Heads up, violence ahead.
"I swear when that boy gets back I'm going to beat some fucking sense into him if it is the last thing I do!" Matt sent an empty water bucket sailing across the barn with one swift kick.
Seto watched quietly from his stall, Addis at his side, as the man continued to through a rather childish fit. Apparently, Joey was due back to the barns several hours ago. And as time ticked by, Seto observed Matt as he became more and more agitated, his anger growing to such a degree it was now bothering the dragons. The creatures shifted and rattled the doors of their pens in a display of their unease.
Matt stormed by Addis's stall, grabbing a leather head-bridal off the wall, and slipping into a pale yellow dragon's stall. Without any consideration he forced it around the beast, one strap connecting to the other side around the back of the head, then again at the start of the jar. In the center, there was a thick metal bar that Matt stuffed into the back of the dragon's mouth.
Snapping its jaw in protest, Matt yanked down on the bridal, tearing the dragon's head down to the side. "Quit it!" he snapped harshly. Taking the reins that hung down from the bridal, he dragged the winged reptile out of the stall by its head. The creature began to dig its razor claws into the floor in protest to its rough handling, which only caused Matt's frustration to rise. Understandably so, the dragon wasn't at all happy with the treatment it was being given.
Growling, Matt reached into his pocket and pulled out his nightstick, extending it with the flick of his wrist. Without fear, he went over to the dragon and promptly smacked it on the heel, hard. A pained roar burst from the dragon's mouth as it jumped up from the floor to avoid being hit again, then tried to bite at Matt's hand, its teeth gnashing together loudly.
The elder tamer had experience on his side and, expecting the attempted assault, used the reins that still rested in his hand to bring the dragon's head back down, smashing his nightstick across the base of its neck and skull. Another thunderous cry echoed in the barn and the dragon moved slower, watching the weapon in Matt's hand closely.
"Walk on!" he shouted tugging at the reins, harsher this time. Biting on the bit the dragon moved forward, following Matt obediently, head hung low in a submissive posture.
All the while, Seto had poked his head out of his stall to watch the ordeal. Addis came over and nudged under his arm, asking to be scratched. Ignoring the request, Seto left his stall and went outside where Matt had tethered the dragon to a very long, heavy metal chain that was hammered into the ground. From the looks of it, Matt had smacked the dragon again on the heel, as its right hind leg was lifted tenderly off the ground, like someone who just sprained their ankle.
"Up!" Matt shouted, pointing into the air, looking at the dragon sternly. A moment passed, and Seto wasn't sure if it would comply. However, slowly, its wings spread, and with a few downwards swooping motions, the dragon took flight. Its momentary freedom ate up the length of the chain quickly. Reaching the end of the line, the dragon did a great circle in the air before Matt signaled for it to come back down, pointing to the ground.
Both back legs took the impact as her large body came back to the ground and her wings tucked against her sides.
"Breath." This time Matt signaled with arms extended, fingers spread wide.
Knowing what to expect, Seto ducked back into the barn just as a burst of flame emitted from the dragon's mouth, passing close to where Seto had been standing. Even inside the barn, the child could feel the broiling heat of dragonfire against his skin.
"Enough!" Matt dropped his hands to his sides, the dragon coming to an abrupt halt. The stream of flame cut out, and the pale yellow female smacked her jaws, as if putting out any remnants of her deadly breath.
Only slightly impressed, Seto quickly grew bored, and went back to where Addis was pawing playfully at the water fixture in the wall. A gently flowing fountain of liquid trickled from the wall and into the floor, allowing the young dragon entertainment as he dipped and splashed his pearl-white paws into the flow. Crossing his arms, Seto rested back against the wall and studied him. Addis could already breathe fire, and he knew well enough to stick to Seto's side like glue... but that was about it. Seto was sure if he asked Addis to even so much as look at him, the dragon would disobediently amble off in some other direction. There was no communication between the two at all.
Addis rubbed his head against the flowing water, snorting and licking up the droplets that fell from his muzzle. Seto rolled his eyes and left the stall, going outside to his car to retrieve his own training stick - one he'd bought months earlier.
The sight he met outside caught him by surprise. Joey had just come back, a sack of metal and his dragon by his side while his father hovered over him, yelling at the top of his lungs.
"What fucking good are you if you don't even work around here?!" he was raging, bellowing with all of his might. A red flush of anger had spread over his face. With another, more attentive look, Seto could see a welt forming on Joey's face. It was a clear indication that Matt had either struck him with a fist, or, at the very least, slapped him. "When I tell you to get back here, I mean get back here, not dick around with your runt of a dragon!" his face was only getting more and more red, and Joey seemed to be losing his cool, too. Seto guessed there was only so much screaming a person could take before they snapped back. "Where the fuck were you?!"
Seto could hear Joey's voice, quiet but shaky. "I went to Tristin's to get some stuff for Ciaran she-" he was cut off by the nightstick in Matt's hand. It collided with his face, shattering his nose and busting his lip open.
Joey's small body fell to the ground on impact, his hands wrapped around his face as he lay curled up in a ball. What Seto saw next surprised even him even more. Ciaran had climbed on top of Joey, and stood on her back feet, her tail swaying in a threatening manner as a small stream of fire leapt from her nose.
"Oh really?" Matt took his nightstick and pressed the button in the center, jabbing the dragon in the chest. The sound of electricity against the dragon's small, scaled body echoed in the meadow. Her cry of pain was even worse, and it made Seto's stomach churn.
Bloody and beaten Joey reacted, grabbing Ciaran off him and tucking her protectively under his body, his arms and legs shielding her.
In a blind rage Matt attempted to pry Ciaran out from under Joey, threatening to kill the dragonette. "What fucking good is an animal that will just end up killing people?!" He grabbed Joey's arm and struggled to move it out of the way.
"Stop!" The words left Seto's mouth before he knew what he was saying. Absentmindedly, he began to cross the space between him, Matt, and Joey. The boy had snatched his arm free and had it curled back around Ciaran. "What the hell do you think you are doing?"
"Stay out of this!" Matt threatened, straightening up from above Joey. "Mind your own fucking business! You may own the stables, but you don't own my family."
"No, but I do own the stables, and that means I technically own all the dragons in it; your dragon, included." Seto spoke with a bravado he certainly did not have. There he stood, a mere ten years old, up against an adult who held a weapon. He was confident enough to bet that the man was mentally unstable, to top it off. "Put another hand on either of them, on my property, and I will evict you, and confiscate everything you own, you pathetic bastard!"
Still laying on the ground, Joey was having a hard time believing his ears. There was Seto, who was saving his ass… again. No doubt, after this was done, he'd go back to throwing insults worse than his father could, but for the moment, the young blonde was grateful. Joey knew without his interference, he would have just lost Ciaran.
Unable to do anything else, Matt dropped his nightstick to the ground, gave Joey a swift kick to the ribs and stalked off to his truck. The door slammed shut and the vehicle peeled off, gravel flying out from under its tires as he drove away.
Groaning, Joey lifted himself to his hands and knees, then off the ground, panicked when he saw blood drip down his numb face and into his hand. Taking his shirt off he held it to his battered face. His attention rapidly turned to Ciaran, who was shaking and curled up into a tight ball. When Joey went to touch her, the baby dragon hissed at him in warning scooted away. She held her pointed tail out in front of her, as if it were going to help protect her.
"Oh, no. No, no, no..." Joey's voice cracked and he dropped his shirt to the ground. "No, I won't hurt you..." He felt like he was pleading with her to understand, but when his hand reached out again it was met by her tail, slapping him away harshly. Although small, it stung. Like he'd been stabbed by a pen.
At that very moment, something in Joey changed. It shifted, and mutated. For starters, he now hated his father, a hatred that sunk deep into his heart and seeped into his soul. The dark binds of loathing wrapped around him and bound him, sucking all the compassion he had held onto hopefully through all the years of abuse. Second, was a silent vow that he was now muttering to himself. He would never allow himself to be hit, teased, called names or bullied again.
This was the last time Joey Wheeler would ever turn the other cheek.
Last was that fucking nightstick.
The sun had now sank below the horizon, and the only source of light came from a bright orange light that hung from the top of the barns' entrances. Feeling around, Joey found the night stick. He gripped it tightly, teeth gritted in fury, before he slammed the handle into the ground. Sparks flew from the shattered end, as Joey kicked it into the night's shadows, hoping to never see it again.
"Joey…" Seto stepped forward to help in some way, but was met and stopped by Joey's glowing eyes.
That calm honey-brown that always seemed full of laughter was replaced with a dull, dark look. He would never admit it, but Seto had never longed for that playful look on Joey's face when they first met; at least not the way he did in that moment. He found himself... missing that childish glow.
Although stubborn, Joey looked like the type of person who just wanted to have a good joke, or play a game. Now, he looked like he just wanted to punch someone.
"Don't fucking come near me," Joey spat, blood spraying off his lips as he spoke. "Stay the hell away from me, and Ciaran." He leaned down, and grabbed the bag that Tristan had given him. Without hesitation, the boy stuck his hand into the bag of scrap metal.
The limb resurfaced, full of shallow cuts. He was holding a handful of bolts, much like the ones he'd given Ciaran earlier. The ones that she had loved so much.
"What are you doing?" Seto asked, his face set in a scowl. He hadn't appreciated the way Joey had spoken to him, but given his current injuries and state of mind, Seto thought it best to hold his tongue for once.
"Something that none of you assholes will bother to learn."
Joey dropped a bolt to the ground, and Ciaran rushed to eat it, but backed away when Joey took a step closer to her.
Seto watched as Joey sighed at her reaction, then proceeded to leave a trail of bolts behind himself as he walked into the barn. Making sure to keep her distance from both humans, the baby dragon followed the trail into the barn, eventually finding her way back into Nai's stall, where she could sleep for the night.
After Matt's full-blown temper tantrum, the young Kaiba decided to put a heavy lock on his stall, not trusting the safety of his dragon to anyone but himself.
On his way back out, he stopped when he saw Joey at a sink, where the water buckets sat empty. The blonde child was gingerly trying to wash the dried blood from his face, doing his best to avoid touching his nose. It was bent in an odd direction, and obviously broken.
Shifting his weight from one foot to the other, Kaiba scoffed at quietly to himself. "Do you want me to call a doctor? I know someone who will set that for you," he offered blandly. Why he was being so generous was a mystery, even to Seto himself, but he was sure it probably had something to do with hanging around Mokuba so much. He made a mental note to cut back on listening to his kid brother so often.
Joey just looked up at the mirror in front of him with cold eyes, seeing Seto standing behind him. Knowing the other could see him in the mirror, he took his fingers and popped his nose back into place, yelling and falling to his knees.
Seto rushed forward to help, but Joey shoved him away, gripping the sink for leverage as he lifted himself back to his feet. "Just go away..." He was now trying to use the washcloth to stop the fresh flow of blood that was pouring from his nose.
Shocked at Joey's masochistic action Seto just stared at him dumbly. "I'm trying to help you," he pointed out with surprising softness in his tone
"Do I look like I need your help?" Joey turned his back to Seto, leaning his elbows against the sink as he pressed the washcloth to his face.
"You sure as hell did outside!" was his irritated response, all patience gone. That was all he got, and when he looked back up into the mirror, Seto was gone.