Author's Notes:

Warning: Explicit content in this chapter. Explicit and violent.

Chapter One-Hundred-Two

Kurogane's hand clamped down on his shoulder like a vise, red eyes smoldering with some dark emotion. Part of it was anger, Syaoran knew, but there was something else there, a dangerous quality that lay beneath the fury, making it difficult to draw breath.

"You're not going to hurt me," Syaoran whispered, his voice wavering.

"Yes," Kurogane growled. "I am."

"You love me," Syaoran said quietly, his back to the wall. "You won't hurt me."

Eyebrows slanting, Kurogane released his shoulder and grabbed the front of his shirt. "I don't know," Kurogane whispered in his ear. "There are a lot of ways to hurt someone."

"You won't—" He broke off as the ninja spun him around and shoved. Syaoran staggered, tripping over the edge of Kurogane's mattress and falling hard. His heart jumped into his throat. He'd offered himself to Kurogane in the hopes that it would defuse the situation, but somehow it had ignited something worse than rage, something hungry and ruthless.

Kurogane crouched beside him, hand coiling around his shirt and yanking it to the right to expose his shoulder as something—Kurogane's knee, he thought—pinned his left arm to the mattress. Syaoran instinctively tried to pull away, but Kurogane's knee dug in harder, until pain flared along his upper arm. Meanwhile, the ninja kept pulling on his shirt, grunting when the laces binding the front of the garment together tore. He had me wear this so he could spend time untying those, Syaoran thought, feeling a pang at the lost opportunity. Looking up, he saw the predatory gleam in Kurogane's eyes.

"You're hurting me," he whispered, not quite believing it.

"Good." The ninja leaned in, claiming his mouth, his cheeks, his neck. When Syaoran felt the bite of teeth in his shoulder, he yelped. The teeth sank deeper, making the pain more demanding. He didn't know what to do—he hadn't believed Kurogane would harm him, even now, after his pride had been trampled by some nobleman jeering about their relationship.

Kurogane's hand wrapped around his throat. "If you're afraid, then say so."

He's trying to prove something, Syaoran realized, stunned. His shock rapidly twisted into anger as that sunk in. He thinks I'm going to back down! Gritting his teeth, he grabbed the ninja's empty sleeve and pulled, trying to gain some kind of leverage.

The ninja took his sudden movement as permission to continue ripping one-handed at his shirt. Syaoran's eyes clenched shut as he fought for some degree of control, but it was useless. Kurogane shredded through the last of the laces, then peeled the garment away, leaving only a thin undershirt beneath it. Maybe if you don't fight back, he'll realize you were only trying to help, whispered a tiny voice in his mind. Uncertainly, Syaoran let his body go limp as the ninja wrestled his undershirt over his head.

He allowed the ninja to pull his pants down to his ankles, then mutely kicked them off when Kurogane scraped his fingernails down his side. The stinging pain acted as a counter-melody to the to throbbing bite on his shoulder. His mind started to go hazy, his thighs tensing in anticipation. I shouldn't be enjoying this, he thought, trembling as the pain mixed with the coil of desire in his belly.

In the darkness, Kurogane removed his own shirt, then laid on top of him, pressing their bodies together. "You think I'm a monster."

He hesitated an instant too long. "No."

"Don't lie to me. I saw it on your face when we were leaving the festival." His fingers tangled in Syaoran's hair to yank his head back. "You said I wasn't acting like myself. But you know I've killed. You know I've enjoyed it." His grip tightened, sending sparks of pain across Syaoran's scalp. "You know that sometimes I hurt the people I love."

"You won't hurt me." His own voice sounded pitifully uncertain to his ears, and he had to struggle to keep the tremor out of it.

"Watch me." His hand swept down Syaoran's arm, raising hairs even as it clamped around his elbow. In an instant, Kurogane's lips were on his, his mouth fierce, demanding. Syaoran parted his lips to breathe, then gasped when the ninja's tongue invaded his mouth. He moaned, closing his eyes as the kiss became more insistent. Violence reverberated through the room with every touch.

And it felt good. Thrilling. The pain added an edge to the pleasure so it demanded his attention in a way it never had before. It came to dominate him, swelling in his veins until he returned the bites, until his hands clamped around the ninja's shoulders, until his fingernails drew blood. He begged with his body, drowning in the sensation.

"Tell me to stop," Kurogane growled against his swollen lips.

"I won't."

"Say it."

"No." He grit his teeth.

"Goddamn you." Kurogane snatched his arm and pulled him upward so their faces were inches apart. "Tell me to stop before I hurt you worse."

"No!" Syaoran shoved hard against the man's chest, deliberately striking off-center. With only one arm, Kurogane had no means of stabilizing himself as he rolled sideways. Syaoran pressed his advantage, rolling with him and pinning the ninja's arm with his elbow. He leaned in and attacked Kurogane's mouth with his own, biting down until he tasted blood.

A hand clamped around Syaoran's arm, fingers curled tight. It took only an instant for Kurogane to reverse their positions again and shove him onto the mattress. Then, too quick to counter, he reached down between Syaoran's legs. "Keep fighting. I dare you."

Syaoran's body went rigid as the ninja's hand closed around him. He gasped, reminded starkly of his own vulnerability. It would be so easy for Kurogane to hurt him now. So easy for him to twist his hand in either direction and turn the toe-curling pain into agony. He wouldn't, Syaoran thought, breathing hard. Would he?

"Well?" Kurogane whispered, his grasp tightening. "You going to ask me to stop?"

Tear's budded in Syaoran's eyes. "You love me."

"You think that changes anything?"

He said nothing.

"Just say it. Tell me to stop before I break you."

Syaoran took a breath, then closed his eyes. "Do it."

He very nearly felt the shock that coursed through the ninja's body as grip loosened. "What?"

"Do whatever you want. Hurt me. Use me. I can't stop you either way, so if you're going to do it . . ."

Kurogane released him, grabbed his hip, and twisted so he landed on his hands and knees on the mattress. Disoriented, it took him a moment to realize the ninja was stripping off his pants, then another moment to understand what would happen next. He stiffened, fear curling in his stomach.

"Last chance," Kurogane said, his lips at Syaoran's ear. "Tell me to stop."

"I love you." The words came out barely louder than a breath. Two fingers thrust inside him, punishing him for his defiance. His teeth clenched, his jaw so tight it ached. It had been weeks since Kurogane had taken him, and Syaoran had lost some of the flexibility he'd developed in Infinity. As a third finger penetrated deep, he exhaled sharply, pressing his face to the mattress. Too soon. His mind felt scattered. Too much. It hurts. "Please . . ."

The ninja's fingers twitched inside him. "Are you afraid?"

"Yes," he cried, powerless to deny it.

"Good." Kurogane positioned himself, removing his fingers and using Syaoran's body for support as he leaned forward. No lotion, Syaoran thought, the fear turning into sickening dread. It was his last coherent thought before Kurogane pushed inside him. He yelped, pain lancing through his entire body as the ninja buried himself up to the hilt. The pain evolved into a deep, searing agony. His hands curled into fists, knuckles going white.

Kurogane pulled back, then thrust harder, grunting. Tears spilled from Syaoran's eyes, dripping onto the mattress, and with every thrust his cries grew louder, until his throat was raw. He'd endured a number of significant injuries in his life, but although some of them had caused him greater pain, none had compared to this in terms of sheer brutality.

They fucked. There really was no other word for it, although Syaoran considered that term somewhat distasteful. But sex would have been too clinical a word for it, and this was as far from making love as he could imagine. Every thrust sent spasms of pain through his lower body, tearing him apart from the inside. At one point, he bit his lip so hard, blood flowed down his chin, mixing with tears and staining the mattress. And yet, the entire time, the bundle of desire—of need—coiled tighter in his belly, pushing him closer and closer to the peak until pleasure thundered through him, briefly eclipsing the pain before fading away entirely.

"Please," he whispered brokenly. Please, let this end.

It did end, eventually. He felt the spasm that rippled across Kurogane's body as he came, felt the wet rush of heat inside him. Dazed, he collapsed face-first onto the mattress, trembling. A few moments later, Kurogane pulled out, leaving him aching, empty, bleeding. Syaoran looked up, vision blurry with tears.

Kurogane held his eyes for a moment, his expression cold. Without saying a word, he rolled onto his side, turning his back on Syaoran.