Tainted But Beautiful
Part 1: The Hunters
5. Mastery
Pairings: AkuZeku, Zemyx, AkuRoku, AxDem
Rated: M
Warnings: Vampires, vampires, vampires...uh, yaoi, AU-ish-ness, abuse (if it has AkuZeku, it has abuse in it), NONCON, GRAPHIC SCENES, RAPE, character death, overall weirdness.
Summary: Axel is a powerful vampire slayer who's captured Zexion, a vampire, as his pet. What Axel doesn't bargain on is Demyx, his former student, developing a strong attraction to Zexion...
Notes: Another chapter you'll probably all hate me for, particularly given Demyx's behavior in this chapter. I tried to make it understandable, but yeah...what else can you expect of a chapter called "Mastery"?
Anyway, this chapter picks up on the "mastery" angle first introduced at the end of chapter three. It's long, but it has two sex scenes (rape scenes, really...) in quick succession so it shouldn't be too boring.
Also, I'd like to note that this chapter marks the halfway point of the first part. I don't think I've stated this before, but this story will be divided into three parts of ten chapters each. Yeah, a highly ambitious project, but I have the entire thing plotted out surprisingly well and I'm actually confident I'll be able to carry it out.
Keep the reviews coming! They're like manna to me; they really are. Cheesy but it's true.
Saunders was not particularly happy about Roxas's arrival--to him, it meant one more "ragamuffin" to tromp mud around the house, one more person he'd have to clean up after. Demyx found it wasn't hard to ignore Saunders, though, and Axel also ignored Saunders with something close to maniacal cheerfulness. Sometimes Demyx wondered why Saunders was even still working for Axel, given that Axel made it so unpleasant--but then realized that money probably spoke much louder than working conditions.
Barring Saunders, though, Roxas had adjusted to life within Axel's household quite well. That first night, he'd been dead asleep by the time the three had arrived home, so Axel had carried him to one of his multiple guest rooms (one of which Demyx was staying in), and put Roxas to rest there. When Roxas had awoken, he had done little besides following Axel everywhere, staring at his opulent surroundings with wide, disbelieving eyes. He seemed to be in a stupor of sorts--but it was entirely understandable. Demyx had felt similarly overwhelmed the first time Axel had showed him around his family's manor. And that manor had been much grander, and Demyx had been much younger--only seven. He was surprised he hadn't just passed out from the sheer dissonance of it all, how different it was from his previous life...
But he'd adjusted, and so had Roxas. Within days, Roxas was up and alert at sunset, running outside in the courtyard and training. At first Axel had complained bitterly about having to wake up so early, but soon became infected by Roxas's own eagerness and pleased in Roxas's enthusiasm, and directed nearly all of his energies into training Roxas. So much so that he and Demyx no longer had time to hunt, but Demyx didn't mind. Roxas's training was more important at the moment.
And Roxas--Demyx couldn't deny it. The kid was a great student. He threw himself into his training with a wild, desperate fervor, never once complaining or begrudging having to practice the same stabbing technique over and over again (for Axel, despite his antipathy towards stakes, still taught the standard stake-fighting techniques first), or sitting in Axel's study memorizing long lists of vampire facts. And even outside of Axel's guidance, he studied. Long after Axel retreated upstairs to take care of "personal business", Roxas would remain in the courtyard, doggedly practicing maneuvers; and when he went back inside he would retreat to Axel's private library and intently peruse tome after dusty tome about vampire lore. Sometimes, he even fell asleep in the library, his head slumped over the latest book he'd been reading. Then, Axel would pick Roxas up and carry him back to his room, taking the book with him.
"He's great," said Axel one night after he'd done just that, stepping lightly out of Roxas's room and shutting the door behind him. "He really is. I mean--I guess it's different because you were younger and I wasn't that much older than you--but he really..."
He hesitated, as if searching for the right words to say. Which was odd because Axel was never at a loss for words--but Demyx knew why this time. And in the strangest way, it touched him. He didn't let any of that show, though, straightening his shoulders and said to Axel, "Look, it doesn't matter...I understand. I wasn't that great a student..."
"No, no! You were," said Axel, holding up his hands for peace. "It's just that Roxas is....he's so enthusiastic about it all. He really--he really lives, eats, and breathes it. I mean, to you it was only ever a job. Right?"
Demyx nodded the affirmative.
"But to Roxas..." continued Axel, shaking his head in bemused wonder. "To Roxas it's a way of life. And I guess--that's a really noble way to think about it. He's an even better student than I ever was."
"Uh-huh," said Demyx. They continued trekking down the stairs, both walking slowly, but with a steady purpose. They both knew exactly where they were going.
"But hey! You're not a bad student either," said Axel, and he cracked a huge grin. "You're learning quickly with the whole mastery deal..."
Demyx returned Axel's grin, but inside his stomach gave an uncomfortable lurch. How, he wondered, could he tell Axel...the truth?
The "mastering" lessons had begun the night after Roxas had first joined them.
Axel was doing a surprisingly good job at keeping the lessons a secret from Roxas. Not Zexion's presence--he'd let Roxas knew about Zexion on the second day of the boy's apprenticeship. Roxas had exchanged a few words with Zexion, but they were awkward and brief, and he never again brought up the subject. Demyx could only suppose that Roxas just considered Zexion one of his teacher's eccentricities, and chose not to speak about it.
Which made it easier to hide the other lessons, the ones that Axel weren't teaching Roxas and probably never would. He excused them as "personal business", and left Roxas to his training every night. Roxas didn't mind because he was just as eager a student on his own as with Axel, and was so engrossed in his drills or reading that he never stopped to think about what Axel was doing during these "personal times". Not to mention that Axel had soundproofed his room long ago (a fact that Demyx thought was creepy, but normal for Axel)...
Demyx had been jumpy all throughout the first lesson. He stood in Axel's room, shifting nervously from foot-to-foot, waiting for the redhead to return--with his "pet". To pass time, he swept his eyes around Axel's room, trying to memorize every detail (Got it memorized? smirked Axel in his head), but they flowed out of his head like water. The walls were brown--no beige--no--pink? The floor had a carpet but he couldn't make out its color let alone its pattern, and the bed--it had a bunch of pillows, right, but were they embroidered with birds or butterflies? Or nothing? His head was reeling, his stomach giving violent jolts.
A tiny and very nasty part of Demyx wondered if he wasn't suffering from stomach flu, given the state of his abdomen these past few days. He banished these stupid, facetious thoughts, however. He wasn't sick. He just--
Wasn't sure if he was ready to face Zexion again. Wasn't sure he'd ever be able to face Zexion again, after that fiasco in the dungeon.
Ha, and this is how you're going to master him? continued that nasty voice. Demyx shook his head to banish it--and then started wondering if he even wanted to master Zexion in the first place.
Thankfully, he didn't get that far with these thoughts when the door to the room swung open, and Axel entered--leading Zexion behind him.
Demyx was surprised by how...different...Zexion seemed. For one thing, he was no longer wearing the torn and soiled turtleneck and slacks, but a plain white button-down shirt and gray slacks. But it wasn't just his clothes. Everything--everything--was different. The way he was holding himself, not with bored disdain as he had with Demyx, but with his head bowed, his movements uncertain. The way he kept his eyes firmly to the ground...the perfect neutrality of his expression. Demyx just couldn't reconcile the silent, deferent boy in front of him with the same smirking, confident incubus who'd seduced him so successfully just the other day.
The instant Axel and Zexion entered the room, Axel said, his voice ringing with the harsh authority of a command, "On to the bed."
Zexion didn't hesitate to obey. As soon as Axel released the chain attached to his wrist cuff, the vampire crossed the room in three smooth, graceful strides, and dropped face-down on the bed, his eyes closed, his arms by his side. Almost like he was sleeping, but his every muscle was tensed--he was waiting, waiting for Axel and Demyx to...
To master him. Demyx swallowed the word down in his throat. Once more, it felt dry and bitter, and he had to fight to force it down.
"Hey. Look up," said Axel, his voice lower but still commanding. He knelt by the bed and cupped Zexion's bandaged cheek in one hand. The vampire cracked a dark blue eye open, his expression still flat and emotionless. "Like that. Now--remember what you did the other day?"
"Yes, Master," said Zexion, his voice barely above a low murmur, his words flat and clipped. Axel tugged gently on a few strands of Zexion's slate-colored hair.
"Tell me." Again, his voice rang with authority.
"I--I--did a very bad thing, Master," said Zexion, so quietly that Demyx had to strain to hear him. "I--I tricked Demyx. I seduced him. I was bad."
He said the words with absolutely no inflection, almost as if he was reciting a list. As if he was reciting from a script. Demyx felt both disquieted and heartened at this revelation--though he was at a complete loss for why.
"Damn right you were," said Axel derisively. "Now, my little monster--open your eyes. Sit up. Look Demyx in the eye, and tell him you're sorry. Won't you?" Another pull on the hair, harder this time.
"Yes, Master." An inflectionless murmur, and then in a single fluid motion the vampire pulled himself up into a sitting position--and met Demyx's eyes. Demyx took a step backwards, startled. Startled, again, by the change that had come over Zexion--his dark blue eyes were perfectly blank, revealing no emotion, revealing nothing. There was none of the sadistic confidence, none of the smirking good humor, in those eyes...and that...
That definitely disquieted Demyx.
"Demyx," said Zexion, and his voice was so flat it took Demyx a moment to realize Zexion had just addressed him. "I am very sorry for what I did to you. It was wrong of me. I should not have done that and I deserve to be punished for it. I hope you will show me all the mercy I deserve in your punishment tonight."
He had never sounded more like he was reciting from a script--he wasn't even bothering to pretend at putting emotion and inflection into the words. Such words would have bothered Demyx on any level, but Zexion's flat recitation caused them to lose any meaning they might have had.
It didn't mean that Demyx wasn't still bothered, though. Immediately, without thinking much as to exactly what he was saying, he held up his hands and said in quick rush, "No, no, no, you don't have to apologize--I mean, that was as much my fault as yours--I was a big fucking idiot and I'm--"
Axel rudely cut in before Demyx could say "sorry". "Aww, shut it, Dems. How the hell do you hope to master him if you're gonna be stammering apologies left and right, huh?"
"Er--" Demyx felt his face burn, and he lowered his hands back to his sides, trying to ignore the sudden intensity of Zexion's scrutiny of him--the vampire had let the slightest, just the slightest, bit of surprise widen his eyes... "Uh..." He felt the urge to apologize again, but didn't know to whom, so he kept silent.
"All right, anyway, monster," said Axel, giving the chain on Zexion's cuff a hard yank, "you know what to do. Face down, on the bed. Take whatever you're given. Any and all forms of protest will be swiftly punished. But this is old hat to you, isn't it?"
The vampire blinked and looked away from Demyx, and lowered his head in deference to Axel. "Yes, Master."
"Good boy," said Axel, just as tonelessly as Zexion. Another tug on the chain. "Face down."
Zexion obeyed without further prompting, lying face down on the bed again. Axel smirked and prodded Zexion in the small of the back; Zexion hardly reacted to the gesture.
"Now, Demyx," said Axel, resting his hand on Zexion's head, sinking his fingers into the vampire's silky slate-blue hair. "Ready to learn? 'Cause I know I'm sure as hell ready to teach." Sure enough--he was. He had started unzipping his pants and unbuckling his belt.
"Uh, yeah," said Demyx with an awkward cough, suddenly feeling very much the voyeur. What the hell was he doing, watching his former-teacher have sex with a vampire? Not "have sex", he reminded himself. Master.
Axel reached under Zexion's stomach--Zexion shifted to give Axel more room--and from the sounds of it was now unzipping Zexion's pants as well. All the while, the slayer spoke, his voice falling into the familiar cadences of a lecturing teacher. "You have to make sure you subsume him completely. In mind, body, spirit. Heart, soul. Make sure he lives for you. That you are all that's left of his universe, and he has to depend on you. Do you understand?"
"Sure," said Demyx, though this was all so very metaphorical and he couldn't see what it had to do with sex.
"Like hell you do," snorted Axel, seeing past Demyx's flimsy lies. "Look--you've got to dominate him. Screw if he enjoys it. If he does that's just a minor plus. Make sure you enjoy it. He exists for nothing besides fulfilling you."
"Uh-huh." Demyx jerked his head in a nod. This was starting to make more sense...but he didn't like Axel's phrasing. It all seemed so very--harsh. So very wrong. Again, the bitter taste of master on the back of his throat.
"You have to make sure he defers one hundred percent to you. If he doesn't--if he even has a speck of individual will--it's over," continued Axel, seizing the waistband of Zexion's pants and pulling them down in a single swift motion, revealing all that Zexion had to offer. Demyx couldn't help it--his heartbeat quickened, and he took a step closer.
"But I suppose I should stop telling you what you want, and start telling you how to get there," said Axel, climbing on top of Zexion as he freed his member from the confines of his pants. It took all of Demyx's effort to keep from whistling in appreciation--Axel was stiff, and pulsing, nearly fully-erect. He setled for a nervous giggle instead, which Axel ignored.
"It starts with you, not him, seeing as he's going to be rather...noncompliant...at the start," Axel went on, his tone still perfectly academic, not seeming to care at all about what...Demyx was staring at. He bent down over Zexion and ran his fingers through the vampire's hair, prompting a slight shiver from Zexion. "You have to believe that you're capable of this. That you are better than him. Stronger, smarter, abler. That you will be able to dominate him. Believe in your own strength, and then subduing his strength won't be so hard."
Stronger, smarter, abler...Demyx swallowed dryly. He was quite sure he was none of those things. Not stronger and abler because he was human and Zexion was a vampire; and not smarter because, well, he just wasn't smart.
"He does have tricks at his disposal--but they're just that. Tricks. You can break through them. They're shallow. Illusions. Remember that. Everything he shows you--it's false, it's just screwing with your mind. Well, you can rise about that. Remember that you have strength on your side, which he does not. If he disobeys..." Axel was now poised right over Zexion's entrance, his cock throbbing, and obviously prepared to tear straight through the vampire beneath him, regardless of Zexion's own comfort. "...hurt him. Make him feel pain."
He thrust his hips back, obviously prepared to enter Zexion--but Zexion suddenly unleashed a sound that was halfway between a cough and a whimper. Axel frowned at Zexion through half-closed eyes, looking impatient.
"Yeah? Speak, monster, if you've got something to say."
"Master--I was just--I was wondering if--" began Zexion, his voice low, hesitant. But there was emotion to it. For the first time he didn't sound like he was reading off a script.
"If what?" Axel's voice was biting and impatient, but he held back from thrusting into Zexion anyway. "Hurry the fuck up."
"If you could--if you could please--prepare me? Master?" Even more hesitance, but the faint hint of something--else--had slipped into Zexion's voice. Something almost akin to...defiance? It was very faint, but it was there.
"What the fuck?" said Axel, and his entire face darkened--he must have sensed the tiny level of defiance in Zexion's voice as well. Demyx's heart started racing as he wondered what Axel was going to do--
But he didn't have to wonder for much longer. The next instant, quick as a viper striking, Axel drew his arm back and hit Zexion, hard, across the face. The vampire let out a hiss of pain and fell, with a muffled thump, back on to the bed. He turned away from Demyx so that Demyx couldn't see his face, but then Axel snatched a fistful of Zexion's hair and jerked the vampire's head up, so they were eye-to-eye. A thin trickle of blood was running from the side of Zexion's mouth, but he didn't seem to care--his expression had returned to that flat neutrality.
"Little bitch," said Axel in a low, angry hiss. "Do you really think you deserve any gentleness--?" Then, turning to Demyx, he continued in the familiar lecturing tone, "If he disobeys, punish him. Hit him as hard as you can. Make sure it hurts. Got it memorized?" With that, he released his grip on Zexion's hair, and the vampire fell back down to the submissive, face-down position.
Demyx nodded quickly, though he couldn't dismiss the growing apprehension stirring in his stomach (not flu...). Hit him...but could he? Could he stand to mar Zexion's delicate beauty like that? Again, he remembered the cuts, gashes, and bruises all over Zexion's pale body, and he shuddered.
"But since you asked so nicely," said Axel, now addressing Zexion, "I suppose it's fair I should reward you. Even if you don't deserve it...but whatever. C'mon. Suck, and watch it with the fangs, monster. You know the saying that 'there's always more where that came from'..."
As Axel insipidly blathered, he had slipped three fingers into Zexion's mouth. Zexion leaned forward with something almost like desperation, sucking intently on Axel's fingers and coating them thoroughly with his saliva. Axel drew his fingers away after about a minute, smiling a quiet and insidious smirk as he examined his now slick fingers.
"Sometimes," he said, now speaking to Demyx, "it's better to indulge him once in a while. Builds his trust in you, doesn't it?" He tugged playfully on Zexion's chain.
Much to Demyx's surprise, Zexion responded to this, turning around slightly to cast Axel a brief but intent glance. "Believe me, Master, I can trust you." His voice was low, hoarse, barely about a whisper.
"Hmm?" Axel frowned at Zexion, but he looked more curious than annoyed. "I'm sure you can. Spread your legs a little more--that's good. You ready?"
This wasn't addressed at Zexion, but at Demyx. Demyx was starting to feel very queasy now, and he couldn't quite say why--no, he knew why, it was because he didn't want to do this but now it was too late and there was no way he could back down now--so all he could do was nod, slowly, once, twice.
"Good." With that, Axel turned back to Zexion, submissively face-down on the bed and legs spread, but he was clutching the sheets so tightly his knuckles were white and he was trembling, almost imperceptibly, but Demyx noticed. Again, his stomach lurched, but what could he do? He could only watch as Axel stroked the rim of Zexion's entrance, with a tenderness that caused both Zexion and Demyx to shudder (although, Demyx felt, for different reasons)--and then slid a finger inside Zexion.
Zexion tensed at the gesture, prompting a low chuckle from Axel. "How's it feel, little monster?" he said in a low, sadistically-delighted whisper.
"It--ah--c-cold--Master--"
"Hey, you asked for it. Beggars can't be choosers," snapped Axel, and Demyx had to fight the sudden--and very incongruous--urge to giggle. Axel then slipped another finger inside Zexion's entrance, making sure to dig into the skin with his nails. Zexion let out a low hiss, which Axel responded to with another chuckle. "Hurts?"
"N-no Master." Zexion's voice was muffled, as he was burying his face into the sheets. "Ahhn--"
"Mm, you're tight," said Axel, slipping his third finger in. He had started scissoring his fingers, knifing them back and borth and seemingly enjoying exploring every inch of the vampire's tight confines. Zexion, for his part, was whimpering and writhing under Axel's ministrations, clutching the sheets so tightly his claws pierced through the mattress. He was flushed bright red, and seemed embarrassed in whatever pleasure he was feeling.
He was nothing like he'd been with Demyx, so confident and so superior as he seduced the slayer. Demyx couldn't help but shudder, wondering what Axel had done to get Zexion to defer to him so. Axel very clearly held all the reins here, and he was enjoying it, reveling in his power over the vampire. He had--mastered--Zexion.
Can I ever do that? Do I want to do that?
"Dominate, control," said Axel, sliding his fingers out of Zexion witha single smooth motion and wiping them dispassionately on Zexion's hip--covered with faded and splotchy bruises. Demyx gave an involuntary shudder again, realizing where those bruises most have come from... "You're the one in charge here, Dems. Never forget that. You cannot give him a single opening, you get it?"
"Uh huh," said Demyx, nodding dutifully.
"That's good," said Axel, though he sounded distracted. He turned back to Zexion, his intent more than clear. Demyx had to fight the urge to shudder again--why? Why was he so--disgusted? He had wanted to do this, he had asked for it...
And now he had no time to protest. For in that instant, Axel had seized Zexion by the hips (causing him to hiss as pressure was applied to his bruises), and with a single motion, with no ceremony or even warning, thrust deep inside the vampire.
"Nghh--" Zexion threw his head head back and unleashed a long groan of pain. "Master--hurts--"
"Like fucking hell it does," growled Axel through his teeth, tightening his grip on Zexion's hips as he thrust deeper in, not seeming to care at all for the vampire's comfort. Zexion hissed, squeezing his eyes shut, panting from pain. Blood had started dripping down his chin, and this, Demyx realized, was from biting his own lip.
He was refusing to give Axel the pleasure of seeing him scream.
"C'mon, cry," said Axel in a low murmur. He remained still for a moment, letting Zexion adjust to his length--but for only a second. The next instant, he pulled almost completely out of Zexion--and then thrust back in again. Zexion tensed, his entire body shuddering from the force of the motion, but continued biting his lip and digging his fingers into the mattress, stubbornly refusing to scream or cry.
Axel, Demyx realized with a sudden flash, hasn't succeeded. He hasn't completely "mastered" Zexion.
In the strangest way, that thought made Demyx feel better.
Axel was now thrusting at a regular rhythm now, in and out, over and over again, stabbing deeper with each thrust. His fingers dug deeper into Zexion's bruised hips, drawing rivulets of blood that stood out darkly against the vampire's death-white skin. Axel was grunted regularly as he thrusted, and Zexion answered with little whimpers and groans and gasps of pain--but never a scream.
"Does it hurt, little bitch? Do you want it to stop?" hissed Axel, his voice so twisted by sadistic pleasure that Demyx could barely recognize it. Unbidden, he flashed back to the early days, back when Axel had been just a kid and had smiled so much more freely...
"Ngh--damn--M-Master--" gasped Zexion in response. "Ahh! Please--"
"Beg me as much as you like, monster, 'cause you're not getting anything," growled Axel as he stabbed deeper than he ever had before--and then with a violent shudder and a string of foul words that made Demyx almost clamp his hands to his ears, he came. His essence splattered all over the sheets (blue, they're blue, Demyx thought inanely), and flowed forth from inside Zexion, staining the vampire's pale thighs. Axel thrust a few more times to ride out his orgasm, then pulled out, with just as rough of a motion as he'd first tore into Zexion with.
Zexion collapsed into a shivering heap on the bed, gasping like a man saved from drowning. Axel smirked and prodded Zexion on the small of his back, causing the vampire's entire body to convulse. Then, slowly, with an insidious smirk shining in his green eyes, Axel turned back to face Demyx. Demyx took a step back--he'd never seen such an expression on Axel's face before,never before--
"That, Dems," said Axel, his voice ringing with quiet satisfaction, "is how you do it. That is how you master a pureblood vampire. Am I right, my pretty little pet? Have I mastered you?"
"Yes Master." The response was instantaneous, flat, emotionless--but hid a faint hint of trembling.
"I...I see," said Demyx, shaking his head to clear it--although that didn't help with the tight clenching sensation in the pit of his abdomen. He didn't know why...he had asked for this but all he'd ended up feeling was disgust. Disgust in what he'd seen, disgust in himself for having seen it...
"Sure you do," said Axel with a low chuckle, sliding off the bed and zipping his pants again as he did so. "But as you very well know, I'm a teacher who's always believed in the power of hands-on learning."
"What?" Demyx felt the blood drain from his face, felt a sudden chill shoot up his spine. He knew what Axel meant...
"C'mon. Try it. You just saw me do it, so I'm figuring you know how to do it yourself. Get on the bed and master the little bitch," said Axel, his voice ringing with the cold authority of a command. He gestured towards where Zexion lay shivering on the bed--but Zexion had now turned his attention towards Demyx, surveying him through an emotionless blue eye.
"Er--I dunno--kinda sudden, isn't it--?" began Demyx, but he didn't have a chance to protest before Axel seized him by the wrist and dragged him over to stand above Zexion. Demyx's knees bumped against the bed, and he cursed in his head--but all his attention was soon distracted from the pain in his knees to Zexion. The beautiful pale vampire, trembling beneath him, so thin and small and vulnerable in only his oversized shirt...and entirely against his will, Demyx felt his pants begin to tighten around the groin...
"Master--" Zexion threw a questioning look towards Axel. Axel pushed Zexion's head back down.
"Take whatever you're given, bitch. You know that."
"But Master--"
"Shut up," said Axel, tightening his grip on a few strands of Zexion's delicate slate-blue hair, and tugging. Zexion let out a low whimper of pain, but Axel responded by pulling even harder.
"Axel--" began Demyx, not sure what he wanted to say but feeling like he had to say something. This was going too far...but how could he back out without looking like more of a coward than Axel already thought he was? Not to mention the little problem he was beginning to experience "downstairs"...
"He's all yours, Dems," said Axel, climbing away from Zexion and taking a perch on the opposite side of the bed. He never once removed his bright green eyes from Demyx's face, and Demyx realized with a sudden, sharp feeling of foreboding that he couldn't escape. Not now. He'd already been captured by Axel, and there was no turning back now.
As if in a dream, Demyx saw himself clamber on to the bed, so that he was looming directly over Zexion. Zexion craned his neck so he could see Demyx--and Demyx stopped dead in his tracks. Pleading, hoping, begging, fear--all mingled in Zexion's deep blue eyes, a maelstrom of emotion that threatened to submerge Demyx entirely. He couldn't even remember how Zexion had been so dead and emotionless before...now all he saw was the wild terror, the desperate plea for mercy, shining in those eyes...
"Please--Demyx--you are kind--have mercy--" whispered the vampire, his voice low and hoarse and terrified. "Please--"
He was. He was almost about to take mercy on Zexion, and say "To hell with this!" and storm out of the room--but before he could, Axel yanked, hard, on the silver chain connecting to Zexion's wrist cuff. Zexion hissed as the cuff was dragged against his skin, leaving behind an angry red burn--and the spell was broken. Demyx sucked in a deep breath, feeling that his head had been cleared of a great fuzz. Of course, Zexion had just been using his powers, but now Demyx could think clearly and he...
He reached for Zexion's hips, digging his fingers into the pale skin now marred by heavy and dark bruises and beads of blood. The vampire hissed in pain, but Demyx ignored him--he was no longer thinking anymore. He'd been captured by his instincts, by the overwhelming desire stirring in his groin...
"Mercy--Demyx--" gasped Zexion, but now that he was no longer using his powers, the words were no longer an enchanting plea, but just pathetic and miserable attempts at begging. Demyx found, caught in the heat of the moment that he was, that it wasn't hard at all to just ignore Zexion's meaningless prattle.
"Good job, Dems. Master him. Control him. Make sure he doesn't get to use his powers," said Axel encouragingly from the sidelines. "You're doing great so far. Don't leave him any openings..."
Just as it was easy to tune out Zexion, it wasn't difficult to let Axel's sports-commentator-like encouragement fall on deaf ears, too. Demyx was now unzipping his own pants, prepared to enter the prone vampire before him just as Axel had done earlier...
"Demyx--I know--you don't have to--" stammered Zexion, an edge of desperation coloring his words. "Please don't--"
"I don't want to hurt you," said Demyx, the words popping out of his unthinking mind before he could quite figure out what he was saying. Both Axel and Zexion tensed, Axel letting out a low expletive.
"Then stop this," begged Zexion. He looked quite beautiful like that, with his bloodied lips trembling and his eyes wide and desperate and moist...
"I really don't," continued Demyx, still having no idea what he was saying.
"Then stop--"
"The fuck, Demyx," this was Axel, cutting in, "get to it already or I'll--"
"So please, try to enjoy this," concluded Demyx, and with that, he tightened his grip on Zexion's hips, lifted himself above the vampire's entrance--now somewhat wider after Axel's ministrations--and thrust in.
"Demyx--!" Zexion turned the name into a musical cry, a torn scream of agony beyond just the physical that reverberated throughout the entire room, setting Demyx's nerves on fire with a ferocious passion. "Please--!"
But Demyx was long past caring, long past even listening. All that mattered to him were his animal instincts, compelling him to thrust, up and down, in and out, over and over again with a punishing rhythm that would probably leave him aching tomorrow, but he didn't care--he was too caught up in the instincts, ignoring even that tiny vestige of a human voice, a conscience, beginning him to stop, this was wrong, he was hurting Zexion...
It was tight inside Zexion, and difficult to maneuver, but something about forcing his way through the warm tightness of Zexion's passage only excited Demyx more. A flood of sensations--some shameful, some delightful--swirled through his body: excitement, lust, control, delight, sheer undeniable pleasure. In a strange, detached way, he was reminded of that night, when Zexion had knelt and blew him with a masterful precision...but it was different, too, because the incubus wasn't in control this time.
Lost in his feverish pleasure, Demyx climbed further on top of the vampire, pressing more of his weight inside Zexion--he could hear Zexion hiss from the increased pain--now gripping the vampire's shoulders for leverage (though taking care to avoid the half-healed slashes on Zexion's shoulder). He felt Zexion tighten around him, and that devilish, animalistic part of him smiled inside when he realized that in this positon, he was almost completely filling the vampire. Strangely emboldened by that revelation, he thrust into Zexion harder than he'd ever before, feeling the tip of his erect cock slam into a tender spot deep within Zexion--
Zexion's entire body tensed at the gesture, and he let out a shuddering gasp--but it wasn't one of pain. In the torn sound, in the tremor that coursed down the vampire's spine, there was something beyond pain, something almost akin to--
Demyx, even more emboldened, thrust harder and deeper, picking up his pace and taking care to hit that sweet spot with every downward thrust. He was nearing his release--he could feel it, burning not just in his loins but through every nerve--and Zexion, too, was shivering and gasping and convulsing every time Demyx slammed against his prostate, caught in the throes of unwilling pleasure.
Soon Demyx came, spilling his essence, white and gushing, all over the bed and Zexion as he thrust out of the vampire, his vision blanking out for a fraction of a second. He didn't curse, as Axel had when he'd climaxed, but let out a low groan alight with shaking pleasure--
"You're so beautiful, Zexion--"
"Nggh damn you!" was Zexion's only reply to this as he, too, convulsed and came. His seed streaked down his thighs, mingling with Demyx's and splattering on to the bed as well. The last of his tremors died down as Demyx pulled away from him, and he collapsed in a panting, furiously blushing heap on the bed. Demyx slowly pulled away and stood opposite Zexion, his head spinning, squeezing his eyes shut.
What the hell had he just done?
"Nhh...D-Demyx..." whispered Zexion. "Y-you fucking bastard..."
"Enjoyed it, huh?" But this wasn't Demyx speaking--it was Axel's voice, harsh but ablaze with a devilish satisfaction. "But I guess that's a kind of mastering too. Guess he really wasn't as much of a weakling as you thought, huh?"
"I--ahh--" Zexion took in a deep and shuddering breath, but said nothing more. Slowly, Demyx cracked open his eyes, to see--
The slate-haired vampire lay huddled amongst the blankets, his eyes tightly closed--but there was no hiding the tear streaks shining on his face. Demyx's heart gave a cold jolt--it was the first time he had ever seen Zexion cry. He had half a mind to comfort Zexion, but was frozen to the spot, unable to do anything besides sweep his eyes over the scene of devastation. Over the sticky semen--his and Zexion's--clinging to the vampire's thighs, staining the bed...to the dark bruises on Zexion's pale skin...to the tangled sheets, to Axel, sitting on the other end of the bed with a smirk on his face...
Demyx shook his head, trying to clear the infernal buzzing in his ears. He absently extended a hand and ran it down Zexion's cheek, wiping the tears away, taking in how soft the vampire's skin was--but how cold it was, too. Zexion shuddered, and slowly cracked one beautiful, moist blue eye open.
"H-how can you..." his voice was broken, too low to even call a whisper.
"Shh," replied Demyx in just as low a voice, running a hand through Zexion's soft, sweat-soaked hair--not tugging, like Axel had been earlier, but with infinite, gentle care. Zexion shuddered even more violently, and Demyx, recognizing what the vampire wanted, removed his hand and let it rest by his side. He didn't know why he was even being so kind, not after what he'd done (he averted his eyes, not wanting to see the damage he'd inflicted down there...but seeing it anyhow).
Perhaps he just wanted to purge himself. Purge himself from the cruelty that had possesed him, purge himself of the base animal instincts that had prompted him to do this...
"Good job, Dems." Demyx jumped, startled--he hadn't realized that Axel had walked right up next to him, and placed his hand on Demyx's shoulder. The touch caused Demyx to shudder for a reason he couldn't quite comprehend, and his stomach did flips. "You did it. I told you you could, didn't I--hell, you did it better than him; I've never been able to get him to enjoy sex before. So bravo there. You mastered him, Demyx."
Mastered. His throat fought against the word even as he tried it out soundlessly. Bitter, dry, harsh. A word that took all of Zexion's graceful beauty and locked it up, like a dried butterfly pinned and labeled in a box.
"Y...yeah," said Demyx, when he could get his throat working again, still tasting the bitter vestiges of the word in his mouth. "I guess...I guess I have..." Involuntarily, he fixed his eyes on Zexion, on the trembling vampire in the bed, his dignity stained and ruined--stained by Axel, ruined by Demyx.
"Same time, same place, tomorrow," continued Axel, oblivious to Demyx's whirling emotions. He patted Demyx on the back--not roughly, but with a surprising gentleness. Gentleness of the likes that Demyx hadn't experienced from Axel for the longest time... "You've started on the path but I've got a few more things to teach you. For now...go to sleep, Dems. I'll take him back to his cell."
"Uh...okay..." said Demyx, watching wordlessly as Axel crossed to the other side of the bed, and yanked, hard, on Zexion's chain. The vampire jolted to a standing position, though he was trembling so badly he could barely stand. Axel helped Zexion yank his pants back up, and then whirled around, not casting a backwards glance at the vampire stumbling after him. They both passed by Demyx as they headed to the door, and Demyx almost--almost--reached a hand out to grab Zexion and...and what? What could he do to make right everything he'd done?
"Night, Demyx," said Axel, opening the door and throwing Demyx a last brief, impish smile. "And--well done."
Axel's praise, which Demyx would have usually lived for, felt hollow and empty to him. All he could do was nod, feeling his stomach convulse, and said, "Yeah. Night to you too...both of you."
Axel said nothing more as he slipped out of the door. Zexion cast Demyx an unreadable glance as he left, but said nothing. The door clicked shut after the departing slayer and vampire, and Demyx was left alone in the room. Alone to his thoughts.
None of the subsequent lessons had been quite so bad as the first one. Slowly, Demyx's body had adjusted enough to pounding violently into Zexion to no longer care, to just do it and throw aside all misgivings and conscious thought and savor the sweet delight of forcing his way into Zexion's tight confines, of feeling Zexion writhe and whimper and then unwillingly come beneath him. Because no matter what Demyx did, no matter how rough he was--Zexion always came, with climaxes just as shuddering and intense as Demyx's.
On some sick level, Demyx thought that meant it was okay, that he could fuck Zexion however he wanted and it didn't matter. But no, he knew this was wrong...
He only ever felt good when he was actually inside Zexion, hitting the vampire's sweet spot over and over again and feeling him convulse in hateful pleasure beneath him. Most of the time, during the before, and the after, Demyx had to struggle to keep down his feelings of sickness, of misery and guilt. Axel never made it easy, either. He seemed to think that Demyx should enjoy the whole thing from beginning to end, and often smirked at Demyx and spoke of how well he was "mastering" Zexion.
Mastering. Bitterness. A pinned butterfly. A beautiful being, tainted forever.
And as much as Demyx tried to deny it, as much as he fought against the knowledge--he was succeeding. He was mastering Zexion. He didn't like to think of it that way...because truth be told, Demyx liked Zexion. It was strange for a slayer to be thinking of "liking" a vampire, but he did. He liked Zexion's sardonic and dry personality, his aloof indifference, his confident seductiveness. True, the last two times Demyx had experienced Zexion--the real Zexion--the vampire had tried taking advantage of him, but that was Demyx's fault for being stupid and unobservant.
But now...whenever he climbed on top of Zexion and--mastered--him, the vampire didn't protest, didn't try to persuade him not to with silky words, didn't smirk and say Demyx was too impotent to do anything or something along those lines. He wasn't quite as deferent as he was with Axel, sometimes speaking without being asked, but when he spoke his words were quiet and precise, and he always kept his gaze away from Demyx. He did whatever Demyx asked, somewhat grudgingly, but the fact was that he obeyed. He would lie still on the bed and wait, unprotesting, for Demyx to take him. Whenever Demyx came to deliver Zexion's blood meals to him, the vampire accepted them with a low "Thank you" and said nothing else. He didn't try to seduce Demyx, and he didn't try to say anything beyond answering Demyx's questions.
"You're well on your way, pupil," Axel would say, smirking widely. "Pretty soon he'll obey you as readily as he obeys me."
Was Demyx a bad student, a bad slayer, for thinking that he didn't want that?
....yeah. Don't kill me for what I did to Demyx's character. I've always considered him to have kind of a hidden sadist side. I have no idea why. But I guess this means that the pairing I supposedly like for being "cute and fluffy" really isn't cute and fluffy at all. Bleehh.
The next chapter, "Insecure", will hopefully redeem Demyx a bit, and it will also be the first time I write from Zexy's POV in this story! So look forward to that. It will also deal heavily with Axel's psychological issues, for those wondering why Axel's the way he is. Preview here:
This was wonderful, beautiful, marvelous in every way. Zexion had almost--almost--forgotten the thrill of holding a stronger opponent within his grip, the crushing web he could weave with words alone, the knowledge that he knew his opponents' every weakness, and knew how to exploit it, and left them powerless because of his mastery over their minds. The last time he'd ever been able to feel skilled as a manipulator had been that night with Demyx at the party...no, earlier, that first night he'd snuck into Axel's room and laid bare all of Axel's sins, his fears and hopes and demons, before him...
See? Zexy-centric goodness. Hopefully that'll be forgiveness enough for this chapter...uh, read and review. I really get upset when people add this story to their favorites or put it on alert but don't bother to drop a comment by. It's something I've done in the past, but I'm trying to reverse that now. So please, if you read, REVIEW. That'll be all for now.