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Triggers: Injury, Hurt/comfort.


Published: 06/11/2023

Chapter 3:
A Curse Will Suffice

He was able to get to his house without being seen, lucky his home was on the outer ring which didn't need a trip through the center of the town. He'd been in bed for a couple of minutes before a loud knocking on his door forced him back out.

Opening the door, he saw a young man with a torch. His heart skipped a beat, wondering if he'd been busted. But the man seemed panicked. "The priest has been attacked, everyone gathers at the city center for an emergency meeting!"

The young man continued to the next-door hallways through his sentence. The town was a mess, people were running in a panic. Yusuke was glad he got home in time, now he had a liable alibi of being in bed.

Following the chaos, he found people either crying, near crying, or outraged as they waited for the town official to take the stand.

"The priest has been attacked, we suspect it to be a vampire but something seems weird about the wound it left." The middle-aged man said. The wailing was heard from a few places within the crowd but Yusuke was mainly confused by their inexperience with vampire bites. Indeed, there would only be two puncture holes at the side of the neck. Considering he had lost his self-control, the priest definitely had different marks than people were used to seeing.

"I am convinced he was attacked by two of em." The man said calmly. However, the crowd didn't respond at the same level of calm.

"They are multiplying!"

"They can come into churches?!"

"They've plotted against us!'

"If the priest dies we're doomed!"

"As we speak, the priest is alive but in critical condition. His survival in the long run is uncertain." The man tried calming the crowd down.

"Who could attack a priest in his own church?! Isn't the house of God a haven against those vile creatures?!" Someone at the front of the crown yelled.

"We believe he was attacked outside but managed to flee when he had the chance." The man answered. "The church is inaccessible for monstrosities and his ability to defend himself is the reason why he's currently still alive."

"But you said he might die!" A woman cried.

"I'm confident our doctors can aid in his recovery." The man shushed. "It's too soon to give any real estimates but I expect church service to be delayed until further notice."

The crowd continued but Yusuke had already turned around, making his way back home. No one stopped him, on the contrary, some also turned to go home. It was already past midnight and sleep was high on some people's schedules.

The entire charade continued well into the next day. Some people, mostly city guards had taken up posts outside the doctors' office, no one was allowed inside. Yusuke could smell his life, the red liquid he couldn't get out of his mind. How it fulfilled his needs. The priest, no, Kurama couldn't die.

It was on the third night that the people were granted their long-awaited update. The man once again took the stage as silence filled the town square. "Not only has the situation been stabilized, he seems to be recovering."

A collective sigh was heard and some people cheered. Yusuke was relieved to hear the good news yet cringed at the devotion the people had for their priest. Was he really that important to them?

"And it is with pure gratefulness that I'm informing you that Minamino is recovering in the comfort of his own home. Though we don't recommend visitation, please keep him in your prayers until the church will once again open its doors." The man concluded his speech.

"Minamino…" Yusuke muttered.

"That's his name." A young woman said. "Shuichi Minamino, it always takes a while for new people to know his name."

Yusuke smiled as he thanked her for clearing it up. His mind was a short circuit as he questioned the legitimacy of that name. He had introduced himself as Kurama so why didn't the other people use that?

He'd had to ask.

Thus he went to his house that same night. It was conveniently located next to the church and he wasn't surprised to see two people guarding the entrance. He'd take the artist route and go through the back window on the top floor, excited he'd landed in the priest's bedroom.

Though the red-haired man wasn't in bed.

Yusuke contemplated looking for him but decided to stay in the shadows as footsteps approached the bedroom.

It was Kurama.

Yusuke's breath hitched in his throat when he saw him. Leaning against the doorpost, one hand clutching his side as he looked directly at him. It was nearly impossible to spot Yusuke whenever he lurked in the shadows, but somehow, the priest needed just one glance to look him right into his eyes.

"You shouldn't be up," Yusuke said calmly, his tone low and soft.

"I can't stay down forever," Kurama responded, his voice horse as his breathing came in labored gasps.

Guilt swept itself through Yusuke's mind as he remembered his jaw crushing and puncturing his airway. "You would've if you hadn't stopped me. Six feet down to be exact."

Kurama merely chuckled, he leaned heavier against the wood as he seemed to struggle to keep himself standing. "You would've followed shortly after if that were to happen."

"Why? Were you going to kill me as a ghost?" Yusuke scoffed. "What are you anyway?"

"I'm a priest," Kurama said. "I protect…"

"You know damn well what I mean." Yusuke meant to confront him but stopped as he saw his condition worsen. "You shouldn't be up." He repeated.

Kurama swayed softly. "I know." He said softly as he pushed himself off of the doorpost and attempted to head towards the bed. He managed to take two steps before he plummeted to the ground with a soft groan.

He didn't want to help, it was clear that the priest could take care of himself, and he didn't need Yusuke's help at all.

He waited for him to stand, yet he didn't. He struggled, lifting his torso with one arm as the other was crossed around his waist, continuously clutching his side. His breathing changed as pained groans were audible from underneath.

It only took a few tries for the priest to give up, staying on the floor, his skin deadly pale as the cold seeped into his skin, making him shiver.

Yusuke had no control as he stepped out of his spot and knelt beside the priest. "Your name, why did you give me a different one from the one the people in town refer to you as?"

There was no response.

Trying to help, Yusuke wanted to lift him but retreated his hands as the priest contorted at the touch of his waist.

"What's wrong?" Worry set in as Yusuke saw the grimace of pain.

"The organ…" Kurama's breathing was strained. "I don't know if it's bruised or broken."

Yusuke thought for a while. When he launched at him, he was slammed into the organ before being slammed into the ground. He looked down at Kurama, the hand on his side was a clear sign he'd been trying to protect it.

Pulling his arm over his shoulder, Yusuke dragged him into the bed. His breathing had become faster and he could hear his heart racing in his chest. Yusuke prayed for him to not go into a hypovolemic shock as that would force Yusuke to find help which would lead to questions about why he was there in the first place.

But his breathing settled as Yusuke covered him with the blanket. He didn't seem scared or wary of him despite the fact that Yusuke had almost killed him. However, he still needed to know what he had done to stop Yusuke in the act.

He waited for him to wake again, unbothered that it had been hours and the sun was starting to rise. The priest had been stirred awake at last.

"How did you manage to stop me?" Yusuke asked even before the redhead had opened his eyes.

Straining to sit up, he seemed to completely dismiss Yusuke's question. "You're still here?" He asked softly, not looking at the vampire who'd attacked him, leaving him near death only to appear in his house. To first help him only to sit in the exact same spot on the side of his bed for hours on end, waiting for him to wake up and answer his question.

"How did you stop me?" Yusuke repeated his question. "What did you do to me?"

"Nothing tastes good?" Kurama leaned against the wall his bed was stationed against, clearly no hair better than the night before.

Yusuke was quiet, that damned priest did have something to do with it. "Just answer my question before I drain you of everything you have left. Which, according to what I'm seeing, isn't much."

"No need to threaten." Kurama smiled. "You already know I lured you to me. You then asked for a curse, so that is exactly what I gave you."

"What?!" Yusuke didn't fight the urge to shake the priest. Placing his hands on his shoulders, he lightly but effectively shook him to get more information out of him. "What do you mean a curse? Hey, answer me!"

"So you haven't seen it yet?" Kurama softly placed one hand on Yusuke's chest, right below his midriff, shifting slightly to the left. He pressed his hand against it and Yusuke remembered the shockwave, Kurama had placed his hand there. "There's a mark, it is faint so you will only notice it when you know it's there."

Yusuke shot up from the bed and headed towards the first thing he saw which had some form of reflective coating. He unbuttoned his blouse. The priest didn't lie, there was a faint mark. "What the fuck?! Why would you curse me?!" Panic was around the corner.

He had heard of priest's curses before, they were only breakable by the priest himself. The power of a priest determined the power of the curse, a low-level priest only administered small insignificant curses, easily broken with bargaining. This priest was different, this looked strong, unbreakable and he questioned the extent of its effects.

"You asked for it and I granted it to you." Kurama had laid back down, clearly dizzy from the physical interaction.

"What does it do?!"

"It binds you with me," Kurama said nonchalantly. "You won't be able to feast on anything else and if I die, you die." He had closed his eyes, wanting to go back to sleep.

"No," Yusuke demanded. "You're going to break this curse, you can't do this!"

"Apparently I can."

"What do I do now then? I'll have to orbit you forever?"

"..."

"Kurama!"

"You remembered my name…" He whispered.

"Undo it!"

"..."

It took all of Yusuke's willpower to not strangle the priest to death. The only thing stopping him was the threat of also perishing with that damned man. He had fallen back into a deep slumber, his body needing to replenish the amount of blood lost from the attack.

Pacing the room, he checked the mark again and again, making sure it was really there. He didn't want to believe this curse to be as powerful as the priest claimed, he'd have to find out on his own.