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Sweet Submissive Sixteen
Chapter Three: Bittersweet Dreams
The rain was pouring down from the sky in icy sheets, so hard and fast it was almost impossible for Ichigo to determine where he was. And yet, his feet seemed to know the way to where he was headed as they seemed to move of their own accord, carrying him through what he could vaguely make out as a city street in one of the province's poorer districts. There was not a single other person out in the open, no one else brave, or stupid, enough to face the stormy weather.
A dark cloak was wrapped around his body, though it did the orangette little good as it was now thoroughly soaked from the torrential downpour. The winds picked up then, bitterly cold air forcing the hood back from Ichigo's face and long locks of sunset orange hair to thrash about. He shivered violently and hugged himself in an attempt to conserve body heat, not even blinking upon finding that instead of his arms lying flat against his chest as they always had, now they rested on the top of a rounded stomach.
Ichigo quickened his pace once he was able to discern the distinctive outline of a chapel set on a hill overlooking the city, but he was unable to run or even jog, hindered by the extra weight around his middle. Nevertheless, there was a burning determination that kept him moving forward until he could see up close that the chapel was fashioned from whitewashed wood and boasted bright red shutters and double doors.
Walking right past the entryway, the teenager made for what lay beside the building; a small graveyard filled with stone tombstones and watched over by a massive statue of an angel whose wings were flung out as if they could provide shelter from the rain for the resting places of the departed. A streak of lightning flared somewhere behind him, illuminating everything perfectly for an instant before it disappeared just as suddenly to the sound of booming thunder.
Ichigo approached the waist-high iron wrought gate wrapped around the small graveyard, breathing suddenly difficult and the urge to flee overwhelming.
But he hadn't come this far to run away now and so summoningthe courage to continue into the graveyard, Ichigo crossed the border to the hallowed ground. His gaze swept over engraved lettering and inscriptions, searching.
When he somehow spotted the smallest grave marker of them all in the very back, he felt in his very bones, knowing that it was the exact one he was looking for.
The youth tread through the rows of age-worn headstones at a glacial pace, nerves wracking his body as his previous surety drained away. He felt bile rise in his throat and instinctively lowered his hold around himself to cradle his rounded stomach, a small comfort that inexplicably calmed the raging tidal waves of emotion the boy was experiencing.
The modestly sized cross tombstone, engraved with a wreath of roses in the center, grew clearer and clearer in spite of the rain as he neared, now almost close enough to read the inscription there.
"Ichigo!" a voice full of nearly tangible anxiety and worry called his name.
The orangette's head immediately whipped around to where the voice had originated, but before he could even see if anyone was there everything around him blurred and darkened. Panicked, he tried to rush towards the person calling for him, but in an instant he was enveloped in pitch black.
And that was when he realized he was dreaming.
Ichigo sat straight up with a gasp, eyes snapping open as his chest heaved like he'd been running for his life instead of merely sleeping. Laying a hand over his rapidly beating heart and grasping a handful of long, tangerine hair in the other, he willed himself to calm down.
It had only been a dream, but it had been unlike any other he'd had before. Everything had been entirely too intense, too real, for his liking. However, the orangette then stopped thinking about it when he heard an amused chuckle to his left.
At first, he had no memory of the night before and assumed himself to be in his bed in Kuchiki manor, but that was soon disproved by the fact that what he was currently sitting on was nowhere near as soft as his goose feather mattress and he was fairly certain he'd never awakened in the morning at home to lift his head and see in the dim light a pair of strange eyes staring straight at him.
Sleep-dazed mocha eyes blinked a few times as Ichigo's mind tried to make sense of things. Wherever he was instead of his bedroom was nearly pitch black, a single ray of early morning bluish light filtering through a small window across from him to illuminate a portion of dust-covered hardwood floor. The same floor on which he had presumably been sleeping beforehand for god knows how long. An unfamiliar suit jacket lay in Ichigo's lap from where it had been thrown over him, serving as a makeshift blanket.
The owner of those piercing eyes was nothing but a shadowy figure not twenty feet away, the outline visible enough that Ichigo could see it was male and had hair and skin so pale they glowed in the dark atmosphere, making it that much harder to see the finer physical features.
"Bad dream?"
Ichigo frowned, the man's voice was distinctive, that was for sure. It possessed a lilting, distorted quality and somehow it seemed... familiar.
"My my, such a pretty thing ya are. Mus' be my lucky day."
The words he'd heard right before he'd lost consciousness flickered through his mind, the voice in which they had been spoken unmistakable and the orangette felt his heart seize as he concluded that the figure before him had been the very person who'd caught him by surprise and knocked him out with a drugged rag the night before.
Ichigo managed to stifle the scream that threatened to burst from his mouth as the reality of the situation dawned upon him by biting down hard enough on his bottom lip that his fangs pierced the flesh. Eyes wide in panic, he instinctively backed away using his feet and hands to put as much distance between himself and his kidnapper as possible. Not daring to look away from the other for even a second, he met the stone wall behind him with the back of his head.
The teenaged vampire muffled his pained yelp, suddenly glad it was too dark to really see anything as his vision blurred for a few seconds before clearing again. He reached with one hand to gingerly touch the place that had collided with the wall, wincing when he felt a trickle of blood there, still not tearing his anxious gaze away from the figure across the room, wishing the man to stay where he was.
However, Ichigo's kidnapper seemed to have other ideas because in the dim lighting the orangette saw him push away from the wall he'd been leaning against to walk across the room, stepping directly into the ray of light, the action looking as if his physical form suddenly materialized from the shadow he'd previously been and what was then visible to the orangette certainly wasn't disappointing.
The man was like some sort of pagan god of winter brought to life, his skin so pale it was perfectly alabaster and the shaggy, shoulder-length locks of hair that framed an ethereally attractive face just as white as freshly fallen snow. His lean form was mostly covered by an all black ensemble including a work shirt that was left open at the collar to reveal the beginnings of finely toned pectoral muscles.
But what really left Ichigo breathless were the man's eyes, completely different than anything he'd ever seen before they were like pools of shadow in which rested black hole golden suns. They were positively hypnotic and he swore as they made eye contact he could never tire of staring into them.
Though he was pretty sure that shouldn't be a sane person's reaction to seeing their kidnapper's face for the first time.
"Yer quite tha skittish one, aren' ya?" the man said, his lips like porcelain parting into an amused grin that showed off two particularly sharp, elongated incisors. So, he was a vampire then. "Don' worry yer pretty little head, sweethear', I ain't gonna do anything to ya."
Ichigo's brow furrowed, demeanor instantly changing due to the outrage he felt upon being called 'pretty' and 'sweetheart,' and In the same sentence no less. He growled out of the corner of his mouth, glaring daggers up at the snowy-haired vampire.
"Yeah, right," he said venomously. "I'm supposed to believe that the insane bastard who snuck into my room, drugged me so that I couldn't fight back, and then brought me to wherever the hell this place is, isn't going to 'do anything' to me? Surely even you couldn't be that stupid."
Bracing himself for the punch in the face or kick in the ribs or whatever pain the other vampire would undoubtedly inflict upon him for the insult, Ichigo was surprised to say the least when he instead bent down so that their faces were mere inches apart, the intensity of those peculiar eyes so close to his so overwhelming the orange-haired youth couldn't even think about looking away.
"Ya have some nerve talkin' to yer captor like tha', 'specially when we're so far 'way from anyone who could help ya if I didn't play nice," the white-haired male said, tapping a finger to his lips as he cocked his head to the side. "I though' they always drove any backbone outta the submissives, trained 'em ta be, wha' is it... seen not heard?"
Ichigo was tempted to snort at that but instead merely frowned heavily, wondering if the other was toying with him before he moved on to... whatever his plans were. The orangette thought back to what Rukia had told him just the day before, that dominant male vampires (which this one clearly was) couldn't physically hurt one with the ability to bear children. Had she been mistaken or was the one who'd kidnapped him spoke the truth about not doing anything to him?
And if he was, why then did he snatch the submissive from the manor in the first place?
"I'm not an animal," Ichigo finally said, his tone bitter. "No one can 'train' me to be anything."
He wasn't sure why he'd even bothered to respond to the offensive question but it appeared to please the other vampire as his grin widened, gold on black eyes sparkling. And Ichigo was definitely sure he shouldn't find the image stunning.
"I see," the pale vampire said thoughtfully. "Ya mus' be who everyone's talkin' bout then, tha one didn' know ya were one of us or somethin' like that. Ichiro, righ'?"
Ichigo's eyebrows shot up to his hairline in disbelief. Had this lunatic taken him away without even knowing his name?
"Are you serious?" the orangette said. "You broke into my bedroom and kidnapped me without knowing who I was?"
"'ey, I'm not one 'a yer suitors. I don' have to know yer whole life story ta snatch ya away from righ' under their noses. Hope ya don' have ta marry one 'a those imbeciles, no one even considered tha explosion was a distraction. Jus' pathetic, really."
The other male straightened to his full height, shaking his head but smiling at his obvious feeling of superiority.
Ichigo's personal space now no longer being invaded, his brain started to function properly again, going back to what his captor had said, making his heart stop in horror.
"Explosion?" he gasped, images of his childhood home being destroyed in a fiery blast flitting through his mind's eye.
"Relax, would ya? No one died or nothin', it was on tha grounds. Took out tha stables, though."
Ichigo was grateful he was then still sitting propped up against the wall as he suddenly felt faint, heart in his throat and eyes burning with the tidal wave of grief that crashed over him.
Zangetsu.
Out of the corner of his eye he saw the other vampire take a step towards him. Ichigo could feel the agonizing sense of loss and horror at the news of his beloved companion's violent end warp into unadulterated rage and using the wall behind him as support he stood on unsteady legs. His entire body was shaking, vibrating, with ire unlike anything he'd felt before.
He wanted to verbalize his anger, curse the unnaturally pale lowlife who spoke of the destruction of the estate's stables so casually to hell and back, but words were beyond him at that moment. And when Ichigo made eye contact with the bizarre pair of gold and black orbs something odd happened.
The sorrow and rage the orangette had been experiencing instantly vanished, as if they had been ripped from him by force and now he was void of emotion, calm but not exactly at peace. It was a horrifically unnatural feeling, leaving him as weak as a newborn lamb and to lean heavily against the stone wall to his back.
"What... did you do to me?" Ichigo said wearily. The white-haired male for the first time since his captive had woken let his grin fall and sighed before looking away from the submissive male to stare out of the window.
"Sorry 'bout tha', but can' have ya tryin' ta kill me 'fore we even reach tha city," he said.
Ichigo didn't even bother to ask what city he talking about. He felt drained, exhausted already by this whole ordeal and he just wanted to know one thing.
"Why me?" he said, a feeble chuckle following his words as he realized how dramatic it sounded.
"Ya haven' figured it out by now?" The pale vampire seemed surprised, arching a white eyebrow suspiciously. When Ichigo didn't respond, he spoke again. "Yer guardian, Kuchiki, 'as more money than God and yer the firs' male submissive in decades, and a sight fer sore eyes at tha'. Somebody will be willin' ta pay up fer yer safe return."
"So you're holding me for ransom." Ichigo was puzzled when he found himself to be a little disappointed at the explanation. Silly as it sounded, if he was going to be kidnapped he would like for it to have been for a more romantic reason than money. Plus, he couldn't imagine anyone likely to pay a large sum just to guarantee his safety, not even Byakuya, especially not Byakuya.
"Ya bet yer sweet ass we are. After this I'll be able ta retire!" His kidnapper's grin returned then and Ichigo could imagine the other male imagining himself swimming in a vault full of gold, but something he'd said confused the youth.
"We?"
"Well yea', wasn't 'xactly a one man job gettin' ya outta there wit' all 'a those nobles struttin' about." The vampire's handsome face darkened momentarily as he spoke of the 'nobles' but the orangette figured him to most likely be some poor street rat turned criminal and so held the same contempt all the less fortunate citizens of Rukongai seemed to share.
Ichigo was relieved to notice that he no longer was experiencing the effects of whatever the other's mental ability had done to him, though he was much calmer than he should've been considering the situation. However, he decided it was actually for the better, because now despite his grief over Zangetsu's death he could think rationally and he needed to do just that if he wanted to figure out how to escape his captor and make his way back to those few that cared about him.
As the sun rose over the horizon more light filtered in through the window, revealing the structure they were in to be some kind of abandoned shack, completely bereft save for its roof and four walls.
Disappointed when he didn't even have a clue as to where they could be but figuring their location wasn't anywhere close to the Kuchiki estate, the boy decided then that it was for the best to play the part of docile captive until the opportunity to escape presented itself.
Well, he would try at least. But if that pale psychopath, or anyone, so much as looked at him the wrong way, Ichigo knew his reckless, impulsive nature wouldn't hesitate to throw caution to the wind and pounce on the unfortunate soul. Just because he was given the label 'submissive' didn't mean he couldn't hold his own in a fight.
"So I'm guessin' Ichiro's not yer name, then?"
Wondering why he was even entertaining the thought of having a civil conversation with the person who'd forcibly taken him from his home, the boy shook his head lifting his eyes from the dust-covered floor to gaze upon the flawless face of his kidnapper.
He guessed that the other vampire tying for first place for most attractive person he'd ever seen may have had something to do with it.
"It's Ichigo," he said after a moment.
"Ichigo," the white-haired male repeated, a contemplative expression pulling his eyebrows together. However, after a moment it melted back into the usual smirk. "Name's Shirosaki, but anyone wit' a face like yers can call me Shiro."
Ichigo forced a laugh at the mock attempt at flirting with him as the vampire then waggled his eyebrows. But he was mortified as his face suddenly heated at the compliment, even if it was supposed to be a joke. He should be offended that the person holding him hostage had tried to flatter him, not blushing like a girl fresh out of finishing school.
Outside of the shack there was what sounded like a thud followed by a yelp of pain and loud, barking laughter.
"Ah, finally tha kitty cat and Big Red show up," Shiro said, apparently able to see the source of the clamor at his spot by the window. He then made for the door, looking over his shoulder to where Ichigo was standing. "C'mon then, ya don' wanna stay 'ere do ya?"
The submissive vampire swallowed back his sarcastic answer and hesitantly followed Shiro outside.
It was immediately apparent as they stepped out into the early morning sunlight that they were nowhere near the Kuchiki estate, nor anything else for that matter. The shack they'd been inside of was surrounded by deciduous trees, obviously smack in the middle of a wooded forest that Ichigo didn't recognize at all which meant he had to at least wait until they reached the city Shiro had mentioned earlier.
Speaking of Shiro, Ichigo was horrified to see that the man was even more attractive when fully visible in the natural light and that he'd failed to notice the twin pistols in harnesses attached to the belt lying low on lean hips. Averting his eyes immediately, he then saw just who'd been laughing loud enough to wake the dead.
The orangette mentally added a third spot in first place on his list of most attractive people.
This one was coincidentally also a vampire, ivory, pointed fangs on full display even as his laughter died out. And from even the several yards between them, Ichigo could make out a lethally handsome face with strong, angular features displaying a wicked grin and a head of tousled sky blue hair that somehow seemed completely natural.
The newcomer dismounted from a pure white Arabian, revealing the full extent of what had to be a body to die for under his layer of dark clothing close to what Shiro was wearing, down to identical pistols on his own belt. As the vampire beside Ichigo continued forward, the blue-haired male looked their way and the orangette could've sworn for a moment that those strikingly blue eyes had turned him to stone, unable to move.
However the neighing of a horse called him back to reality and as soon as Ichigo's eyes swiveled over to see a jet black stallion trying to break free from the person holding onto his reins he barely registered that he was moving, dashing forward to fling himself into the side of the animal.
"So tha's why ya got all riled up 'bout tha stables," he heard Shiro say. "Probably should'a told ya we had Red take tha horses 'fore it blew up."
Ichigo figured he should've thoroughly throttled Shiro for making him believe Zangetsu was dead, but he was just too blithe at seeing his horse just as alive as ever that he couldn't find it in him to be angry. There was a derisive snort from the blue-haired vampire, who then spoke in a gravelly yet velveteen voice.
"Glad to see you're doing your usual bang up job with this one," he said, addressing Shiro with words seeped in sarcasm. "Letting him run around with a head wound so we can chase after him when he tries to make a run for it, a waste considering no one's going to cough up a good amount of cash when he's brain damaged from you hitting him over the head."
"'ey, I didn' touch 'im!"
"Bullshit. Am I supposed to believe blood just magically appeared on his head then?"
"Piss off, Grimmjow. He knocked 'is head into tha wall, and I'll remind ya if it weren't fer me, ya would'a never been able ta nab 'im in tha firs' place."
Both vampires snarled dangerously and when there was the distinctive sound of a fist against flesh, Ichigo looked up from where he'd buried his face into Zangetsu's neck to see Shiro and the one named Grimmjow wrestling around on the ground, hands on each other's throats and growling like animals. He frowned, wondering if they were seriously fighting or working out their aggression.
"Hey morons, we'll never make it in time if we don't get going and I ain't sleeping on the ground tonight," a voice from Zangetsu's other side said and Ichigo swore it sounded familiar but couldn't exactly place it. "So kiss and make-up already."
Astonishingly, both of the males stilled and Ichigo's jaw dropped as he watched Shiro angle his head from where he was pinned to the ground by the other's body to press his lips firmly against Grimmjow's. The blue-haired vampire didn't respond to this as Ichigo thought he might, neither kissing back or pummeling Shiro to a pulp. Instead he merely pushed the paler male back to the ground and stood up making Shiro cackle like a madman before he too got to his feet.
When the snowy-haired man winked his way, Ichigo's face burned and he turned his head, unknowingly looking straight to where the owner of the familiar voice stood by his own mount.
The long crimson hair and tattooed eyebrows over a pair of russet eyes that were staring directly at him were only too recognizable.
It was illogical to feel the kind of betrayal he did at that moment, but Ichigo did so anyway and his expression turned to ice. He wouldn't give that person the satisfaction of being angered by their deception.
"I suppose I owe you another thanks for saving my horse again," he said.
Renji's face was unreadable and he said nothing in return, nor did he get the chance to because someone then addressed Ichigo, diverting his attention.
"Hey, you." It was Grimmjow, who now held in an outstretched hand some sort of medical gauze, which Ichigo automatically reached to accept. "Patch yourself up so you don't bleed everywhere."
Then he was gone, climbing onto his horse as Renji and Shiro did the same.
Ichigo figured it was best not to point out it was impossible for him to bandage the wound he'd acquired from hitting his head against the wall since he couldn't see it. He supposed using some kind of twisted logic he should be grateful to have captors that would give him such a thing in the first place.
Stuffing the gauze into the waistcoat he was still wearing from the night before for safekeeping, he mounted Zangetsu with ease, relaxing into the familiar seat of the saddle.
"Don' go runnin' off now, Ichi," Shiro said from atop his own horse, his tone like a parent chastising their child.
Ichigo didn't say aloud that he wasn't planning on it.
At least, not until they reached the city. Then he would only have to wait for the opportunity to escape. If things went well, he could be sleeping in his own bed by tomorrow night.
He didn't think about how there was a part of him that never wanted to go back to the manor and live under the thumb of someone he barely knew. No, he wouldn't think about that. He wouldn't, he wouldn't.
And he definitely wouldn't think about how things may have been different had any of his three captors been rich or nobility and they'd been the one chosen for him.
A/N: I am so sorry this took longer than usual. Life has been rather demanding lately. ^^' I'll update again as soon as I can. :D
Thank you so much for your lovely reviews! They inspire me. I wonder if anyone can guess what Shiro or Ichigo's ability are yet or what the beginning dream sequence could possibly mean... :3
To help out those like me who speed read through stories to get to the good parts and forget some of the information, here's a quick summary about the vampires and setting in this story.
Rukongai is the province where the story takes place. It is parallel to late nineteenth century Victorian England in every way except half of it's population are vampires. This is crucial to the story, because, as it was in those times, society worships the aristocrats and has severely heteronormatized gender roles, leaving women and male submissive vampires with little rights or freedom.
The vampires in this story:
- are practically normal human children until they breach their Inheritance on their sixteenth birthday, which is when they grow their fangs, develop the thirst for blood, gain strength, speed, and reflexes superior to a human's and a mental ability (superpower), like Rangiku's lie detection and Byakuya's telepathic power to receive thoughts meant specifically for him. These abilities may take days or weeks to show itself (like in Ichigo's case.)
- also, immediately following a female or male submissive's Inheritance, the patriarch makes an announcement, inviting all unattached dominant male vampires interested in finding a mate to pursue their daughter or son. Notably it is the father and an Elder who make the final decision.
- live peacefully alongside humans for the most part though the two have separate governing bodies (the Elders in the vampires' case) and tend to segregate themselves.
- are incredibly civilized, and though it hasn't been mentioned yet these vampires acquire blood from willing donors. It is taboo, despite their fangs, to actually bite a human.
- mate for life. More on this to come.
- are not affected by the sun, wooden stakes, garlic, crosses, mirrors, etc. Also, they are not immortal, only aging at a much slower rate than humans after their Inheritance (one human year for every ten that pass.) They can pretty much die of any of the same things humans do.