-1You're all going to hate me. I'm going to be putting up a pg version of Cages here, and putting the full version on the adult version of this website. Sorry guys. For more info, visit the forum or email me.

Quatre 158

Removed for content.

"Penny for your thoughts, Quatre?"

"Uhh…" I mumbled stupidly, blinking and glancing around before I realized that I had made it all the way downstairs and into the kitchen without realizing. Master was staring at me expectantly, and I had to run his comment through my mind again twice before I managed to come up with a suitable answer. "Just thinking about my lessons," I lied hastily.

"Ah. Well, don't stress too much about it. Do you know where Trowa is?"

"He's upstairs… sleeping," I replied, realizing how silly it was of me to walk downstairs for lunch and leave him sleeping.

"Could you go and wake him for lunch?" Master asked, as I had expected he would. Feeling rather silly, I simply nodded and headed back to our bedroom.

I couldn't keep this up. I'd become so distracted by my body lately that I'd become a complete flake. I was constantly getting distracted or becoming forgetful, and my lessons had suffered because of it. Lately I kept having to do the same project two or three times to get it right because I wasn't focusing and I'd miss steps. I even had to look up some recipes I'd mastered weeks ago because my concentration was so messed up. It was like I was getting worse instead of better.

Trowa was already awake when I reached the bedroom, but he had yet to even sit up. Standing in the doorway, I took a moment to notice the changes that had occurred in him since he had arrived. The rail-thin, barely surviving body that he had arrived with had been replaced with the well-toned body of a gymnast. The cord-like muscles in his arms and legs had expended and toned, filling in while still remaining thin and flexible. His face, which had been gaunt and haunted, was now full and relaxed. The mask of indifference that he had worn was still present, but more often put aside to smile or frown with the emotions that he now felt. More than his body, his newly healed mind amazed me, and I couldn't help wanting to get closer to him, both in body and mind.

"Masters says it's time for lunch," I said softly, breaking the revere we both were in. Trowa's turned toward me and I could see something dark flash through them, but it was quickly covered. It had been like this a lot with Trowa lately, ever since I came back from my weekend with Master. There was something about it that bothered him, but I couldn't figure out what it was.

Trowa rose smoothly from the bed, shedding the blanket as he went. His long arms reached out and snagged a shirt from the dresser and he let it fall gently over his head, covering first the skin of his shoulders, then his torso, and finally the few visible inches of skin on his hips, just above where his jeans covered the rest of his pale, creamy body. It was like a reverse strip-tease, and I felt a wave of heat come over me, and was sickened by my own lust, but helpless to stop it. By the time I managed to gain control of myself, Trowa was standing in front of my, looking down with concern.

"Are you alright?" he asked, his soft baritone voice threatening to undo my control once again.

"Mm-hmm," I muttered quickly, trying desperately to keep from panting and wishing that he would back up a bit, at least so that I couldn't feel the heat of his skin.

"Your face is all flushed," Trowa said, frowning in concern as he placed a hand gently on my forehead. I made a tiny gasp at the electric feel of his skin on mine.

"Trowa," I whispered pleadingly.

"What's wrong?" he asked, leaning down so that he could look into my eyes. There was confusion on his face, and a hint of panic in his eyes, so I tried to compose myself, pulling away from him and shaking my head to clear it.

"We should go. Master's waiting," I said, and received a derisive snort in response. Now I was confused.

"Trowa? What's wrong," I wondered as he turned away from me.

"Nothing," he replied, his voice neutral and calm, although I could feel that something was still wrong. "Let's go," he said, and started toward the door.

"Wait," I called, and grabbed his arm to keep him from going, although if he really wanted to leave there was very little I would be able to do to stop him. "I want to know what's wrong. You keep acting like this and you won't tell me why. It's been all hot and cold with you lately, Trowa, and I think I deserve and explanation," I demanded, pulling him around to look at me. At first he wouldn't meet my eyes, but the mood had changed and I knew that if I waited long enough he would at least say something.

"It's nothing," he said, still not looking at me. "I apologize for my behavior, it won't happen again."

"I don't care about your behavior. I want to know what's wrong," I told him, leaning close so that I could stare up into his deep green eyes. He met my gaze only for a moment before looking away, but there were so many emotions fighting inside him that a moment was all I could take.

"It's nothing. It's not your fault," he said, fleeing from me once again. "It's just…"

"Just what? I want to know."

"It's like there's something between us now, some kind of barrier that wasn't there before. You keep pulling away every time I get close and…. I just don't understand," he said softly, pausing to turn back to me. "I know you like Master better than me. You should. Master is better than me, and he has more to offer you, and you're smart for trying to get close to him. But why does being close to him mean you have to be further from me? I thought you liked me at least a little before you left, and we were getting pretty close, but now… Now it seems like you don't like me at all."

"That's not true!" I protested, grabbing his hand and pulling him to face me. "It isn't like that at all! The truth is… the truth is that I probably like you too much. Please understand, I don't want us to get into trouble."

"So I'm not worth the risk."

"Yes! I mean no! I mean… Of course you're worth the risk. But… Trowa… don't you see how badly this could turn out for both of us? Am I worth that risk, Trowa? The risk of being sold to another master? Or back to Marcel? Or the Duke? Because I don't think a moment of pleasure is worth a lifetime of pain, no matter how tempting it is."

His eyes were sad now, half closed with acceptance, and he lowered his head until his bangs covered them.

"I'm sorry," Trowa whispered, "I just get so jealous when you have eyes only for him."

"I have eyes only for him because I dare not turn them on you," I whispered back, placing my hand on his cheek. He raised his eyes to mine and I could feel the magnetic pull drawing us together. His body gravitated toward mine, and my face rose to his. It was wrong. I knew it was wrong, and I was terrified of the consequences. I should have pulled back, but I needed Trowa to understand just how much he meant to me. And… I wanted to know that I meant something to him too. I wanted to feel the kind of affection I'd had with Master, but – heaven forgive me – I wanted Trowa instead.

Our lips met, and I felt a shocking tingle, like electricity, that surged through me. With a moan, I gave in and threw my arms around his neck, trying to get as close as I could. Trowa wrapped his arms around me, pulling me close and giving me a safe feeling even as a part of me worried about consequences. Still, despite the fear of exposure, the kiss was soft and unhurried. I felt Trowa's tongue dart out to taste my lips, and I quickly met his query with one of my own. It was delicious and playful, with soft wet gasps between hot, heavy kissing. But only kissing.

Yet, even in the middle of it, I couldn't help but worry. It was a simple kiss now, but how long would it take before we moved from kissing to something deeper? And how long could we keep this a secret from Master? And, the worst question of all, what would happen when he found out?

I got my answer far sooner than I had expected, as we were so engrossed in passion that both Trowa and myself missed hearing the sound of the door opening.

"Quatre? Is something wrong? You didn't come down and I got wor-…" Master paused. Must have all had the same looks of shock on our faces, with Trowa and I so startled that we had not even untangled from each other, frozen in the very pose that had exposed our guilt. And Master, for his part, was so upset at our betrayal that he could only stare at us with shock.

Master recovered first, his face turning a deep, angry scarlet as he quickly looked away. It was the cue for Trowa and I to jerk away from each other, and we were already separated as Master began to back away.

"Sorry to interrupt," Master muttered, quickly backing up and closing the door. I tried to call after him, but my throat simply wouldn't work, and in the next moment I could hear his footsteps already going down the stairs. I turned to Trowa, and we stared at each other in shock and horror.

"What should we do?" I a frightened voice gasp, and a moment later realized the voice was mine. Trowa, who had fallen onto the bed on the other side of the room, merely shook his head. "What should we do? What should we do? He… I… We can't…" I muttered incoherently. Everything was happening so fast, everything was going so wrong, and suddenly I couldn't breathe. The room was spinning and everything was moving so fast. What was happening?

Strong arms enveloped me, and Trowa's voice began to soothe me as his heartbeat sounded in my ear.

"Just breathe. Everything will be fine. We'll make it fine," he told me softly, rocking me even as I felt his body quivering just as hard as mine. "I won't lose you," he told me, and there was such a conviction in his voice that I couldn't help but believe him. I pushed myself up out of Trowa's lap, only then realizing that I had fallen to the ground in panic. I was breathing normally again, but perhaps still looking a little frantic as I faced Trowa determinedly.

"If we want Master to keep up, then we have to show him that we'll do anything for him, no matter what. We have to… to do something drastic. He needs to know we're loyal to him."

"But… Quatre, maybe we should talk to Master first…"

"Did you see how mad he was?" I asked him, frustrated that he couldn't see how serious this was. "He was red in the face with rage and completely disgusted with us. He could barely even manage to make a comment before running out of here! He thinks we completely betrayed him by choosing each other over his instructions! We've got to prove that we're good slaves, and that he's the only thing that matters!"

"So then… we're back to where we started?" Trowa wondered morbidly, and the sadness in his voice made me pause. If we went through with this and proved to Master that he meant everything to us, then we were also proving that we meant nothing to each other, and we would once again be unable to show any kind of affection to one another.

"It's better than losing you completely," I protested in a whisper. "Please, Trowa, I can't lose you. Please," I begged, finally releasing the tears that had been threatening to fall. "Please…"

He pulled me to him, letting me hide my face in his shirt as I cried and mourned the short love we had shared. We held each other for as long as we dared, and finally I heard Trowa murmur, "I'll do it."

But what could we do?

Zechs 159

I was a little ashamed of how I reacted to finding Trowa and Quatre kissing. It was, after all, what I had hoped they would do all along, and a natural part of normal teenage interactions… well, excusing the fact that they were both boys, but that wasn't abnormal, just less common. Regardless, I was actually quite pleased that they had managed to take this step on their own and were making progress in creating a solid relationship. They certainly weren't rushing things, and I was also happy that they felt comfortable enough with sex to be able to initiate it with each other without fear. All around, it was a good step.

So why in the world had I reacted like some old biddy, blushing and running from the room like I'd never seen a pair of boys make out? And yet I couldn't deny that I had been completely embarrassed and strangely unnerved at finding them in such a compromising position. I had blushed from the roots of my hair all the way down to my neck, and unable to utter anything more than a hast apology before darting out of the room. Lord knows what the boys must have thought of my peculiar reaction. They'd probably never seen a master embarrassed in front of his own slaves.

That thought gave me pause. More than what the boys thought, what would the other masters think if I showed up to Collar and was completely unused to seeing my slaves interact with one another sexually. Even more than my slaves' awkwardness around each other, my embarrassment would reflect badly on my ability to be a master. It seemed more important than ever that I instruct the boys to… become more familiar with one another while I was gone, and it seemed that I also need to become familiar with working with more than one of them at a time.

Of course, first I would need to become more familiar with having sex with each of them individually. I had only had any kind of creative sex with Heero and Trowa, and I had only been with Wufei and Quatre a handful of times, and I had never laid a hand on Duo. I was somewhat concerned with the progress I was making with my slaves in this area. On the one hand, I had made significant progress with Quatre, although the other masters probably wouldn't see it. And I could excuse Duo's behavior because he was a champion and also notoriously unstable and likewise with Wufei, but that left me with only two slaves to perform at the Collar parties. On top of that, both Trowa and Heero were notoriously shy, Heero because of a body-image problem and Trowa out of fear of inadequacy. It would be hard to show off my skills as a master without pushing these two past their limits.

Honestly, though, practice seemed to be the largest problem I was having. The boys tended to use sex as a mechanism to gain physical reassurance, so they only sought sex when they were uncertain of their place or my feelings. As such, they tended to be pretty much disinterested in sex otherwise, and it was hard for me to pursue them in the face of such apathy. I mean, they were certainly willing and interested enough once I initiated an encounter, but they seemed completely unable to take any initiative on their own. Wufei had hunted me up on his own once, but it was the first time any of the boys initiated sex with me just because they wanted to, and the action had yet to be repeated. Lately, with all the chaos and stress of the house, I just hadn't been feeling up to pursuing the boys when they seemed just as happy without sex.

And yet, I had to admit, the problem wasn't totally with everyone else. I had been getting way too stressed lately. The assignment was just so important that I was losing sleep, second guessing my decisions, and worrying over every little detail. Did I do the right thing with Duo? And Trowa? And Quatre? What would the effect be on their performances? How would it affect my standings? There were just so many variables to consider, so many pros and cons to consider, that it was beginning to take its toll on me. I was ashamed to admit it, but I had begin taking pills to improve my stamina and concentration, to calm my nerves and keep me focused. I was in way over my head… but it was far too late to go back now.

Lunch was an awkward affair, and I tried to distract myself from my feelings of uneasiness by engaging Wufei in a lively debate. So lively, in fact, that I forgot about wanting to explain my earlier actions to Quatre and Trowa, and it was well into their afternoon lessons before I remembered. I decided to try to catch them both right before dinner. Quatre was usually finished with cooking a little early and Trowa did his chores at that time, so I would be able to explain myself to both of them without being interrupted by the others, who were all in various lessons until dinner.

But when I entered the kitchen, Trowa and Quatre were nowhere to be found. Dinner was ready and waiting on the stove, and the dishes were all finished and put away, but the boys were already gone. I made a quick search of the downstairs, but finding no hint of the two I decided to return to my office, lest I stumble upon them trying to find a private moment again.

It was then that I noticed the note taped to my office door, and began to feel uneasy as I took it down and began to read.

We would like to apologize for our earlier behavior. Our wills bend only to yours. We will wait for your commands in the basement. We would like a chance to prove our loyalty.

Humbly yours,

Q & T

"Screw it all, Quatre, I thought we were past this," I cursed to myself, crumpling the note and hurry toward the basement stairs. "And dragging Trowa in as well? What could have him so upset?" I wondered allowed, but there wasn't time to contemplate the answer. If it was anything like last time, Quatre had probably set himself up to be punished, or maybe he had even convinced Trowa to start it for me. The thought gave me a shudder, but I wouldn't put it past Quatre and I wasn't sure Trowa's reason would hold out against Quatre's debate skills, especially since the acrobat was smitten with the aggravating little blond. I dashed down the stairs, hoping to see the boys in the front part of the basement, but unsurprised to find that they had picked the old storage room for the site of their insanity instead of the front part that we used for laundry.

In the past, the storage room had been used to house anything from equipment to decorations to antiques, but when the house was converted into a summer cottage all the items were cleared out, leaving a space about the size of the den and living room combined. It was unfinished, with cement floors, concrete walls, beams and pipes exposed, and the barest of lighting. It wasn't really a place that a person would willingly stay for any amount of time, but the light under the door, along with the sounds of panting, murmured words and panicked sobs, assured me that two of my boys were in there. I threw open the door.

Inside, it looked more like a holding cell for war prisoners than a basement. Both boys were naked, bound, and frightened. Quatre was standing on tiptoe, his hands tied around a pipe above his head while he scrambled and kicked, trying to get away from whip that was lying harmlessly on a table beside him. On the other side of the table, Trowa had managed to shackle himself to a beam that was supporting the floor above us, although I couldn't even guess where he managed to find a pair of handcuffs. Trowa was leaning over the table, trying to comfort the obviously panicked Quatre even while his own eyes kept darting fearfully down toward the needles that were also lying on the table.

"…I can't! I can't! I can't! I thought I could but I can't!" Quatre yelled incoherently, jerking on the ropes that bound him. "Please, you have to let me down! Please!"

"You have to calm down, Quatre. I can't get you free. I can't reach the keys. You know that. This was your plan. We have to wait for Master now. Just breathe," Trowa soothed, even though his voice was strained with his own fear.

And suddenly, with Trowa's calm faith in my abilities, we were no longer alone in the basement, but in a cell at Collar surrounded by armed guards, and I was helpless to watch as they tortured and killed Trowa and Quatre. I didn't even know where Duo, Heero, and Wufei were or what unspeakable acts were happening to them, but one of the armed monsters was whipping Quatre, and the other stabbing pins into Trowa's skin and laughing as he screamed. And it was all my fault. I had gotten them into this, naively promising to protect them, when all that was certain was danger. I fell to the floor, completely frozen and unable to make the slightest move to help the boys that had come to mean so much to me. They would all die, and it was my fault.

"I can't! I can't go through with it! Let me down!" Quatre yelled, fighting the restraints with all his might, and his panic managed to shock me out of my nightmare and back into reality. The guards disappeared and I was left with two frightened boys who needed my help. I sprinted across the room, my blood still pounding in my ears, and began trying to untie him, but Quatre was too panicked to notice me and continued to struggle, even as I fought to free him and Trowa tried to calm him. I almost had him untied when Quatre's struggles finally peaked, and I could only watch in horror as Quatre's foot kicked over the table between them, sending a burst of needles flying toward Trowa. At the feel of metal on his skin, Trowa lost all conscious thought to panic, and a moment later was hurling himself away from us. With his feet firmly on the floor, Trowa had far more leverage than Quatre and began yanking on the cuffs with all his might. I finally managed to get Quatre loose and let him sink to the floor as I turned to Trowa. There was already blood pouring down his wrists when I reached him, and it took me a moment to realize that I would be helpless to release Trowa without the key. I grabbed Trowa around the middle to keep him from hurting himself more and yelled for Quatre to get the key. For a moment I thought Quatre might be too frightened to hear me, but then to my great relief I saw him move and pick up the key from the floor.

"I'll hold him while you undo the locks," I told him evenly as I struggled to hold Trowa's thrashing form. The task was made even more difficult when we found that Trowa's wrists were slick from the blood covering them, but he finally managed just as I lost my hold on Trowa who, now free, bolted for the stairs.

I bolted immediately after Trowa, afraid that he might be frightened enough to hurt himself, and I heard Quatre following at my heels. There was a strange sense of dei ja vou as I herded Trowa toward the stairs, finally corralling him in my bedroom. Quatre came darting in a moment later, and I closed the door to ensure that we wouldn't have another chase on our hands.

For a minute, we all just tried to catch our breath, with Trowa on his knees leaning against the bed, Quatre kneeling next to him looking both terrified and worried, and me leaning against the door and trying to purge my brain every image I had seen in the past few minutes.

I was right on the verge of a breakdown. It was so tempting to run and get Wufei, because I just wasn't sure I could deal with this. But Trowa was wounded and bleeding rather badly, and Quatre was shaking and probably on the verge of shock, so my sense of responsibility won out in the end. Realizing that neither Quatre or Trowa were in any shape to run from me, I made a quick trip to the bathroom and grabbed the first aide kit.

Other than the shaking, it wasn't hard to clean up Trowa's wrists. They actually weren't as badly cut as they seemed, and he had only managed to bruise them with his efforts to get free. I wrapped them tightly even though he probably didn't need it, then turned my attention to calming the two boys down. I grabbed a couple of spare blankets from the closet to counter the shock, wrapped the boys up, and sat them down on the bed.

And then I finally gave in to temptation and just lay down between them. I pulled them into my arms and just held them as their shivers gradually decreased and my heart-rate decreased. I knew I should be mad, or, at the very least, trying to figure out what had prompted the boys to act so rashly, but in the end they were still just a pair of teenagers who had managed to frighten themselves silly over probably nothing. And they had managed to frighten me pretty well, too. Really, I think I was just too happy to have them safe to get mad. Maybe later I'd be able to, but not right now.

I must have dosed off, because the next thing I knew there was a gentle knocking on the door, and it opened softly to reveal Wufei, who cautiously peaked in. He seemed surprised at what he saw, and I couldn't blame him as I untangled myself from the naked forms of Trowa and Quatre, just noticing the tear-stains still on their faces. Careful not to wake them, I left the room, shutting the door behind me.

"What…?" Wufei wondered, stunned. "What's going on, Zechs? It's a quarter after six and dinner hasn't been served. When the three of you didn't show up I assumed you must have needed Quatre and Trowa for something, but… what in the world were you doing?"

"It isn't my doing," I defended, a little more gruffly than intended, feeling a little stung from Wufei's off-handed insult. "Quatre must have been upset about something, and he convinced Trowa go along with him this time. They intended for me to… punish them for some infraction that I know nothing about. I never thought Quatre would try something like this again, or get Trowa to go along with it."

"Again?" Wufei wondered, and I almost flinched at my slip. I really didn't want to explain all this right now. I had such a terrible headache.

"We had a… misunderstanding once before that turned out like this, but I thought I'd made it clear to him that I would punish when and how I felt necessary."

"It must be something big, then, if he's upset enough to do something so drastic against your orders. Have you said anything lately that might have upset him? Or done anything?"

"Quatre's had a bit of a backslide in his lessons lately, but it's nothing to worry about. I certainly didn't say anything about it, and I don't know why Trowa would get involved for that. And Trowa's been doing fine in his lessons."

"Something that involves the both of them, then?"

"I don't think so. I mean… I did catch Trowa and Quatre kissing the other night, but I didn't say anything about it."

"Oh," Wufei replied gravely, his eyes lowering to the floor. "They must have realized you found out, and are trying to prove their loyalty," he said, and I had to wonder at how he had made the connection between an innocent kiss and being disloyal to me. I certainly wasn't seeing it. "Will you sell them, then?"

"What? Why the hell would I do that? And why does everyone always jump to that conclusion? No, I'm not going to sell Quatre or Trowa, understand? It was just a stupid kiss."

"Are you serious?" Wufei asked me sternly as he stopped analyzing the floor to peer into my eyes, trying to figure out if I were lying, I suppose. "Did you know that kissing another slave without the master's permission is punishable by death in Collar? That slaves who disobey this rule are generally drawn and quartered? That others have been hung, starved, or whipped to death? You should be flattered that Quatre and Trowa were only afraid that you would sell them, especially since you never gave any sign that you would allow them to have sex, let alone to kiss or show signs of affection. It is the worst possible crime for a slave to fall in love, and you have to see that Quatre and Trowa are doing just that. Love… makes slaves do stupid things. The most dangerous thing for a master is to have a slave in love enough to rise up against him. I'm not saying that Quatre or Trowa would ever do that, but… love is a dangerous thing."

It made perfect sense, of course. It was hard for me to imagine how I hadn't figured it out before. Then again, everything about Collar made cruel, terrifying sense. To be denied even the right to fall in love… to be unable to touch another human being without the permission of a master… it was life less than dogs. No wonder it was so hard for Quatre to trust me. No wonder Duo had so many problems with me. How they had ever managed to someone who they thought was a part of this hideous system was beyond me, but they had and now I would both have to live up to the expectations of a master and try to keep the boys living as normal a life as possible. I would not punish any of the boys for falling in love. How could I deny them the ability to strengthen relationships that they had never been able to have before? How could I deny them what little comfort they could find in a world that was turning out to be far crueler than I could have imagined? And yet… what was I to do?

"Let's go to dinner."

"Zechs…are you sure? Should I wake the others?"

"No. Let them sleep and we'll make a plate for them when they wake up. Just… just give me a moment," I told him, and slipped quickly back into the room. On the bed, Quatre and Trowa had curled together, with Trowa cradling his injured wrists to his chest while Quatre was chewing on his knuckles in his sleep. Too refined to bite his nails and too old to suck his thumb, Quatre had taken to the nervous gesture of biting his fist in times of disquiet, and it seemed that he was upset enough now to do it even in his sleep.

But I bypassed the bedroom and headed straight for the bathroom, quickly grabbing a well-worn bottle and swallowing a pill to help calm my nerves. Then I headed straight back for the hall, barely allowing myself to cast a glance at the pair on the bed. My head was hurting enough without thinking about this.

"Are you sure you don't want me to bring something up for you?" Wufei asked as we headed for the stairs.

"No. Why?"

"It's just… you're horribly pale. Are you sure you don't want to lie down?"

"I'm fine. I just had a bit of a shock, that's all."

"I know you haven't been sleeping well lately. You should really take better care of yourself. You can't be getting much sleep with all the worrying you do," he said, and I almost laughed aloud. Not like I'd be getting any sleep tonight, I wanted to say. If the worrying doesn't keep me up, I'm sure the nightmares will.

"You worry too much," I told him, and Wufei actually did scoff in response.

"You're one to talk."

"Oh, hush. Let's just eat dinner, alright?"

We Heero and Duo that Quatre and Trowa been in an argument and we were letting them cool off until after dinner. It wasn't entirely inaccurate, since there had definitely been a difference in wills, but the two wills contending had been theirs and mine. Regardless, Heero let it drop and managed to convince Duo to do so as well after a few well-aimed kicks under the table. Dinner was awkwardly quiet, but I was just glad for a moment to let the drugs try to combat my headache. With only eating to focus on, everyone managed to finish quickly. When everyone was finished eating I instructed them to clean up and wait for me in the den, while I went to fetch Quatre and Trowa.

In the bedroom, both boys were awake and talking in worried, hushed tones.

"I think it was this kind of behavior that caused all the trouble in the first place," I said as I entered, startling both boys into bolting upright.

"Master, please, just let me explai-…"

"Not right now, Quatre," I said, cutting him off. "If you had said something before none of this might have happened, but right now I want you to listen," I said and tried not to feel a sting of guilt when their faces fell with guilt and fear. "Just listen to me. Neither of you are in trouble… Well, that's not quite true," I said, giving Quatre a piercing stare that he shrank from. "You're in trouble because we've gone over this before, but I'll talk to you about that later. And you," I said, turning to Trowa, "are in trouble because you went along with it and I expected you to be more reasonable than that. But we'll talk about that later as well. For right now I want both of you to come downstairs and listen while I have a discussion with everyone, alright? You can have dinner afterwards," I told them, and thankfully they were both too upset to argue with me, because I was really starting to run out of patience. Both boys dressed quickly and then followed me downstairs to sit with the others in the den.

"It has come to my attention that some masters do not allow their slaves the freedom to display affection with whomever they choose. So listen well: I don't care. You can be affectionate with whomever you want whenever you want, alright? You have my permission," I told them simply, and they all just stared at me dumbstruck. Duo was the first to recover.

"So we can have sex?"

"If you choose," I replied, know how touchy a subject sex was with Duo, but Duo just grinned brilliantly at Heero, who glared and rolled his eyes.

"What about… what about kissing?" Quatre asked timidly and the others, even Duo, grew still and serious.

"It's fine with me as long as it's fine with the other person," I stipulated.

"You can't be serious," Duo snapped at me, suddenly going into one of his angry moods. "Why be a master at all if you're going to let everyone do whatever they want?" he said, giving me a glare that told me he thought I was lying. "What's your angle?" he asked. Looking at the others, I realized suddenly that none of them understood or believed either.

I sighed. I didn't have the patience to explain this like I normally would, and my head was still aching despite the drugs I had taken. So… there was only one thing I could think to do, but I didn't like it, and I was a little angry that I still had to prove myself to these boys once again. I knew it was silly to think I could overcome years of damage in only a few months but… I was getting so tired of fighting the same fights over the same problems. Were we making progress at all?

"Quatre, come here," I ordered. Hesitantly, Quatre rose from his seat and approached me. And then, much to everyone's astonishment, I pulled the blonde into my lap and kissed him deeply. After a moment, I turned my attention back to the group.

"Does anyone have a problem with this?" I asked seriously, looking around the room and making sure to make eye contact with Trowa. All the boys, dumbstruck, shook their heads.

"Heero, now you," I ordered, and repeated the process with the same results.

"Does anyone have a problem with this? No? Then there's no goddamned reason for me to have a problem with any of you kissing or doing anything with each other. As long as it doesn't affect your training or your interaction with me, then I don't care. And actually…" I said, suddenly coming down from the angry rush I had been on as I remembered the upcoming parties that I would be forced to attend. "Actually, you should all start getting more used to being close to one another. The Collar parties will be starting in a few weeks, and you will probably be asked to perform with one another in various sexual acts. I don't like forcing any of you to do things you don't like to, but I can't make any promises about what I'll ask you to do. So I would recommend you get used to each other. I'll be going on a business trip for a week coming up very soon, so you might want to get closer to each other during that time. I will promise you that no one else at Collar– not other masters or other slaves – will touch you, but if a master asks to see any of you pair up… I'll probably make you do it. So… it would be best if you were ready for such an outcome."

And that's all I had in me for the night. I went to bed.