Rift

A graceful, pale hand rested on the pane of her window. Gazing over the sparkling night lights of the Capitol, she is finally done with a long day of celebration. Head to toe in emerald brocades weaved by her servants a refined Colbran was tired.

"Come forward, Otabek," she ordered, not looking over her shoulder.

A sturdy boy dressed in the same color and cropped hair stepped forward, having waited by the wall until needed.

The woman held out her hand, plucking from the glass, but had not bothered to tear her gaze from the city.

The boy took it gently, letting her know he was there.

She sighed. "Another year…"

He remained quiet.

"Do you think it will get easier?"

"I…do not know, Ma'am…"

She looks over her shoulder and looks him with steely hazel eyes, mistaken for anger often by her peers, but truly she was only tired.

Otabek keeps his head low. "…I would like to think so."

She firmly squeezes his hand and gives a wistful grin. "I'd like to think so…my son."

"You flatter me…"

They both knew that wasn't true. Unmarried, too old, there wasn't an heir. Without such, there was unrest on top the increasing stress of co-existence.

Humans were getting smart. Reports of escaping only to be killed only served to increase tension.

She turned her gaze back to the lights and sighed. "Something has to change. What has been maintained is breaking. Something has to change." She gave the boy a glance. "Speak freely, know that you can."

"A lot…would have to change…for it to get better."

"Fear breeds anger which only breeds more fear…our intentions…muddled."

Otabek tilted his head, but was used to her riddles. For who was he to know all what she was thinking.

"Maybe…the moon, Your Grace Lillia? I've overheard how bad it's becoming."

She turned towards him fully and squeezed his hand tighter. "My dear boy…you know I can't."

If she did, she feared no one would want to leave. If no one left, how could anything improve.

"Has…anyone come to report any trouble…if I may ask, I mean?" He asked.

She shook her head. "In my years I haven't…I've been told its rough, but necessary."

Otabek nodded. For who was he to argue.


In the shadows at clock chimes three in the morning. An unknown hand moves to shred the evidence.

"Soon there will be blood. Soon we will be free."


"Mr. Katsuki...is this going to become a habit of yours?" Victor deadpanned, pinching the bridge of his nose while sitting in his chair in the study.

Yuri's hands slapped the table. "Damn straight, I woke up in your bed again!"

Victor swiveled in his chair. "You ruined my breakfast and newspaper again too."

"Urk! Y-yeah so? My clothes were on the floor again!"

"All of them?" Victor inquired flatly.

Yuri gritted his teeth. Sure it was only his shoes, jacket and vest, but Yuri still glowered. "Don't split hairs! Stripping someone without consent is still wrong! I didn't sign up to be your bed warmer-!"

"Ha! You're not." Victor raised a silver eyebrow. "But I didn't know any of this was under a contract."

He gritted his teeth. "D-Damn you~!"

Victor leaned back in his chair and rested his head on his right hand. "Besides, here I thought I was doing you several favors last night. Why, with calming you down and taking care of the misfortunate event."

Seething, Yuri took a moment to think, looking away for a moment. "Er, what happened?"

"Oh?" Victor raised an eyebrow. "And here I thought you wouldn't care or think about what happened after the fact in the parlor. I mean three Colbrans died, shouldn't you-?"

Yuri reaffirmed his hands with another slap on the desk. "Shut it! I'm not that kind of person! I'm not happy about it at all! Three humans died in exchange, you kil-!"

"So?" Victor interrupted flatly, sitting back up.

"S-So?!" Yuri stammered and half shouted, bout ready to take Victor by the collar.

Victor gave an almost leering look, such made Yuri's blood boil. "Such a fire today, your eyes look like they are going burst."

"Stop jerking me around!" Yuri roared before turning around to storm out of the room.

Just as the butler touched the handles, a pair of all too familiar hands appeared in a flash, slamming onto the door trapping him between the pair of strong arms.

Yuri began to fumble and tug at the handles. "O-Oi, let me go through these doors! I hate being in the same room as you!"

Victor stood still and studied the boy's struggling form for awhile longer. He was nothing short of pissed off, but not fully angry. He knew this, or he would have broken the door entirely. Regardless, this mere human and the lip he was giving... no one had the gall to stand up to him before him.

'I'm going insane…' Victor scowled. 'That has to be it.'

Yuri Katsuki was driving him nothing short of it, that he knew. He had the power to ditch Yuri back on the Alborja moon. He had the power to kill and get away with it and Yuuko's life was in his hands and yet, even though Yuri was fully aware of this, this human insisted on being a troublesome smart-ass.

'And yet...here we are…I must be darker than I thought to insist his company.'

A firm smack on the top of his head interrupted Victor's train of thought.

"Oi! I said let me go! Stop spacing off!"

Victor closed in, a known to be rare, small, heart-shaped, smile formed on his lips when he saw Yuri immediately begin to squirm.

With a light thud, Yuri's upper back was up against the study door with his lower back arched forward because of the door handles behind him.

"O-Oi!" Yuri glared at Victor.

"Somebody's being a bad puppy," Victor huffed, blowing a part of his side bangs away. "hitting me…honestly…"

Yuri rolled his eyes. "Wha~t here?"

Both froze.

It was as impulsive as Yuri's quips usually were.

"Mr. Katsuki…"

Yuri jolted. "Hee -er- yeah?"

But this one?

"What…are you doing?"

A sturdy finger pressed onto top of the silver head.

Was stupid.

Victor clicked his tongue. "Is it getting thin?"

Yuri retracted his hands. "N-No! No! S-Sorry! That was dumb!" He ducked under the Noble's arms, popped back up and walked backwards with hands up.

Yuri scratched his shoulder. "C-Come on! Just, give me orders so I can help the sisters, all right?"

"If you were that worried about them, perhaps you should not storm in here in the mornings." Nikiforov rebutted, folding his arms.

"You-!" Yuri cried out with balled fists, but stopped himself from saying anything more, instead of acting out he just stopped and stood still.

Victor tilted his head to the side slightly and shifted his stance to the right. "Hmm? What's this? You look like you have realized something."

The young man stood up straight, looked directly into Victor's eyes and folded his arms. Victor saw Yuri's expression had changed, similar to the one from yesterday's dinner. A calm, collected visage. "You'd like getting a rise out of me, don't you? You set me up, you like seeing me explode." The human raised an eyebrow as he scoffed. "…you're sadistic. And now that I realize this, good luck getting off on my expense."

Victor began to sarcastically applaud. "Wow~ and this is only the third day. Scary to think what would happen in week. Besides, Sadism meets Sass, much?"

Yuri's composure faltered, he'd snigger if he wasn't so pissed. "I shudder the thought," he shot back, matching Victor's monotone.

'Besides, I'm only 'sassy' when I'm on edge…around him…crap.'

Lord Nikiforov brushed his bangs took a step away from the doors. "Well I guess we both will have to see, won't we?"

'Is he? Is he going to actually let me leave?' Yuri silently began to hope.

Yuri, cautious at first, walked towards the door. He could feel Victor's gaze, but he was almost free so Yuri did is best to ignore.

"One moment," Victor called out, taking Yuri's wrist.

Yuri froze, but before he said anything Victor continued when he knew he had Yuri's attention.

Victor rolled his eyes a bit. "Relax. Look, I have orders for you."

Yuri's tense shoulders relaxed a bit. "O-Oh I see...of course. What is it you need me to do today?" He tilted his head. "Oh, and please don't be a smart ass."

Victor's eyes immediately glinted as he gripped Yuri's wrist a bit harder. "Li~ke you?"

'Oops.' Yuri thought.

He pulled away, but wasn't set free. "L-Let go! Th-This is what I was just saying!"

"So?" Victor quipped.

"Ack! You tricked me!" Yuri cried as his back hit the wall next to the door frame.

"Let make something perfectly clear," Victor growled.

"What?!" Yuri spat.

Victor took a free hand grabbed Yuri's chin. "You are a thorn. You may blame me for turning your world upside down, you made it clear from the start you viewed me as the villain so I played the part. However, last night you took everyone by surprise. Defending me only later to crumble like a house of cards? What the fuck gives?!"

"It's called anxiety!" Yuri shot back, reminding him. "Considering what the Colbrans have done the villain shoe damn well fits."

'Fear bred by anger…this boy is a mess…a hot mess.'

Victor huffed. "Oh~ shut up. You know nothing."

Having quite enough, Nikiforov pressed hard onto Yuri's lips with his own, pushing young man's head back.

The move was so sudden Yuri let out a small gasp. When Victor pulled back both stared at the other through half-lidded eyes.

It was unspoken, but both knew it was growing.