Chapter 4
Pairing: Izuo
Rating: Strong T+
Warnings: Starvation and torture.
Note: Sorry for the wait. I started to write this and then I had major writers block.
July 28, 1998
Doe eyes stared up at the fading sun lit sky, she would have to get back home soon. Long, fur covered legs moved forward; through the damp grass and though the sky-bound trees. She didn't know why she was even this close to the monster her mother had always told her about, she had been hungry and the grass in this area was abundant. Rustling alerted her to the presence of another; something too big to be one of her kind. Small ears flickered as the rustling continued, the scent of something foreign hit her. It was potent, yet alluring; the rustling brought the doe back to her senses. It was time for her to get out of there. With strong legs; the animal took off, wind brushing through her coat as she cut through the wind.
A stray thought did pass her mind; do those humans know they are going into a monsters territory?
Izaya was not pleased. Not at all. It was freaking cold, so much that he could see his breath every time he breathed, and his jacket did nothing to cover warm him up. Wasn't it summer? It was supposed to be warm, especially in the country side. The raven caught a swinging branch that Shinra, who was in front of him, let go of. The two had left 'civilization' half an hour ago and the sun was setting; casting brushes of pink, orange, yellow, and purple. Clouds dotted the sky but for the most part, there were none.
"Ne, Shinra?" Izaya called to the other teen.
"Hmm?" Shinra answered back, jumping over a moss covered rock.
"Are we, possibly, lost?" Izaya followed Shinra's example, jumping over the rock and landing like a cat on another one.
"Hehehe, why would you say that? I know where we're going. Just pass…" Shinra trailed off uneasily. He looked at the sky-pushing trees in hesitation. They were not supposed to be there. It was supposed to be an open path; a clear dirt path that would lead to a small clearing filled with dying flowers.
"We're lost, right, Shinra?" Izaya asked, gazing around at the forest. It was pretty creepy, especially with the rolling mist that was starting to cover the path they took to get where they were. Normally, Izaya would be annoyed at being lost, and he kind of was, but his interest in Shizuo outweighed the annoyance.
"We..yes." Shinra said, head hanging in disappointment.
"Let's go this way." Izaya decided, pointing to the left of Shinra; a small dirt path, covered by brush, laid before them. The only thing was that it seemed it didn't have an end; instead the darkness ate at it.
"W-wait, Izaya! I don't think we should go that way!" Shinra said, facing Izaya.
"Why not? I want to meet Shizu-chan." The raven responded, a playful smirk on his face.
"I just-" Shinra started only to be cut off.
"Hey! You two! What are you doing out here?" A deep voice said.
The two teens jumped, turning around to face the owner of the voice. It was an elderly man, looking to be in his 60s. He was as dark as a well baked potato, white hair sprouting out under his rice hat. The man was wearing an old fashioned yukata with a thick black happi coat.
"We-" Shinra started, only to get cut off again by the elderly man.
"Come you two, this forest gets dangerous at night and my old bones cannot stand this weather as much as I once was able to." The old man turned around, not leaving the two teens with much choice but to follow him.
They were lead through the darkening forest and onto a solid dirt path. Lights started to shine through the trees as they got closer to the village and its electricity. The two teens were led to a small little hut, made out of wood and dried mud. The old man entered it and with one last look at each other, Shinra and Izaya entered.
The inside was surprisingly cozy, with little tatami mats covering the floors and a little raised dial area that held a small bed. In the middle of the ground floor, there was a pit with a low fire going, its orange flames licking at the pot that was hung above it. Small knick-knacks were littered around the room.
"Sit and warm-up. You two are from that outside school?" The old man asked, grabbing three cups and pouring hot water in them.
"Yes, sir." Shinra answered after he and Izaya had taken a seat at the fire. His friend had been oddly quiet and with a quick glance he could see Izaya had that glint in his eyes. One that never brought good things.
"Hmm. You two shouldn't be wondering through those woods. It's dangerous." The old man said, sitting down with a groan and handing the two some of the tea.
"I thought no predators lurk in those woods?" Izaya asked, his tea set on the side.
"No animals, that's for sure. More like a monster." The old man grunted, nose wrinkling in disgust.
"A monster?" Shinra questioned.
"I don't know if I should tell you two anything but I feel it's best to warn ya. This village is cursed and the monster that placed this curse on the village is still around; waiting for new prey to come. Just like my little brother was." The man said, a bitter note to his words.
"Curse?" Izaya questioned at the same time Shinra said,
"Little brother?"
"A curse. If you go deeper into the woods you'll find a shrine, it's said you can hear the souls of the people that died in this village from almost a decade ago. The area around the shrine is dying, yet it still grows dead plants; their petals and leaves wither though. It's said that if the survivor of the fire that killed those villagers from almost a decade ago was to return, or any of his decedents, then the curse will awaken and the village will burn just like it did in 1900. The monster, the one that placed the curse on this village, also killed my little brother. Sucked the life right out of him. He was only six." The old man took a sip from his cup, the crackling of the fire and burning of the woods remained in the silence.
"How do you know it was this monster?" Izaya asked, though his mind was already twirling around.
"It had blond hair and glowing mocha eyes. It takes the form of a young man but I know, Kami do I know. That thing is a monster in human flesh." The old man uncorked a sake bottle pouring himself some.
"Thank you, but we must be getting back. Izaya, let's go." Shinra all but dragged Izaya out of the old man's home. The sky was dark now and the two had surely missed dinner but neither felt the need to eat.
It was with silence between them that the two left back towards the place they were staying at. Both with thoughts on their minds. One was wondering if this 'monster' was Shizuo and the other had already connected the dots, a smirk making its way to his face. A monster, ne?
Cicadas cried in the open air, odd considering it was the middle of the night and they were not nocturnal. Izaya, however, ignored the oddness and continued on the moonlit path. The grass was tall here, coming to his mid-thigh, as the teen hiked through the forest; quite, except for the insects, in the dead of night. Izaya had snuck out after everyone else had gone to sleep; the teen wasn't stupid and knew that he could get lost or possibly killed, but that was the thrill of it. To get rid of his boredom, the teen would do almost anything; even going as far as to ignore his self-preservation instinct (which was very strong). Maybe that was why his parents wanted him to see that therapist, even if they didn't know the full extent of his 'problem'.
Turning down the path, Izaya noticed the cicadas had stopped crying and excitement filled him again. If it was a monster than no animals would want to be around it, self-preservation and all. The teen wanted to see this monster, see if it was as different from his humans as the word went. And so Izaya continued down the path, steps light.
Shizuo blinked as he heard the rustling of something; something about 15 meters away from him. It was quite and no one else would have been able to hear it but ever since he became a spirit, the blond found his senses had been heightened. The rustling continued, though it was getting much closer; Shizuo knew it couldn't be an animal because none had ever wandered this close, not to mention the heavy fall of the steps that screamed human. Humans were very careless wherever they went, always stomping on the Earth with not a care in the world.
Though the spirit had to admit that this humans steps were much more careful than other humans who had wandered deep into the woods. The rustling of the bushes stole his attention, making Shizuo stand up taller; his grip on the stick he had been using tightening. He didn't know who was coming and Shizuo wanted to be prepared. It could be Shinra, Shizuo thought, only to dismiss it. The teen's steps had always been a bit clumsy and heavy. These steps were planned out and light.
Raven hair, almost blending into the night, popped out of the bush, followed by the rest of the teen's body. It was not Shinra; this teen was milky white and had what seemed to be almost red eyes. He was wearing a school uniform, something he had seen in magazines that ended up floating in streams. The part that put Shizuo on alert, however, was the delighted smirk that lit the teen's face up when he spotted Shizuo. The blond felt a pull to his memory.
That bastard was back. He always came after the 'cleansing' as the shrine maiden would call it. Shizuo called it torture. When they beat him until he spilled the little food he had in his stomach onto the stained ground or forced the nourishments out through other means, it was torture. The blond was scarcely clothed; a thin white robe that was loosely tied. His ribs were starting to show, easy enough to count but still a bit of fat covering them. Bandages were wrapped around his chest, keeping bacteria away from the nasty gash that was hidden under the cloth. Sasaki, Shizuo would be damned if he called that woman his mother, had stated that despite everything she didn't want him dead, yet. Bruises littered his face, all in various stages of healing.
"Hello Shizuo. Ami made some curry for me, it's a bit on the spicy side but it's what my wife made for me so I love it." The man said, smiling as he took a bite of the steaming curry.
Shizuo was tired of this routine, tired of the torture, tired of being beaten, tired of being humiliated, tired of the gnawing hunger, and tired of drugs that pumped through his veins. Still, he found enough energy to snap his teeth at the man. He didn't care if he looked like a wild animal, they treated him like he was less than that anyways.
"Ah. What a naughty child. Don't look at me like that, I came down to offer my food to you. Wouldn't you like to taste fresh, chopped onions and carrots? Shitake mushrooms mixed with zesty spices?" The man said, still smiling as he gazed at Shizuo.
The man never stopped smiling, his face always a pleasant turn of thin lips as he gazed at him. He simply watched and carefully teased Shizuo with food. It was probably the best torture; the body needed nourishment and Shizuo was severely lacking it and the food that was so close yet so far damaged the teen mentally.
Shizuo hated that smile. The smile was burned into his head, it wasn't even a smile; more of a smirk.
The man smirked while he saw Shizuo beaten.
Smirked while he was being cleansed.
Smirked as food was denied him; if he was feed, only getting table scraps.
Smirked as he was offered to their god, only to be rejected.
Smirked as he told the others that their god wanted them to continue to torture him, only he called it cleansing.
Shizuo hated him.
That smirk. That goddamned smirk.
"I hate you." Shizuo said, staring straight at Izaya.
Happy Halloween! Happy All Hallows Day! Happy Samhain! To those who don't celebrate: Happy October 31st!
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