fed each other, laughing and accidentally dropping pieces on the bed.

Yuki met Tohru after her classes and after work with a smile so warm it could and bright that Tohru felt a little skip in her stomach every time she realised it was for her.

On rainy days they ran home, laughing and splashing and eventually ended curled by a window with mugs of warm, sweet coffee.

Yuki tried preparing a surprise dinner for Tohru which ended disastrously, with them scraping charred potato from the base of the pan.

Several weeks after he left Yuki stood by the window in the early hours of the morning. He was anxious and was restless. The nightmares had been grueling that night, leaving him scared of returning to sleep. When Tohru awoke with a start to find him missing he turned and nodded sadly at her. She came to him sleepily, seeming to understand how he was feeling.

"What can I do?" She murmured against his neck. "What would help?"

Yuki shrugged slightly. "I don't know" he whispered. "Usually I would go to the bench."

There was a moment's silence then Tohru moved round in front of him. He could see her smile through the gloom. "Well lets go to the bench then."

In a confusing bustle of Tohru's organisation Yuki found them sitting on the bench in the park, having ungracefully scaled the park fence. They huddled closely together in the bracing morning air. Tohru reached into her bag and like some magician drew forth two wine glasses and a carton of orange juice. She poured them a glass each and handed Yuki his with a small smile.

One good thing which had occurred as a result of his time in solitary was Yuki no longer drank alcohol. In a strange way he was grateful for this.

"Cheers," he said, clinking their glasses together.

The orange juice had none of the firey kiss of his spirits, nor their blessed numbing qualities... but it was just right. It was perfect.

They sat on the bench, drinking orange juice from wine glasses and gazed at the distant stars, their hands intertwined. When morning came with the first early-morning dog walker, they had both dozed off on each other's shoulder. Waking slowly, with stiff necks and numb toes, they smiled groggily at each other. Then they laughed, and it rang across the slumbering park startling some nearby birds.

Yuki laughed deeply, with a pure and unreserved feeling. And it was so strange and liberating to laugh with all of your soul. He felt as free as the birds which twisted through the endless white sky. He didn't want that feeling, that moment, to ever end.

.

Akito reclined on Yuki's preferred bench in the garden. It was a place he rarely frequented but tonight it seemed fitting. He held a large whiskey in one hand as he leisurely surveyed the birds as they tumbled and soared in the sky.

He was quite content with his recent business transaction. And that was all it was... business. It wasn't shares or money or land he was working with. Something far more dangerous.

Hope. That was the currency of this exchange. And that would prove to be the fatal element here.

That rotten girl would hope. She would somehow miraculously think that her pitiable offer had been enough to tempt him. What she had provided was merely a drop in the ocean of his fortune, yet still she imagined it had been sufficient. She would purely and honestly believe that her and Yuki could live together, that they could find some sort of happiness, of peace.

He would be teaching her a valuable lesson.

Love and faith and honesty and kindness... these admirable traits of the world of fairy-tales were worthless in the real world. It was time the girl grew up and accepted this.

There were no rules in the underworld. And he would have Yuki back one way or another.

He knew all about the girl. Every insignificant detail of her pathetic and unimportant life. Her parent's deaths. Her grandfather and the two friends she had borrowed money from. The University she attended. Her grades. Her work placement. Her job at a local seafood restaurant. Her love of cats. Her fucking pineapple allergy. Akito knew it all.

He knew he could easily destroy the girl. With a few words he could hurt her, her loved ones, all the cats in this damn city if he wanted. But this way was far more satisfying. He had given Yuki to her... a loan of sorts. Yuki was, of course, temporary and disposable. But this stupid girl thought she had him for good. Then Akito would bring him back, or call him back... or Yuki would return on his own.

Akito very much hoped it was the latter. That would be by far the most amusing.

Either way the girl would cry. Her heart would shatter into dust. Akito looked forward to that with every day that passed.

He sat back against the bench, rotating his glass and admiring the graceful way the amber liquid caressed the walls. He felt very peaceful, as though this opportunity to serve justice had soothed him.

Yuki was a fool too. He was naively happy to leave the Estate, to leave this world, to leave him. He thought he was a bird who had finally been released from his cage...

Akito took a slow, sweet drink, and smiled softly.

But Yuki did not understand the most crucial point.

The freed bird could never fly, for his wings had been clipped years ago.

When he realised this he would come crawling back to his cage.

And Akito would be waiting.

.

I just wanted to say that on the last chapter the reviews were longer than usual which I loved, so thank you guys :)

And I hope this one is ok!