Update! I guess I'd better get back to writing this, else there shall be further delays...enjoy! Or require therapy, whichev.

DEVIL IN THE DARK
Chapter 8

Takumi was having a familiar dream, wandering through rain-soaked woods and terrified, because he knew he'd meet his brother here. Sometimes Naoto was gentle and apologetic; more often, he molested him again. The only way out of the dream was to get through it, that was the only way to get back to Gii, so trembling, Takumi approached the clearing where Naoto usually was.

When he reached it, there was indeed a tall young man there, facing away from him. But when Takumi timidly called out "Niisan," and the figure turned around, it was someone he didn't know.

"You usually call me Aniki," the stranger said with a sad smile.

"W-Who are you?"

"My name is Shinnosuke. Don't you know me?"

He did seem familiar. He looks a little like me. Why does his voice remind me of something? I feel like I've forgotten something important.

"I...I..."

"It's okay," the man said gently. "In a way, you're sick right now, or rather, you're not yourself. But you'll get past it. You'll remember everything you've lost."

"I feel like you're my brother, but Niisan, he..."

"He hurt you, I know. I would never do that to you." Shinnosuke seemed sad. "I'm sorry I'm not there to protect you."

"I'm okay. I have someone protecting me."

The man nodded. "I regret now that I tried to keep you from him. I know he's a good guy and loves you."

"He loves us both," a voice from behind said, and Takumi whirled around, and gasped.

Standing there was an exact twin of himself, clad in normal clothes in contrast to Takumi's Shidou uniform. It was a mirror image otherwise, except for a calm, an inner peace and relaxed manner Takumi had never had. He felt like he was looking at a self who'd never been abused or neglected.

"W-Who...who..."

"I'm who you really are, the soul beneath your pain. I made you, and you changed me forever, brought me to the one we love."

"Do you mean Gii?" Takumi asked.

"That's what you call him, yes. To me, he's Dai-chan. But he's Gii as much as you are me."

"I don't think I understand..."

"You do. You're part of me, one I love, one I'll carry with me forever and protect. But you can't keep me hidden for much longer. You're in a dangerous place, and you need my strength, because your own is obscured by so much pain."

Takumi looked down sadly. "I want to be strong for Gii. I know he's worried about me. He always worries."

"Your Gii is part of my Dai-chan, who worries about me too. He loves taking care of you, but eventually he'll need me to come back to him."

"But...Gii..."

"You and Gii will always be together, under the surface of me and Dai-chan. We will keep you alive and in love forever. But you have to let me wake up soon. You're holding me down because you're afraid, but it can't last."

"It's getting light...is the sun rising?"

"You're getting ready to start a new day."

"Wait! Do you have a name?"

"Kyousuke." The fading boy smiled. "He calls me Mao."

daimaodaimaodaimao

"Honey? Why are you crying?"

Morning, light through the high windows. Gii was next to him on the bed, wiping up tears with his fingers and squeezing his hand.

"Gii, I think I dreamed something important, but I can't remember any of it."

"It's okay. If you need to know, it'll come back to you. C'mon, come eat something."

"Let me shower first."

Daisuke seemed reluctant to leave him alone and lurked near the bathroom door until a damp and dressed Takumi emerged. As they walked to the table where a large breakfast was laid out, Daisuke kept an arm around Takumi's waist, as though afraid he'd fall. He urged a lot of eggs and pancakes on the boy, who laughed and quickly insisted he was full. Daisuke remembered a piece of character research Kyousuke had found and used, that abuse victims frequently have very small appetites.

With the food had been left a few new Playstation 3 games, distracting action types, and Daisuke suggested they try them out. Takumi agreed, but as soon as he stood up, his eyes fell on a bottle of champagne that had been delivered, and without knowing why, he began to shake.

"Baby? What's wrong?"

"I don't...know. I just feel really scared."

Daisuke followed his gaze and mentally cursed. Somehow Kyousuke, buried under Takumi, was remembering being sodomized with a similar bottle. He quickly grabbed the offending object and threw it away.

"It's okay, Takumi, it's gone."

"Gii, what's wrong with me?"

Daisuke couldn't think of a good lie. "I'm not sure, honey. Come here, let's play for a while and relax."

They battled zombies for about an hour, and it was fun and distracting, reviving each other and strategizing the best route from screen to screen. Just when Takumi seemed to have forgotten his anxiety, the heavy door opened. A man in a uniform, with a crate, came in. Whew, the guy who stocks the fridge, that's all, Daisuke thought, but behind him was Sato, Suzu, and the doctor, who was looking more and more anxious each time he was seen.

"Good morning, boys. How are you?"

While Daisuke glared, Takumi stood and bowed. "We're all right, Sato-san, thank you. How are you?"

"Feeling cooped up, as I'm sure you are. If you're feeling up to it, I'll come back for you this afternoon and give you a tour of the grounds."

"Thank you, I'd like that."

Bastard. We can't even try to escape, because Takumi doesn't know who our real enemy is.

Takumi went on. "Is going outside safe for Gii, though?"

"We'll have guards with us. I promise, I'll protect you both."

"Thank you for all that you're doing."

Sato smiled. "You're so polite. I always hoped Gii-kun would find someone perfect for him, and you seem to be that. If you want to thank me, make sure I'm invited to the wedding."

Takumi chuckled with slight embarrassment. "I don't know if we'll be doing that..."

"Of course we will." Daisuke put his arm around Takumi. "Of course I want to marry you, baby."

Takumi smiled. "Then you'll be invited, Sato-san." Daisuke forced a matching smile.

Sato waved Ishii over. "Takumi-kun, this is my personal physician, Ishii-sensei. I'd like him to take a look at you, since we had to drug you. I apologize for that."

"It's okay, I know you only did it to help us."

The boy, who was Takumi after all, sat still but clearly didn't like being touched while vitals were taken. The doctor was very gentle, warning Takumi each time he had to handle him. When he was done, he took several sheets of tablets out of his black bag and set them on the couch.

"You're healthy, son, just understandably anxious. If you start to feel panicked, take one of these, and make sure you get plenty of fluids. Sato-san, as much sunlight as is possible would be good for him. Lack of it can contribute to melancholia."

"Thank you, Sensei," Takumi said, and the man sadly patted his hand.

"You're a nice boy. I wish you well."

Sato thanked the doctor and dismissed him. "How are you both feeling?"

"Fine," Daiske said through gritted teeth.

"To be honest, Sato-san, I feel very strange. There's so much I can't remember."

"I'm afraid the medicine we gave you can linger in your system for up to a week. My men might also have inadvertently given you too much, not expecting you to be so small. Try not to worry, Taumi-kun. You're under a lot of stress, but the pills will make you feel better. And you have Gii-kun to take care of you."

Takumi smiled at Daisuke and took his hand. Sato stared at them for a few moments intently before shaking himself out of it.

"Go back to your game, boys, have fun. I'll collect you after lunch."

Sato left hurriedly, no doubt wanting to get back to his camera feeds. Daisuke looked at the pill packages. They were sealed, not tampered with, and he recognized the medicine's name as a common and safe one used for anxiety. He popped one pill out and gave it to Takumi, with a chilled bottle of water from the small fridge.

"Take one now, baby."

"Gii, are you okay? You seemed tense with Sato-san."

Think! "Oh, you know hw honorifics annoy me," Daisuke laughed. "I don't like being called 'Gii-kun.'"

To his relief, Takumi laughed too. "I guess that comes of being raised in America. Did you like it better there?"

"No. It's cool, but you're here."

Takumi hugged him. "You won't leave me and go back?"

"Baby, were you worried I would? Never. The only way I'd go back for good is with you, and maybe not even then. I wouldn't want to drag you away from Japan forever."

"I guess I'd be okay just visiting, if you stayed close to me."

"Just try to get rid of me, baby," Daisuke chuckled. "Never going to happen."

"What part of America did you live in?"

Good thing I've been there once. "New York City. It's a lot like Tokyo."

"Sounds scary. Tokyo all in English."

"I'll take care of you when we go." Daisuke drew the boy into his arms. "Don't I always?"

"Gii..."

Daisuke gently kissed him, wrapped his arms around him and touched all over, sensually more than sexually. After a few minutes of Takumi shyly letting himself be explored, Daisuke steered them to the couch and got carefully on top of his boyfriend.

"Gii, I love you," Takumi whispered, against an oncoming drowsiness.

"I love you, baby. Your medicine's affecting you, it's okay, sleep. I'll be right here."

Takumi let himself be lay comfortably over a familiar lap. Too close to dreaming to be able to question it, he thought he heard a whisper of, "Mao, I miss you."

daimaodaimaodaimao

Another difficult acting job presented itself to Daiuke - being civil to Sato during their tour of the grounds. It helped that he had been craving the outdoors and the sunlight, and the area was quite lovely. Takumi looked better and brighter than he had in days, soaking in the colors and smiling with love at his boyfriend. He stayed close to him, even more so than the four security guards with them.

He doesn't understand they're protecting Sato, not us.

Sato led them around jovially, telling them they'd be allowed out now and then as long as they were guarded. There was a tennis court, a pool of gleaming water, forest trails that Sato went past, saying the woods weren't secure enough, and marble sculptures of nymphs and gods all over.

Their last stop was a large and lush garden, filled with flowers of every possible color, and Takumi was enchanted by it. Daisuke watched him touch the leaves and petals, feeling nostalgic at his beauty and the memories of Takumi he had. Takumi hugging him from behind, Takumi clinging to him, Takumi a vision bathed in sunlight.

God, I love him so much. If he can't be fixed, if I have to lose Mao, I'll make it work with what of him I have left. I'll love and protect him forever.

The teenager especially liked the ornate, white marble gazebo surrounded by grass and covered with winding rose bushes. Even Daisuke, in his anxiety, was moved by the romantic prettiness of it, and followed, smiling, as Takumi jogged into it.

"This is amazing, Sato-san! Gii, isn't it amazing?"

"It's very cool."

Sato watched them contentedly. "There's a pair of shears just there, Gii-kun. Cut your beloved a flower."

Daisuke picked them up and paused a moment. Could I kill him before the guards take me down? Even if I could, they'd kill me. Takumi would be alone, with all these men. How many would rape him before they'd dispose of him?

The actor snipped a red rose, pulled off the thorns, and gently put it into Takumi's hand. As the boy smelled it, Daisuke gently stroked his cheek.

"I love you so much," he whispered.

As they walked back, Daisuke held Takumi's head against his shoulder. He didn't want the boy to see his frustrated tears.

To be continued.