Chapter 2; Ghirahim s POV
"Well… here you are…" I glared, shutting and locking the door behind us as I pushed the boy inside. I was surprised at his behavior. Almost completely obedient… except for the few times he'd tried to harm me-kicking at any part of my body his legs could reach. He didn't even look around, just stood there, motionless. "Come now, boy… no kind words for my hospitality?"
Silence… I knew the boy wasn't much of a conversationalist, but the least he could do was thank me…. I was giving up quite a lot for him…
"You are to remain here only until and if Master or I allow you to leave. Furthermore, I will not have you touching anything; I don't want your filthy hands all over my property!" I pushed him to the bed, forcing him down upon the sheets, holding him there. This would get over and done with much faster with him restrained. Much faster with magic as well, however, I didn't trust myself using my magic around him… I'd be far too tempted to harm him. It would be too simple… I unlocked his wrists, glaring down as he glared up at me.
"The same rules apply to the girl as well…" I snarled.
His hands shot like lightning for my throat, but were quickly held down by my own. He struggled- a useless attempt. I smiled as a flow of curses erupted from his lips, venom held for me within each syllable.
"My, my… quite a tongue you have there, Hero… you should be grateful! If I had it my way you would already be begging me for mercy down in the dungeons!" that pathetic courage flickered, unrelentingly in his gaze… oh how I wished to beat him! Cut him, make him scream in agony! "Believe me, boy, there are fates far worse than death! Far worse!"
He snarled, finally believing it was useless to resist me, turning his head to look at the wall. "Where is she?"
"Anita?"
"Who else would I be talking about, you idiot!"
I growled, "You're trying my patience boy…"
He sighed, shaking his head. I doubted that he had even paid attention! "Anita…" he sighed looking back up at me, hatred in his gaze, "I can't believe you! Touching her… you…"
"Do I detect a hint of jealously?" I chuckled, leaning closer. I had him right where I wanted him… "She is mine to do with as I please." I smirked. I hated doing this-speaking of her in such a way-especially after I had so mercilessly defiled her against her will! …but clearly Anita was just as important to him as that little Sky Maiden of his… I could definitely use this against him: in many ways… Anita-but more importantly my Master-had refrained me from harming him, but what was the harm of a little word exchange? "Sticks and stones…" and all that you know…
When his eyes met mine they were wide with shock. "So she's just your property then? That's all she is to you? Don't you care about how she feels? What she-"
That did it. "How dare you! Of course I do! I care very much for her, I..."
"That's the biggest lie I've ever heard!"
I slapped him then, the sheer force of it knocking his head back towards the wall. Master couldn't blame me for that! He asked for it! "Listen well, boy, you have no idea what goes on in this castle, in these halls, these very rooms… she's had quite a few harmful experiences over the years, and if you think for one minute that I don't care I…"
"Let me speak to her."
How dare he interrupt me! I glared. "Why should I allow such a thing like that?"
"I came all this way and…"
"And you just spoke to me about caring for her… It certainly looked to me like you didn't care… 'Maybe this was a mistake' do you remember that?!" I hissed angrily at him, "Do you realize just how much you harmed her with your words? Do you even think that she'd wish to see you after you said such a thing?"
I would never be able to forget the look that crossed her face upon hearing that… so… broken… Yes, I'd done horrible things to her down here… unspeakable, unforgettable things-which she did-astonishingly-forgive me for! I'd aided my Master in many of her punishments, but I've never seen a punishment take as much of a toll on her as his words had done…
He will pay dearly, I swear it!
He seemed to weaken at my words, staring up at me with, what was this? Mercy?!? Oh Goddesses! Finally, I break him!
It only got better;"P-P-Please… just… just let me see her… talk to her… I… I need to… please…"
I smiled, trying to remain calm, even after his performance. The boy had just begged me! Begged! Like a dog! "Well… Skychild, I'm certain I can arrange it… if…"
"If?" that hatred had come back into his eyes. Well… all good things must come to an end…
"I really think you can do better than that! Come now, boy, ask me again…" I'd pulled him up from the bed, staring down at him.
"I just…"
"I wish for you to beg. Grovel."
That annoying defiance! "I'm not going to-"
"You wish to see her, don't you? This isn't that hard, boy! Just a simple little 'Please, Lord Ghirahim!' you can do that!"
A few minutes ticked by… and silence! Complete, utter, silence! Very well... I turned to go before…
He grasped my hand as I turned; "PLEASE, LORD GHIRAHIM!"
YES! But still… it wasn't enough… I turned back around to face him, smacking his hand away. He had no right to touch me!
"On your knees, boy! Show some respect!" I sneered, kicking him down to the ground. He lay sprawled upon his back for a few moments, staring at the ceiling. Come on, Skychild… you can do it… get up… that's right… up on your knees now… there's a good boy!
"I'm waiting, Skychild…" I looked down at him-kneeling before me! Goddesses, this was too good to be true!
He gritted his teeth, glaring up at me before finally; "Please, Lord Ghirahim."
"There now. See?" I beamed down at him, "That wasn't so hard, was it?"
He hung his head. Fine… ignore me if you wish, boy. I got what I desired.
I shut the door behind me, locking it quickly.
I couldn't help it… A few nervous giggles escaped me before I burst out laughing in sheer joy of it all! Finally… after so long…
Victory!
Anita's POV
My back hurt… I couldn't feel the blood dripping anymore, and the back of my clothes were torn… but at least Link hadn't had to suffer… of course Master could have done something when I wasn't around to see, but I chose not to think of that… besides, it wasn't a likely possibility… Master would most certainly have wanted me to watch from the very beginning of it all…
I shifted, trying to find a more comfortable position, but only succeeded in having pain wrack my body at the movement. I cringed, biting my lip at the pain. I found myself reflecting over the session-as I did with most all of my torture sessions with Master… probably not healthy, keeping them stored in my mind rather than locked away, but I couldn't help it…
"Quite a show my Sword put on for the boy, wasn't it?"
Crack! "AH!"
"Did you enjoy it, Anita? Having Ghirahim touch you like that in front of your little friend?"
Another slash, harder this time. "AHH! Ugh… I… M-Master I…"
Another crack of the whip, another scream. "Well?"
I remained silent…
I wouldn't give him the satisfaction…
Not this time… stay strong…
"AHH!"
"Don't ignore me. Did you enjoy it? Yes or no?"
"M-m-maybe…" I figured that it wouldn't be best to lie. That would only make things worse… it was worse though, that the words he wanted to hear were in fact the truth… I'd enjoyed it… maybe not having it done in front of Link but… it had felt… nice… "AHH! GODDESSES! MASTER!"
"Maybe?"
I leaned against the wall, fighting the voice in my mind telling me to pull against the chains, to run, to dodge the whip as it came down… "N-Not in front of Link!"
"Don't you think he enjoyed it?"
"AHH! I-NO! … AHH! W-wh-why would he?"
"Well… I certainly did…"
"You… AHH!"
"He asked about you, you know…" the whip had finally come to a halt.
I remained silent again. But my curiosity got the better of me… "Wha-what did you t-tell him?"
I waited… for another slash, for an answer… I could imagine him sneering from behind, waiting to release me from my misery….
Suddenly the whip was there again… it wouldn't stop! Just wouldn't stop!
"M-Master-AH! AH! NO! MASTER, PLEASE!"
He pulled my hair back, looking into my eyes. "The truth."
I had no idea how many times he whipped me… I never counted past ten, and he always struck them so fast that I could barely count up to that number itself… either way, I felt I'd learned my lesson… whatever it had been… he'd finally let me go, not even explaining it to me.
The truth…
I sighed, cringing again when I situated myself in another position, laying my head against the pillow.
That could mean so many things…
What went on at night behind locked doors, things that Master did to me that even Ghirahim didn't know about…
Ghirahim and I ourselves… our relationship mostly…
Well… it didn't matter! Link would be gone soon anyway! I found myself counting down the hours;
About… 24 hours, give or take, until Link would be safe from all this!
About… 24 hours, give or take, until Link would leave me forever…
Did that even matter? I kept hearing his voice over and over in my mind; "M-Maybe this was a mistake… M-Maybe this was a mistake… M-Maybe this…" I shut my eyes tight against the pillow, trying to block it all out, fighting back the tears that threatened to escape my eyes…
Anyway, that's how Ghirahim found me. Sprawled on the bed, tears spilling down my cheeks, and teeth gritted from the pain.
"Oh… Anita, Darling!"
I tried to put on a brave face. "Hey…"
He frowned, shoulders slumping as he took in the sight of my back. "You poor thing…"
I shrugged. I'd been through worse. I could see it plainly though; through all the sympathy he had for me, he was far too happy… "What happened with Link?" I panicked, jerking up from the bed, only to gasp aloud at the pain the greeted me in doing so. "Y-ah… you didn't… hurt him? Ghirahim, tell me you didn't…"
He put up his hands, smiling at me as he made his way over to the bed. "No… the boy is fine…" he was still smiling… something had happened… he shrugged, chuckling. "All I broke of him was his pride."
I shook my head, watching as he crawled over me onto the bed, being extra careful so as not to hurt me further. "How bad is it?"
"Its…" he sighed, and I shrieked as he traced a fingertip over one of the wounds.
"DON'T DO THAT!"
"Sorry, sorry! … Look, it's… all I can see is blood, no… flesh… is that a good enough explanation for you?"
I flinched again, feeling his arm wrap around my shoulder. "No…" I sighed, "Can you heal me? It… it hurts…"
"I know… I know Darling, I know…" he kissed me lightly on the cheek, sighing, "I would if I could but Master… Master doesn't allow me to heal you, you know that…"
I nodded. "Can you at least fix my clothes?"
"Certainly…" I heard the snap of his fingers behind me, and felt the torn areas of my clothing repair itself tightly against my back. With the covering, it felt better, but still hurt… well, at least I could walk…
Ghirahim was quiet for a moment until I spoke up; "Say something… I can tell you want to talk about something…"
"Darling… about… earlier…"
"It's fine…" I didn't give him a chance to finish.
"It is certainly not fine!" I could feel him glaring above me. "I was upset, angry, and I wanted something to upset the boy… I shouldn't have used you in such a way… my feelings don't excuse my actions…"
I shrugged my answer barely above a whisper. "I… I liked it…"
"Anita…" he growled, and gripped me tighter, the closest thing to an embrace I could withstand.
"I mean it…"
"You certainly cannot mean that! I touched you… did things to you… without your consent! I don't know what Master forced you to say but…"
I shrugged again, "I should get used to such touches though, shouldn't I? I mean… we are going to be Bonded soon… aren't we?" I smiled, resting my head against the pillow, feeling him wrap his fingers softly in my hair.
For Demons "Bonding" was the equivalent of a "Marriage" for Humans. Once my fangs were fully developed, and the Demon Venom within them was potent enough, I'd be able to go through the ritual. It would be like any other Honey Moon night… except… well… we had to bite each other to Transfer our individual Demon Venom through each other's blood streams. I didn't understand it, some old Demon Tradition… and something else that had to do with a Magic Power Transfer or something… anyway I much preferred the Marriage thing… but…
"The boy wishes to see you…"
"Me?" I hesitated. "Wh-why?"
I felt him shrug. "I would think you'd be… ecstatic over such news… besides, he did come here of his own free will… seems rather desperate if you ask me…"
"Ghirahim… you… you heard him… he doesn't want to see me, I…" I poked at my fangs, "Look at me!"
"I am, Love… you're beautiful."
I shook my head, the tears falling again despite my efforts to keep from crying. "Yes, to you! Link, he…" I hugged the pillow tightly. It was different… I couldn't face Link, not like this… besides; he'd made his point on me quite clearly…
"If you want, it can be only for a few moments… Darling, please… go to him… you're only torturing yourself further! This is… well, I assume the first and last time anything like this will happen… He is leaving… soon… not soon enough…"
"I heard that! …Fine… just for a few moments… you can't come!"
"Anita… I really think…"
"No! I don't care what you think right now… I want to be alone with him! … Please… nothing is going to happen, I swear!"
He sighed, glancing at me for a moment before nodding reluctantly. "Very well…"
"Thank you!" I hugged him, noticing how he still hesitated. I caved. "You can come to the door, but no further! Got it?"
He rolled his eyes, but nodded. "Very well…"
"Anita?"
I shut the door behind me, smiling despite myself. "Hi, Link…"