Akk! Please don't kill me! It was not my intention to abandon this story for over two months. I could give you a whole laundry list of reasons why it took me so long to get another chance of writing, but you probably aren't very interested in hearing that. I'll just tell you the top two were school, and moving into a new house. I just have to thank everyone who waited patiently for me to get my act together before I could write.
Chapter 22 - Of Black, White and Shades of Grey
Keane stared blankly ahead of him, trying to ignore the pain that had set into his limbs from being tied up for so long. It'd been several hours since they dragged Straton out, but the redhead quickly pushed that thought from his mind. It would be best if he didn't think about that. Switching topics, he wondered where the trader had gone off to. He'd disappeared into the back room about an hour ago, apparently confident that the slave wouldn't be able to escape.
Twisting his wrists, Keane had to admit, abet reluctantly, that he was right to be so sure. Even if he was by some way able to get out, it wouldn't be long before the man noticed and had a search out for him.
Well, at the very least, they hadn't realized who he was. The redhead almost laughed at the fact that he was trying to find something good about this situation. Straton was gone, he was going to be sold into slavery and he would probably never be able to feel safe again. He was actually kind of amazed that he hadn't started to cry yet or anything. Eh, he'd probably used up all his tears since the attack on the palace.
Desperately, he tried to free his hands once again. It wasn't long before the tough rope wore away at his skin, and he started to bleed slightly. The redhead was unsuccessful at holding back a hiss at the stinging pain and almost immediately stopped his fruitless escape attempt. Urg, he just wasn't used to pain. Looking around the room, he tried to think of some other way out. The longer he searched, the more hopeless it seemed.
By the time the slave trader walked back into the room, Keane had for all accounts given up on trying to escape while still tied up. He probably wouldn't be untied until he was sold either. Did this happen to all slaves? He didn't doubt it.
The trader was smiling down at him, but it wasn't particularly malicious or anything like that. If he hadn't been tied up with plans to sell, the redhead probably would have liked him. He didn't seem angry and bitter like that Hakeem man had been, and he even let Straton go without any punishment for attempting to trick them. Keane tried to remember if anyone had ever said his name, but if they had, he couldn't recall it.
"Well now, how are we doing?" the man asked. Keane just stared at the ground instead of answering. Even if he kind of liked the man, he wasn't going to act like he was happy and fine with all of this. He still had his only family taken away, and the man was still a horrible person for doing this to children. Once again, a sick feeling in his stomach almost overwhelmed him with the thought that his own father had been the one to order and allow this, and that he would have probably done nothing about it once he became king himself.
The trader frowned slightly at the lack of response, but didn't seem particularly angry or surprised. "That's alright, you'll come around eventually. I actually have a client coming in today. He's a fellow trader, was interested when he heard I'd come into possession of two anima children. Of course, that was before we realized your brother had us fooled," the man rambled on slightly. Keane couldn't help but feel relieved though when he spoke about what Straton had did sounding more amused than anything.
The man glanced back towards him and frowned once again. "Come on now. I know it seems cruel, but it's the law, and the only way for me to put food on the table. What was it your brother called you, Keane?" the man asked, and reluctantly the boy nodded. He didn't want to be giving out his real name, but there wasn't anything he could do about that now.
"And we have a reaction. Well Keane, the trader who's coming today is a good man. I've been doing business with him for years, and he's not one to abuse his anima. Now, I know you're not exactly feeling cheerful, so I wont ask you to act that way, but maybe you could try to look like you're not about to snap his fingers off once he gets here, what do you think?" the slave trader asked, and once again Keane nodded. It did seem like he was actually trying to help him.
"Good, good. He should be here in about an hour, I hope you don't mind waiting like that for just a little while longer," the trader asked once again, and Keane shook his head. Even with how nice he was being, he doubted that he actually had any choice in the matter. Still, despite how appalled the redhead was with the thought of being bought and sold like some animal, he couldn't help but wonder about whoever it was the trader kept talking about. Hopefully he wasn't lying, and he was kind. Or well, as kind as you can get and still sell children for a living, which probably wasn't very much.
Attempting to shift his position slightly, he ended up rubbing on his still raw cut, and let out an audible hiss of pain. It quickly caught the attention of the slave trader (Keane was really getting tired of calling him that, but wasn't about to ask his name. He wasn't like Straton, and he wasn't going to let the man think he was actually interested in anything personal about him.) and Keane had to remind himself that he wasn't actually worried about him. He just wanted to make sure that his product that at peak condition for sell so that he could get the best price.
"Is everything alright? You didn't hurt yourself on something, did you?" he asked. Even if it was only for personal gain, Keane guessed it wouldn't hurt to use that selfishness to his own advantage.
"The ropes rubbed my wrists raw," he mumbled, not even bothering to attempt to show the man and hurt himself again. The trader was quickly as his side though, and pulled his arms out to look at himself. Keane had to bite back a yelp of pain, but he didn't seem to notice.
"That is has. You've been trying to escape, haven't you? Well, that's to be expected, they all do at first," he said, starting to unwind the ropes. Once they were off, Keane quickly started moving his arms around, trying to get the feeling back into them. The man allowed him to do this for a few minutes before grabbing his arms again and rubbing a bit of medicine on the cuts and bandaging them.
Afterwards, he tried the boy up once again. His arms were in front of him this time though, and he couldn't actually feel the rope rubbing against him because of the bandages, so it wasn't nearly as painful.
"Thank you," Keane blurted out without thinking. He wasn't supposed to be thanking his person, he only thought of him as a product, not a person. Keane couldn't help but be surprised with how quickly his mindset had changed about slavery once he was the one tied up. The man was smiling down at him again though, and Keane absolutely hated how hard it was getting to think in terms of black and white.
"Not a problem, I hadn't realized just how tight he'd had you bundled up," the man said. Keane didn't bother to respond, just taking to staring out at nothing again. The man didn't try to get him to talk again, which the redhead was thankful for. His mind was still reeling from everything that had happened, and he'd rather not have some old man babble on while he tried to figure out how everything had gone so wrong so fast.
How was he supposed to expect it would be so hard to get to a place like Astaria. It looked so simple on a map. It seemed like every time they could have possibly made a mistake though, they did. Now because of all that, Straton was gone. Who knows what that fruit vender did to him, or if he would be able to survive on his own. Sure, he was smarter than Keane, but he was still just a little kid who couldn't even fight. Keane was supposed to be there to protect him.
"What will happen to him?" Keane asked quietly. He didn't care that he was supposed to be ignoring the man, he needed answers. Sure, he doubted that the trader would have any idea, but it was better than not being able to ask anyone at all.
"What was that?" the man asked, clearly surprised that he'd talked. Keane didn't look at him as he repeated his question.
"What's going to happen to him? I'm supposed to protect him but I can't now!" Keane yelled, frustration building up inside of him. A look of realization seemed to pass over the trader's face, not that Keane was looking at him to notice.
"Ah, the little blonde boy. I'm sorry, but I don't know what will happen to him. He seems bright though, I'm sure he'll end up fine," the man tried to reassure him, but Keane shook his head. He'd tried to tell himself the same thing, and it didn't seem to work out.
"He is smart, smarter than me, but that doesn't mean he'll be okay. It's dangerous out there, and he's just a little kid!" the redhead argued, trying to ignore the way his voice broke. The man sighed, although it didn't sound like he was annoyed or anything like that. No, he seemed more worn out than anything. It wasn't that Keane exactly noticed that, though. He kept trying to blame all of this on the slaver in front of him, but it still seemed to come back to him. If he hadn't been stupid enough to get caught, everything would still be okay.
"I'm sorry, but I can't let you free," the man said, and he actually did sound sorry, but Keane wasn't about to fall for that.
"Why not?" he asked bitterly. He already knew why though. He was money, and that was all that people like him cared about. The boy was surprised with how quickly he was transitioning from ashamed of his former life to disgusted. He was such an idiot.
"It's not about the money, if that's what you're thinking," the trader started, surprising Keane slightly. "I let you go and I go to jail. You're brother isn't the only one who's sharp, and I have no doubt that you already knew this," he finished, and Keane felt his shoulders sag as the information sank in.
He knew that. Of course he knew that! His dad wrote that stupid law. He couldn't let the boy out if he wanted to, and as much as he hated to admit it, Keane was pretty sure that he did. "I'm sorry," the boy mumbled, not flinching like he had when saying thank you. There were exceptions to everything, and he would be the person unlucky enough to get the nice slave trader.
The man smiled slightly before walking towards the other side of the room. "Don't be, it's understandable that you're upset. How about this, after work today, I'll go out and look for your bother, make sure he's okay?" he suggested, and Keane nodded. He doubted Straton would want to see this man again, but if he could help, and he was sure he'd at least try to, it would be better than nothing.
It wasn't much longer before the door opened and another man walked in. He had dark hair and a slight beard. The only reason Keane was interested in him was because he assume the man to be the other trader that his still nameless companion had spoken about.
"Ah, Ed, how've you been?" the trader asked, a large smile on his face as he came out from behind his counter to greet the man. Ed was also smiling, but not as brightly, as he answered.
"Oh, you know, business as usual. The huge upheaval in Stella sure is nerve wracking though. Everything been okay with you, living so close?" Ed asked, and the trader nodded. Keane couldn't help but be interested. The only people he heard talk about the revolution were the ones who participated in it and some anima. He had no idea what just normal working people would think. Of course, these weren't totally normal people. They had more at stake with the government being overthrown because of their jobs.
"Surprisingly quiet, but I doubt it'll stay that way for much longer. Planning to move out east a bit more, get away from all the conflict," the man answered, and Ed nodded. He was right when he said it was surprising, and Keane wondered not for the first time just how bad it had gotten in the capital since they'd left.
"Sounds like the best idea. Well, maybe I can help you with that, where are those anima you told me about?" he asked, and the man walked him over to where Keane sat.
"Just one, I'm afraid. There was a bit of a mix up with the other boy. Wasn't really an anima at all," he explained, the bearded man nodding slightly as he bent down to get a better look at the boy. Keane tried his best to not glare holes through his head. Just because the nice trader had said that he was a good guy, didn't mean he instantly trusted him.
"That's too bad, you don't have mix ups like that every day. What kind did you say he was again?" Ed asked, catching sight of his anima marking but not able to make out exactly which animal he was.
"A mouse, although I haven't had a chance to see him actually transform yet," the trader told him.
"Well, let's see it then," Ed said, looking at Keane expectantly. The redhead didn't do anything but glare. He knew it was probably stupid, but he did not like being told to do something so carelessly. Maybe it had a bit to do with his royal heritage, but he doubted it. He could hear the other man sigh slightly before he started speak.
"Come now, don't be stubborn. Why don't you show us your anima form," the trader said, and reluctantly Keane allowed for the strange feeling of transformation to wrap his body. The man smiled, and Ed started looking him over closely again. The redhead probably would have swiped at him if his hands were free. He wouldn't have cut him or anything, just scare him a little.
"Well, he looks very good. No significant injuries, looks healthy, not malnourished at all. He should fetch a pretty penny, how much are you asking?" Ed asked, and the man flashed Keane a smile. The redhead did not return it, and he quickly turned his attention back to the black haired man.
"Why don't we discuss this around back?" he asked, and the two men quickly went into the backroom. Keane just sighed and attempted to twist his legs into a better position. It wasn't long before they both came back out, and the trader was offering him another smile. The redhead couldn't help but roll his eyes. He knew that he was trying to help, but he had absolutely nothing to be smiling about.
When the trader started to untie his legs, he quickly figured out what the outcome of their deal had been. Ed was saying a few things, but Keane blocked him out, not particularly caring what his new 'owner' had to say. Once he was standing, he watched as the two men spoke a bit more before Ed motioned for him to follow. His hands were still tied, but he figured they'd have to undo that eventually.
"Hey," he started, turning towards the trader, completely ignoring the other man. "remember what you said. You promised he'll be okay," Keane said. He had to make sure the trader was going to keep his promise. If he couldn't protect Straton anymore, this was the least he could do after forcing him to leave like he had. The man winked and nodded at him.
"That I did, and I'll do everything in my power to keep that promise," the man said, and for the first time something he said actually made Keane smile slightly.
"Thank you, um," he said, and the man smiled as he answered.
"Basim," the trader told him, and Keane nodded before speaking again.
"Thank you Basim," he repeated before turning around and walking out passed a confused Ed. The bearded man glanced back at Basim, who just shrugged and waved him away. Decided it wasn't worth it to try and figure out, he said goodbye and walked out of the small shop as well. Looking over at his 'master' Keane's smile quickly dropped off his face. There wasn't anything he could do though, and sighed softly under his breath before following him.
Hopefully this man was like Basim had said he was, and maybe, he'd get a chance to escape because of it.
Hurray, finally finished. Once again, I'm so sorry! Ahh, I feel like I'm apologizing so much lately. Hey, at least this is the longest chapter to date, maybe that makes up for it a little bit. Oh, and Basim name means smiling. Aren't I clever? Anyway, it's Ed! How many expected that? Or even remember who he is. I know, I keep pulling out the random ones, but hey, what do you expect from a story about Keane?
Well, I hope you all liked it, and please review.