http://elegantorchid.livejournal.com/ (![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
elegantorchid.livejournal.com) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
tampered2007-06-14 03:41 am
elegantorchid.livejournal.com) wrote in tampered2007-06-14 03:41 am
[ COMPLETE ] Ranmaru & Zelman - Blood Brother
When; Before this post
Rating; PG13
Characters; Zelman Clock [![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
medievalfire] & Mori Ranmaru [elegantorchid]
Summary; Zelman's hungry. He decides to feed on his new friend. Ranmaru agrees and finds a brother figure. ♥ Also involves creative uses of redecorating.
Log;
He'd been baking a cake earlier, for a friend, but as soon as Zelman started speaking to him, he glanced over and decided this cake would be a better suited treat for him. He knew that Subaru-kun, who was a vampire, couldn't eat normal food but it appeared as though Zelman had no trouble with them, seeing as he requested this.
Once he'd gotten everything packed up, he stepped out of his home, walking over to where Zelman stayed- he'd helped the vampire move into a room close to his, so the walk wasn't long. Once he arrived there, he knocked, waiting for a response, and looked down at his gloves for a brief moment, wondering where Subaru-san, his own was.
Starting off in a new home, the vampire knew that he shouldn't smoke inside and stink the place up, especially if he planned on having people over every once in a while. However, at home, he would smoke in his room whenever he cares, and eyeing the newly bought pack of cigarettes, he wished he could override his self-control and take one. The knock at the door distracted him from the need, and Zelman stood up from the dark red couch to tend to the door.
Standing before the closed door, hat off as he was inside the privacy of his own home, he ran one hand through the hair that curled slightly at the tips. His fingers curled around the door handle and he pulled it back to give Ranmaru a greeting consisting of "Yo" and a lazy smile.
A cheerful smile on the boy's face himself, Ranmaru held out the cakebox to Zelman. He liked the other vampire, seeing as he'd been incredibly sweet to him and had a big brotherly aura around him. And he couldn't have shown up at a better time, right when Ranmaru had needed a huge distraction from his life at present. While he regretted coming back into the City after certain events, he couldn't say he regretted it entirely. The people were all in all, very kind and friendly, and that never changed, truly.
"Good evening, Zelman-san~" he greeted him waiting to enter as he knew it was rude to just barge in. "Ranmaru just finished decorating it and you can have it all!"
"All of it?" repeated the surprised one as he took the box from the boy. Expecting only a regular sponge cake, and maybe some fresh strawberries that happened to be his undoing, he was rather shocked to see that the cake looked very nice. Feeling rich like some sort of king, Zelman shook his head and invited the boy inside. "I can't eat it all," he explained, "So I would much rather share it with someone. You can't honestly tell me that you made it without wishing to have some."
Regular houses were rather strange to the vampire, who was used to living in lavish hotel rooms or his rooms in the Special Zone. Stopping in the hallway briefly, almost wondering where he was going, he spared some time to laugh at himself before continuing. "Thank you, by the way. I haven"t had cake in a while, especially one looking so delicious."
He blushed little at the compliment- ever since arriving here, he'd busied himself with always being helpful to his friends, and also familiarising himself with the newer ways of life he'd begin to learn here. They were nothing like things back home, but... he was used to it all now. And many of his female friends were quite fond of these pretty treats he made, so he was more than satisfied.
Following in after Zelman, Ranmaru shook his head with a small smile. "Oh no, worry not, Zelman-san. Though if you insist, Ranmaru will try it with you." he looked around himself. "Ah, Zelman-san hasn't fully decorated the place yet? It's very easy! On entering, you need only magine the kind of place you wish to have, and it will become so. That is why Ranmaru's home is so huge from the inside, even though it looks it not!" he told him. Touching his arm, he pointed outside. "Would you like to try?"
As an Old Blood he knew very, very well that there were some crazy men and women in the world. As an Old Blood, he made sure to surround himself with men and women who were sane and did not try his patience or do anything else to bother him. What Ranmaru had explained to him sounded completely and utterly mad, and being a man of unquestionable intelligence, the vampire had to question the other's thinking.
"Are you sick?" Zelman asked, setting the cake down so that he could place his hand just above the boy's cheek. He could feel the radiating heat of a human's average temperature, but no fever didn't mean that Ranmaru was all right. "Imagining the inside of a house will not turn a boring building into a comfortable home. You should think realistically and not idealistically."
Ranmaru blinked in surprise when the other touched his cheek, not moving away, though his words made him still. And then, he realized that Zelman hadn't been here that long and so, when he made his comment, the boy raised a hand to take his in his own and hold it, laughing softly.
"You misunderstand!! Come, Ranmaru will show you." with that, he gently pulled on the other's hand, pointing outside. "A step outside, Zelman-san. This will not take long at all!"
Sighing at the absurdity of the thought, like an older brother frustrated by his younger brother's folly, Zelman followed his lead and stepped outside with the boy. Still in obvious disbelief, he wished he had gone right ahead and attacked that cake.
"All right, so what do I do now?" the vampire asked of the human, staring at the house he had just stepped out of. The light did not bother him as it might a normal vampire. "I'm supposed to think of how I want the inside to look like and then walk inside? Is that how the insanity of such a world works?" In the deep recesses of his mind, he wondered if Ranmaru was a fairy and if they were part of a fairytale.
Closing the door, Ranmaru smiled, knowing how hard it might be for Zelman to believe him, but he figured after he saw it with his own eyes, he wouldn't be such a skeptic. Then, releasing his hand, he stood back and nodded to him. "That is right. Just imagine it, and it will be how you wish it to be. Go on, try it! And when you are ready, open the door."
This was one part of the city's magic he actually enjoyed using, because it was unintrusive and comfortable. He didn't think many put it to use, but at the same time, it was still a worthy thing to know.
"So I shall." Still quite the skeptic, Zelman placed his hands on his sides as if he were sizing up a load of work. In his mind he drew the perfect home for himself. There were rich, dark colors, especially browns, reds and blues, with purples here and there, and a fireplace that a man in love with fire must have. His desire for the wealth he once had came out in his need for beautiful paintings on the walls, and other expensive decorations such as vases.
Thinking that he had wasted enough time using his imagination, the vampire walked right back to the door, took a look back at Ranmaru, and opened it to find that everything in plain view was what he had thought of. Completely taken aback, he put a hand on his head in disbelief and gave a soft, amused grunt.
Ranmaru found himself stifling a bit of laughter underneath a hand he had raised to cover his mouth with, but let him concentrate, and when he opened his door, Ranmaru peeked in, thoroughly surprised with what he saw. It was fascinating, and beautiful in a strange way, and no one standing outside would be able to tell how huge this place actually was from the inside. Looking around, he spotted his cake box on a newly-appeared dining table, and he grinned to himself, then passed Zelman by and motioned to the room around them.
"It's a home within a room, Zelman-san!"
It's the kind of home that I prefer." Zelman closed the door and walked forward, allowing his eyes to wander over everything that he had chosen for this room. Dumbfounded that this could even happen in a world, he quite his laughter and let himself breathe for a little while. "I like small spaces. I'm not much of a person for a multi-roomed house, you see."
Surely he would never have known this could happen without Ranmaru's help. Allowing himself to leave his personal space behind, the vampire put his hand on the boy's head and mussed his hair up in an affectionate gesture.
Ranmaru was glad to have been able to help at all, and at the way the vampire messed up his hair, he could only laugh and duck his head and bring up his hands to the top of his head so he could wave him off. "Zelman-san seems to be fond of dark colors." he turned around to face him, moving his hands behind his back. "Is it more comfortable for you to be in the dark? Ranmaru's eyes might hurt, even though it is nearly night-time now!"
He glanced to a side, then smiled. "A-Ah... Ranmaru is probably keeping you from having your cake, ne?"
Unable to take advantage of the boy now, Zelman shrugged his shoulders and returned his hands to his pockets. "Not really. If you should be going back home then you're free to go. I'm not going to keep you here." Distracted by admiring his imagination, he took another look around the room that he would definitely enjoy tonight.
"You can take some back home if you'd like. As I said, I can't eat it all." Definitely hungry for something, though, he looked at Ranmaru. He forgot to take control of his fangs, and because of his forgetfulness they were longer than they should have been. "It'll curb my hunger somewhat by having something sitting in my stomach. Once I find something better I'll be fine."
The smile faded from Ranmaru's face, only to be replaced by a look of surprise. He'd almost forgotten that Zelman was a vampire, and the way his fangs gleamed were nearly the way the light of the fireplace was reflecting in his red eyes. Instead of talking about the cake, Ranmaru stepped a little closer and hesitantly, almost in childish curiosity, raised his hand to touch the other's face.
"You're... not starving for food like this." he murmured. "But for blood, ne?" looking up at Zelman, more curious than afraid, he tilted his head to a side, watching him carefully. "Ranmaru read of it... Ranmaru has a friend he once fed too. He's a vampire as well." looking a little worried, he lowered his hand a bit. "You shouldn't go without feeding. The books say that it can often get vampires in a bad mood!"
Vampires that can"t control their hunger deserve those bad moods," Zelman said, knowing that he had been in many bad moods during his younger days whenever he starved. "I can control it now, being the Old Blood that I am. I"ve gone a long time without blood before; I can manage a day or so." The monster in his mind caused him to pay closer attention to Ranmaru. He couldn"t take his eyes off of the human. The demand for blood was becoming too great.
"Don"t mayors or some such care for their citizens?" Wishing to avoid the subject of biting, he went on to wonder if whatever government existed would help. "In the Special Zone, Company hands out blood bags that donors have filled for vampires. They don"t do that here? I"ve heard of some sort of underground bar that does so. Why not use it wisely?"
A look of worry crossed his face as he thought about that. He'd heard of it too, but as far as he'd heard, some vampires had claimed those were unpleasant. "Ranmaru isn't sure on the details, but... while there may be something like that, it is probably safer to have donors." If it were so easy, he knew his friend would be having that regularly. "There are friends who are vampires, who do not feed there. Some do... but." his face scrunched up in worry for a bit. "The deities are not to be trusted, in that matter."
Zelman didn't seem to look so good right now, the fangs troubled him. He'd never quite seen them so... ominously grown. "If you need a donor, then there may be some willing to offer. As long as you don't kill them." he smiled weakly. "Ranmaru has offered once before. It was just a little and Ranmaru fell unconscious, so it wasn't really felt."
An unconscious feeding surprised the vampire. To have an unconscious victim to feed from meant that either the person planned on dying or was just stupid. Chalking that one up as part of this human"s luck, he gave Ranmaru a puzzled look before shaking his head. Grateful to whatever vampire did not drain him, he did not voice how glad he was that he survived. He only continued to fight.
"I"d like a donor. I doubt that little blood pub keeps the blood types separated. As if I"d like to drink something so disgusting." Zelman nicked his bottom lip with one fang as if to hold at bay some of his hunger. "Truth be told, I thought of taking blood from you, but after that small story, I"m not sure you could take it. The first bite will be painful and you won't get away with sleeping through it or what might come after it.."
Ranmaru couldn't help but chuckle a little bit. "Ah, but Zelman-san... Subaru-kun is a very gentle and kind vampire. He did not wish to feed and Ranmaru was barely in a state to protest anyway. And he needed it... but he has a lot of control over himself. That is why Ranmaru trusted him." But could he trust Zelman to do the same? He wondered about it, and despite the other's nature, Ranmaru couldn't see a reason why not to trust him.
Then, with a light shrug, Ranmaru smiled up at him. "That's alright, Zelman-san. Ranmaru has been through pain before. The blade this warrior wields is after all, not just for show." He gestured to his body. "If I cannot bear pain, I am not fit to be called a warrior. This person is just concerned you will not get to feed when you wish to, and... regardless. You're not an evil person who wishes to kill me, so Ranmaru doesn't see why not." he chuckled a little. "Though it would be heartbreaking to discover that you were, if so." shaking his head, he moved his arms behind his back. "The choice is yours..."
To starve and live off of blood that his "puppy" would have to bring to him, or to feed off of a willing human who apparently had been through more than he had originally imagined. Deciding to consider it consensual, though he would make it appear as if he were a villain later on, finally Zelman agreed to feeing from the young man standing before him.
"Alright," agreed the hungry vampire, giving the other a shake of his head. At this point he wished that Sayuka would somehow fall out of a sudden hole in the ceiling so that he could take her blood instead. She was used to the feelings a bite instilled. "You"ll want to sit down and relax all of your muscles. Tensing will make the pain worse." He gestured to the couch that he had picked out, one larger than the one he had in the Special Zone, and more comfortable as well. "You"ll be weak and feel some emotions that definitely aren"t yours. Those will be mine, in case you wanted to know."
Wondering what was up, Ranmaru watched the vampire's gestures, though as he spoke, he blinked in wonder and followed his instructions as he moved to the couch, seating himself at the edge. With Subaru-kun, it had been easier because the vampire was as gentle as he appeared. Sweet as he was, Ranmaru had been sleepy enough to not really pay much heed to it, and the fact that he'd been fed from had allowed him to go into a meditative unconsciousness.
Finally, he moved his hands to his sides and looked up at the red-eyed vampire curiously. "Your... emotions?" he wondered how that would be, then smiled a little. That had happened to him before too, so he just gave him a nod, then exhaled softly as he relaxed.
"Whenever you wish, Zelman-san."
Whether or not the relaxation with which Ranmaru dealt with the situation angered him the vampire couldn"t figure out. He did know that it was unsettling, the way he didn"t seem nervous to an unnatural degree, especially since he had never allowed the red-haired vampire to take a bite of him. Cracking a bone or two after shrugging his shoulders, Zelman placed his hand on the couch beside Ranmaru and leaned down.
"Then let"s have no more hesitation!" he announced as he practically attacked the human"s throat, piercing the skin and flesh with his fangs. Immediately his mouth covered the bite he had made, collecting the blood. Different from the human blood he had before, yet still similar, this was a taste that he could get very used to, but if the boy couldn't take it, then he planned only to feed from Ranmaru once before moving to a different donor.
There was only a brief flicker of realization, before Ranmaru saw what was coming. It was briefly reminiscent of the time he had gone head on against a beast that had tried to rip his neck from his body, and if he had missed by even a few seconds, he knew that his chances of having survived that would be nothing.
It was what he was reminded of, and for that brief instant that the fangs pierced into his neck, his eyes went wide, though being one who could compose himself in pain rather well, it was a challenge enough to have not made any noise except for a soft gasp. His hand flew to Zelman's upper arm, face scrunching up as he held back any sounds of pain that would escape... and clamped his eyes shut as the first wave passed over him.
This was starting off the same way... the same way as the other time.. and he released a soft gasp, though there was intense restraint on his part not to reveal it.
Biting deeper than he had planned, and failing to pay enough attention during the bite, Zelman hadn’t noticed that some blood had escaped him until it began to travel over Ranmaru’s skin and away from him. He would not stain the boy’s clothing with his hunger, and stopped the short trail of blood with a finger. Leaving the bite briefly, he licked up what he had missed and then returned to his feeding.
Not so sure that he should take so much, the vampire removed his fangs from the human’s neck, some blood escaping to run down his cheek. He wiped up this with the same finger and swiped over the blood on his teeth with his tongues before speaking.
“That’s enough if you’d like to stop now,” told the still hungry Zelman, forcing himself to back down a little. “It can’t be a good feeling to have to trust someone else not to tear your throat out.”
The boy was startled, but attempting to relax under the bite, he let out a choked gasp, shivering when Zelman began to feed, realizing he wanted to cry out, but he didn't do so at the time. He had more tolerance for pain than this, but something was wrong. Instead of pain as he had expected, something was... pleasant and he kept his hand on Zelman's shirt, clutching it with his fingers, and blushed crimson when the other licked him. Still a little shaken, flustered at the same time, he looked up just as the other pulled away, before whispering, "You're not full." He knew how much Subaru had taken and this was hardly the amount that had been. Unless Zelman needed this little...
Then, in a softer voice, he whispered, "Don't worry about me, if that is why you're stopping." A small smile came onto his face. "Zelman-san's eyes are kind... Ranmaru knows you wouldn't kill for no reason." He absently touched his cheek, as though encouraging him. "Go ahead."
Practicing self-restraint, or what could be considered self-restraint as he was quickly losing the battle, Zelman opened his mouth to reply. The subtle ache in the gums around his fangs told him to bite again. It was just as pleasurable for him, having flesh to sink his fangs into that was still rather pure.
"If you don"t mind, I"d like a little bit more." With that said, he leaned in again for his second bite, in the same place of course, but just a little bit to the side so that the bite could grow and he would have more blood. He doubted that it would be too much pain; the pleasure would start up again, and Ranmaru seemed to be able to deal with it just fine. Even so, over the Resonance that had begun to form between the two, Zelman still gave him the ability to tell him to stop.
This time, that feeling intensified into something Ranmaru had certainly not been expecting. At first, it had felt awkward in all forms to have felt it at all, but as soon as Zelman attacked again, Ranmaru froze, only to be overcome with something he only vaguely recalled enjoying.
Pleasure...? Why..., he thought, before his own thoughts were drowned out by a tremor of anticipation and want that spread like a fire through his body and he clutched onto Zelman's back, eyes falling shut and mouth parting to let out a whimper, and then a soft moan. A blush erupted on his cheeks followed by him clutching Zelman closer, tilting his head back as he cried out. "A--Ah!!" What's going on?! Why is this--, he couldn't understand, and before he could stop himself, the needy cry of "M-More--!! Nnh!" escaped him and he realised his breathing was growing heavier, needier.
And then, he saw something... something that he knew wasn't in his own mind. Something, more of everything, and as his eyes half-opened, filling with a lulling daze, he found himself thinking to him. /Zelman-san... are these yours...?/ So many memories... what was this..?
Removing his mind from the haze of a good, pleasing feeding and the feeling of a filling stomach, he managed to respond, though it was slow and, even spoken in a mind link, rather lazily. He admitted to those memories being his, having nothing to hide save for the many scuffles and full-fledged fights he had been in over his eight hundred years of life. To hide away the more violent memories, he brought up happier ones. The most pleasing were memories of his short life as a human. All his life he had been wealthy, and his youth had been a rich one.
"Aah, the beauty of youth," remarked the reminiscing vampire as he chose to relive his days as a normal boy. Barely eighteen at the time of his changing, Zelman hadn"t made much of himself before agreeing to the bloodline. "Be sure you stay young while you can, or you"ll find that adulthood is less than what you wanted it to be."
Having been distracted from his feeding, he focused again on the blood filling his mouth and sliding down his throat. Thoughts of the taste floated around in his mind, thoughts that were disposed of so that he wouldn"t make Ranmaru feel so strange. There really were no other memories that he could give to Ranmaru; those days had been some of his happiest. The rest of his life was too ordinary.
So many thoughts.. the more Ranmaru watched, the more he realized the effect of years that had taken it's toll on the vampire that was feeding from him. His own voice, which was now reduced to gentle whimpers, his body arching to meet his in a way that would seem a little more than improper, Ranmaru slid his hand over Zelman's back, his eyes watering slowly.
Finally, he could see himself, and the rather debauched looking state he was going into. It made him blush even more, seeing what he looked like through Zelman's eyes, and finally, with a cry as though he'd hit his peak, he breathed heavily and released a breath, feeling his mind go numb, holding the vampire closer, over him. His lips parted to merely voice softly, "... pleasant" though he didn't know he had said it so, and closed his eyes, just letting Zelman feed until he was done.
With a low, pleased almost-growl, the vampire"s jaws unlocked and the long fangs shrank in the flesh until they were nothing more than above average length teeth with a sharp point. Gently Zelman's tongue lapped at the blood that continued to flow over his skin until the flow seemed to stop. His senses became more aware as he noticed that the ticking sound floating in his mind was not present almost immediately.
Not removing himself from Ranmaru"s grasp, he allowed the human to continue to hold him, a smirk on his lips. His comment had amused more than anything else. Never had someone shown such self-restraint as this one had, and there had been many humans that he had fed from. Not even Sayuka had held herself back, and she had worked under him for a few years. "Not too much pain I take it?" wondered the sated one, keeping his thoughts high-spirited and happy. "I didn"t want to be rough."
Feeling rather dazed, Ranmaru re-opened his eyes as he looked up at Zelman. His vision felt slightly blurry and his face was visibly flustered, and for the brief moments that he believed he could have seen himself through the other's eyes, his own state almost embarrassed him. Silver eyes appearing glassier than normal, he closed them, and shook his head once.
"... felt good." He didn't say it aloud, though. The words remained in his thoughts, and he smiled weakly as he re-opened his eyes to look at Zelman.
"Was... Ranmaru alright?" he asked in a small voice.
"Just perfect, actually." One arm slid under the boy's midsection as the other went to his shoulders and his hand cradled his head. Zelman wished to take a seat beside him, and to do so he would either have to extricate himself from Ranmaru or he would have to take him along with him. Decision already made, he had moved the smaller human so that he could lean into Zelman"s body if he desired to. He thought Ranmaru might want a nap anyway.
His eyes flashed, though in a way different from using his power, as he was reminded suddenly of another boy, one many years younger than Ranmaru, that had enjoyed napping against him so. His hair was considerably darker than Zelman's, but still very much a red tone, and his eyes were gentler than his, with an ongoing battle of whether they were green or hazel between him and his mother.
"Hah!" the relaxing Zelman nearly shouted, running a hand through his hair. "Of all the people to do so, it had to be you."
It felt nice to be held that way, and for a short moment, Ranmaru almost forgot everything he had been going through since his return here. There had been so many things that had been more than a constant source of pain for him ever since returning, and in all honesty, this had been a little more than helpful in making sure he didn't fall into that gloom again.
Keeping an arm around Zelman's back, Ranmaru leaned into him, though when the vampire made his exclamation, he blinked, feeling slightly drowsy and then raised his silver gaze to the other's face. "Wh.. what's the matter, Zelman-san...?" he asked, feeling somewhat tired, and easily content.
Giving him a shake of his head as a reply, Zelman rubbed at the back of his neck before allowing his gaze to travel around the room that he had "created". Pleased altogether with his situation, he leaned his head back against the back of the couch and smiled.
"Nothing at all," he told Ranmaru before settling further in his seat. The memories of the young boy from the past had sparked something in the vampire, and he brought his hand up to once again muss up the boy's hair. "Leave when you feel up to it. You obviously need to rest."
"Mmm..." Ranmaru chuckled softly despite himself and leaned his head against the other's shoulder, feeling somewhat more drowsy and at the ruffling of his hair, he gave him a small nod. "Thank you... Nii-san..." the words were muttered before Ranmaru found the lull of sleep overtake him. His hands fell slack and he closed his eyes, not realizing that he'd just called Zelman by the title of his brother.
Once, a very long time back, in the same manner, Ranmaru's rough and stronger soldier brother would often treat him with the same gentleness that Zelman was now giving him. Tonight, the memories were stronger than before, and he let himself drown into the darkness of his slumber.
/Brother... perhaps you're watching over us now too? Zelman-san reminds me of you.../
Rating; PG13
Characters; Zelman Clock [
medievalfire] & Mori Ranmaru [elegantorchid]Summary; Zelman's hungry. He decides to feed on his new friend. Ranmaru agrees and finds a brother figure. ♥ Also involves creative uses of redecorating.
Log;
He'd been baking a cake earlier, for a friend, but as soon as Zelman started speaking to him, he glanced over and decided this cake would be a better suited treat for him. He knew that Subaru-kun, who was a vampire, couldn't eat normal food but it appeared as though Zelman had no trouble with them, seeing as he requested this.
Once he'd gotten everything packed up, he stepped out of his home, walking over to where Zelman stayed- he'd helped the vampire move into a room close to his, so the walk wasn't long. Once he arrived there, he knocked, waiting for a response, and looked down at his gloves for a brief moment, wondering where Subaru-san, his own was.
Starting off in a new home, the vampire knew that he shouldn't smoke inside and stink the place up, especially if he planned on having people over every once in a while. However, at home, he would smoke in his room whenever he cares, and eyeing the newly bought pack of cigarettes, he wished he could override his self-control and take one. The knock at the door distracted him from the need, and Zelman stood up from the dark red couch to tend to the door.
Standing before the closed door, hat off as he was inside the privacy of his own home, he ran one hand through the hair that curled slightly at the tips. His fingers curled around the door handle and he pulled it back to give Ranmaru a greeting consisting of "Yo" and a lazy smile.
A cheerful smile on the boy's face himself, Ranmaru held out the cakebox to Zelman. He liked the other vampire, seeing as he'd been incredibly sweet to him and had a big brotherly aura around him. And he couldn't have shown up at a better time, right when Ranmaru had needed a huge distraction from his life at present. While he regretted coming back into the City after certain events, he couldn't say he regretted it entirely. The people were all in all, very kind and friendly, and that never changed, truly.
"Good evening, Zelman-san~" he greeted him waiting to enter as he knew it was rude to just barge in. "Ranmaru just finished decorating it and you can have it all!"
"All of it?" repeated the surprised one as he took the box from the boy. Expecting only a regular sponge cake, and maybe some fresh strawberries that happened to be his undoing, he was rather shocked to see that the cake looked very nice. Feeling rich like some sort of king, Zelman shook his head and invited the boy inside. "I can't eat it all," he explained, "So I would much rather share it with someone. You can't honestly tell me that you made it without wishing to have some."
Regular houses were rather strange to the vampire, who was used to living in lavish hotel rooms or his rooms in the Special Zone. Stopping in the hallway briefly, almost wondering where he was going, he spared some time to laugh at himself before continuing. "Thank you, by the way. I haven"t had cake in a while, especially one looking so delicious."
He blushed little at the compliment- ever since arriving here, he'd busied himself with always being helpful to his friends, and also familiarising himself with the newer ways of life he'd begin to learn here. They were nothing like things back home, but... he was used to it all now. And many of his female friends were quite fond of these pretty treats he made, so he was more than satisfied.
Following in after Zelman, Ranmaru shook his head with a small smile. "Oh no, worry not, Zelman-san. Though if you insist, Ranmaru will try it with you." he looked around himself. "Ah, Zelman-san hasn't fully decorated the place yet? It's very easy! On entering, you need only magine the kind of place you wish to have, and it will become so. That is why Ranmaru's home is so huge from the inside, even though it looks it not!" he told him. Touching his arm, he pointed outside. "Would you like to try?"
As an Old Blood he knew very, very well that there were some crazy men and women in the world. As an Old Blood, he made sure to surround himself with men and women who were sane and did not try his patience or do anything else to bother him. What Ranmaru had explained to him sounded completely and utterly mad, and being a man of unquestionable intelligence, the vampire had to question the other's thinking.
"Are you sick?" Zelman asked, setting the cake down so that he could place his hand just above the boy's cheek. He could feel the radiating heat of a human's average temperature, but no fever didn't mean that Ranmaru was all right. "Imagining the inside of a house will not turn a boring building into a comfortable home. You should think realistically and not idealistically."
Ranmaru blinked in surprise when the other touched his cheek, not moving away, though his words made him still. And then, he realized that Zelman hadn't been here that long and so, when he made his comment, the boy raised a hand to take his in his own and hold it, laughing softly.
"You misunderstand!! Come, Ranmaru will show you." with that, he gently pulled on the other's hand, pointing outside. "A step outside, Zelman-san. This will not take long at all!"
Sighing at the absurdity of the thought, like an older brother frustrated by his younger brother's folly, Zelman followed his lead and stepped outside with the boy. Still in obvious disbelief, he wished he had gone right ahead and attacked that cake.
"All right, so what do I do now?" the vampire asked of the human, staring at the house he had just stepped out of. The light did not bother him as it might a normal vampire. "I'm supposed to think of how I want the inside to look like and then walk inside? Is that how the insanity of such a world works?" In the deep recesses of his mind, he wondered if Ranmaru was a fairy and if they were part of a fairytale.
Closing the door, Ranmaru smiled, knowing how hard it might be for Zelman to believe him, but he figured after he saw it with his own eyes, he wouldn't be such a skeptic. Then, releasing his hand, he stood back and nodded to him. "That is right. Just imagine it, and it will be how you wish it to be. Go on, try it! And when you are ready, open the door."
This was one part of the city's magic he actually enjoyed using, because it was unintrusive and comfortable. He didn't think many put it to use, but at the same time, it was still a worthy thing to know.
"So I shall." Still quite the skeptic, Zelman placed his hands on his sides as if he were sizing up a load of work. In his mind he drew the perfect home for himself. There were rich, dark colors, especially browns, reds and blues, with purples here and there, and a fireplace that a man in love with fire must have. His desire for the wealth he once had came out in his need for beautiful paintings on the walls, and other expensive decorations such as vases.
Thinking that he had wasted enough time using his imagination, the vampire walked right back to the door, took a look back at Ranmaru, and opened it to find that everything in plain view was what he had thought of. Completely taken aback, he put a hand on his head in disbelief and gave a soft, amused grunt.
Ranmaru found himself stifling a bit of laughter underneath a hand he had raised to cover his mouth with, but let him concentrate, and when he opened his door, Ranmaru peeked in, thoroughly surprised with what he saw. It was fascinating, and beautiful in a strange way, and no one standing outside would be able to tell how huge this place actually was from the inside. Looking around, he spotted his cake box on a newly-appeared dining table, and he grinned to himself, then passed Zelman by and motioned to the room around them.
"It's a home within a room, Zelman-san!"
It's the kind of home that I prefer." Zelman closed the door and walked forward, allowing his eyes to wander over everything that he had chosen for this room. Dumbfounded that this could even happen in a world, he quite his laughter and let himself breathe for a little while. "I like small spaces. I'm not much of a person for a multi-roomed house, you see."
Surely he would never have known this could happen without Ranmaru's help. Allowing himself to leave his personal space behind, the vampire put his hand on the boy's head and mussed his hair up in an affectionate gesture.
Ranmaru was glad to have been able to help at all, and at the way the vampire messed up his hair, he could only laugh and duck his head and bring up his hands to the top of his head so he could wave him off. "Zelman-san seems to be fond of dark colors." he turned around to face him, moving his hands behind his back. "Is it more comfortable for you to be in the dark? Ranmaru's eyes might hurt, even though it is nearly night-time now!"
He glanced to a side, then smiled. "A-Ah... Ranmaru is probably keeping you from having your cake, ne?"
Unable to take advantage of the boy now, Zelman shrugged his shoulders and returned his hands to his pockets. "Not really. If you should be going back home then you're free to go. I'm not going to keep you here." Distracted by admiring his imagination, he took another look around the room that he would definitely enjoy tonight.
"You can take some back home if you'd like. As I said, I can't eat it all." Definitely hungry for something, though, he looked at Ranmaru. He forgot to take control of his fangs, and because of his forgetfulness they were longer than they should have been. "It'll curb my hunger somewhat by having something sitting in my stomach. Once I find something better I'll be fine."
The smile faded from Ranmaru's face, only to be replaced by a look of surprise. He'd almost forgotten that Zelman was a vampire, and the way his fangs gleamed were nearly the way the light of the fireplace was reflecting in his red eyes. Instead of talking about the cake, Ranmaru stepped a little closer and hesitantly, almost in childish curiosity, raised his hand to touch the other's face.
"You're... not starving for food like this." he murmured. "But for blood, ne?" looking up at Zelman, more curious than afraid, he tilted his head to a side, watching him carefully. "Ranmaru read of it... Ranmaru has a friend he once fed too. He's a vampire as well." looking a little worried, he lowered his hand a bit. "You shouldn't go without feeding. The books say that it can often get vampires in a bad mood!"
Vampires that can"t control their hunger deserve those bad moods," Zelman said, knowing that he had been in many bad moods during his younger days whenever he starved. "I can control it now, being the Old Blood that I am. I"ve gone a long time without blood before; I can manage a day or so." The monster in his mind caused him to pay closer attention to Ranmaru. He couldn"t take his eyes off of the human. The demand for blood was becoming too great.
"Don"t mayors or some such care for their citizens?" Wishing to avoid the subject of biting, he went on to wonder if whatever government existed would help. "In the Special Zone, Company hands out blood bags that donors have filled for vampires. They don"t do that here? I"ve heard of some sort of underground bar that does so. Why not use it wisely?"
A look of worry crossed his face as he thought about that. He'd heard of it too, but as far as he'd heard, some vampires had claimed those were unpleasant. "Ranmaru isn't sure on the details, but... while there may be something like that, it is probably safer to have donors." If it were so easy, he knew his friend would be having that regularly. "There are friends who are vampires, who do not feed there. Some do... but." his face scrunched up in worry for a bit. "The deities are not to be trusted, in that matter."
Zelman didn't seem to look so good right now, the fangs troubled him. He'd never quite seen them so... ominously grown. "If you need a donor, then there may be some willing to offer. As long as you don't kill them." he smiled weakly. "Ranmaru has offered once before. It was just a little and Ranmaru fell unconscious, so it wasn't really felt."
An unconscious feeding surprised the vampire. To have an unconscious victim to feed from meant that either the person planned on dying or was just stupid. Chalking that one up as part of this human"s luck, he gave Ranmaru a puzzled look before shaking his head. Grateful to whatever vampire did not drain him, he did not voice how glad he was that he survived. He only continued to fight.
"I"d like a donor. I doubt that little blood pub keeps the blood types separated. As if I"d like to drink something so disgusting." Zelman nicked his bottom lip with one fang as if to hold at bay some of his hunger. "Truth be told, I thought of taking blood from you, but after that small story, I"m not sure you could take it. The first bite will be painful and you won't get away with sleeping through it or what might come after it.."
Ranmaru couldn't help but chuckle a little bit. "Ah, but Zelman-san... Subaru-kun is a very gentle and kind vampire. He did not wish to feed and Ranmaru was barely in a state to protest anyway. And he needed it... but he has a lot of control over himself. That is why Ranmaru trusted him." But could he trust Zelman to do the same? He wondered about it, and despite the other's nature, Ranmaru couldn't see a reason why not to trust him.
Then, with a light shrug, Ranmaru smiled up at him. "That's alright, Zelman-san. Ranmaru has been through pain before. The blade this warrior wields is after all, not just for show." He gestured to his body. "If I cannot bear pain, I am not fit to be called a warrior. This person is just concerned you will not get to feed when you wish to, and... regardless. You're not an evil person who wishes to kill me, so Ranmaru doesn't see why not." he chuckled a little. "Though it would be heartbreaking to discover that you were, if so." shaking his head, he moved his arms behind his back. "The choice is yours..."
To starve and live off of blood that his "puppy" would have to bring to him, or to feed off of a willing human who apparently had been through more than he had originally imagined. Deciding to consider it consensual, though he would make it appear as if he were a villain later on, finally Zelman agreed to feeing from the young man standing before him.
"Alright," agreed the hungry vampire, giving the other a shake of his head. At this point he wished that Sayuka would somehow fall out of a sudden hole in the ceiling so that he could take her blood instead. She was used to the feelings a bite instilled. "You"ll want to sit down and relax all of your muscles. Tensing will make the pain worse." He gestured to the couch that he had picked out, one larger than the one he had in the Special Zone, and more comfortable as well. "You"ll be weak and feel some emotions that definitely aren"t yours. Those will be mine, in case you wanted to know."
Wondering what was up, Ranmaru watched the vampire's gestures, though as he spoke, he blinked in wonder and followed his instructions as he moved to the couch, seating himself at the edge. With Subaru-kun, it had been easier because the vampire was as gentle as he appeared. Sweet as he was, Ranmaru had been sleepy enough to not really pay much heed to it, and the fact that he'd been fed from had allowed him to go into a meditative unconsciousness.
Finally, he moved his hands to his sides and looked up at the red-eyed vampire curiously. "Your... emotions?" he wondered how that would be, then smiled a little. That had happened to him before too, so he just gave him a nod, then exhaled softly as he relaxed.
"Whenever you wish, Zelman-san."
Whether or not the relaxation with which Ranmaru dealt with the situation angered him the vampire couldn"t figure out. He did know that it was unsettling, the way he didn"t seem nervous to an unnatural degree, especially since he had never allowed the red-haired vampire to take a bite of him. Cracking a bone or two after shrugging his shoulders, Zelman placed his hand on the couch beside Ranmaru and leaned down.
"Then let"s have no more hesitation!" he announced as he practically attacked the human"s throat, piercing the skin and flesh with his fangs. Immediately his mouth covered the bite he had made, collecting the blood. Different from the human blood he had before, yet still similar, this was a taste that he could get very used to, but if the boy couldn't take it, then he planned only to feed from Ranmaru once before moving to a different donor.
There was only a brief flicker of realization, before Ranmaru saw what was coming. It was briefly reminiscent of the time he had gone head on against a beast that had tried to rip his neck from his body, and if he had missed by even a few seconds, he knew that his chances of having survived that would be nothing.
It was what he was reminded of, and for that brief instant that the fangs pierced into his neck, his eyes went wide, though being one who could compose himself in pain rather well, it was a challenge enough to have not made any noise except for a soft gasp. His hand flew to Zelman's upper arm, face scrunching up as he held back any sounds of pain that would escape... and clamped his eyes shut as the first wave passed over him.
This was starting off the same way... the same way as the other time.. and he released a soft gasp, though there was intense restraint on his part not to reveal it.
Biting deeper than he had planned, and failing to pay enough attention during the bite, Zelman hadn’t noticed that some blood had escaped him until it began to travel over Ranmaru’s skin and away from him. He would not stain the boy’s clothing with his hunger, and stopped the short trail of blood with a finger. Leaving the bite briefly, he licked up what he had missed and then returned to his feeding.
Not so sure that he should take so much, the vampire removed his fangs from the human’s neck, some blood escaping to run down his cheek. He wiped up this with the same finger and swiped over the blood on his teeth with his tongues before speaking.
“That’s enough if you’d like to stop now,” told the still hungry Zelman, forcing himself to back down a little. “It can’t be a good feeling to have to trust someone else not to tear your throat out.”
The boy was startled, but attempting to relax under the bite, he let out a choked gasp, shivering when Zelman began to feed, realizing he wanted to cry out, but he didn't do so at the time. He had more tolerance for pain than this, but something was wrong. Instead of pain as he had expected, something was... pleasant and he kept his hand on Zelman's shirt, clutching it with his fingers, and blushed crimson when the other licked him. Still a little shaken, flustered at the same time, he looked up just as the other pulled away, before whispering, "You're not full." He knew how much Subaru had taken and this was hardly the amount that had been. Unless Zelman needed this little...
Then, in a softer voice, he whispered, "Don't worry about me, if that is why you're stopping." A small smile came onto his face. "Zelman-san's eyes are kind... Ranmaru knows you wouldn't kill for no reason." He absently touched his cheek, as though encouraging him. "Go ahead."
Practicing self-restraint, or what could be considered self-restraint as he was quickly losing the battle, Zelman opened his mouth to reply. The subtle ache in the gums around his fangs told him to bite again. It was just as pleasurable for him, having flesh to sink his fangs into that was still rather pure.
"If you don"t mind, I"d like a little bit more." With that said, he leaned in again for his second bite, in the same place of course, but just a little bit to the side so that the bite could grow and he would have more blood. He doubted that it would be too much pain; the pleasure would start up again, and Ranmaru seemed to be able to deal with it just fine. Even so, over the Resonance that had begun to form between the two, Zelman still gave him the ability to tell him to stop.
This time, that feeling intensified into something Ranmaru had certainly not been expecting. At first, it had felt awkward in all forms to have felt it at all, but as soon as Zelman attacked again, Ranmaru froze, only to be overcome with something he only vaguely recalled enjoying.
Pleasure...? Why..., he thought, before his own thoughts were drowned out by a tremor of anticipation and want that spread like a fire through his body and he clutched onto Zelman's back, eyes falling shut and mouth parting to let out a whimper, and then a soft moan. A blush erupted on his cheeks followed by him clutching Zelman closer, tilting his head back as he cried out. "A--Ah!!" What's going on?! Why is this--, he couldn't understand, and before he could stop himself, the needy cry of "M-More--!! Nnh!" escaped him and he realised his breathing was growing heavier, needier.
And then, he saw something... something that he knew wasn't in his own mind. Something, more of everything, and as his eyes half-opened, filling with a lulling daze, he found himself thinking to him. /Zelman-san... are these yours...?/ So many memories... what was this..?
Removing his mind from the haze of a good, pleasing feeding and the feeling of a filling stomach, he managed to respond, though it was slow and, even spoken in a mind link, rather lazily. He admitted to those memories being his, having nothing to hide save for the many scuffles and full-fledged fights he had been in over his eight hundred years of life. To hide away the more violent memories, he brought up happier ones. The most pleasing were memories of his short life as a human. All his life he had been wealthy, and his youth had been a rich one.
"Aah, the beauty of youth," remarked the reminiscing vampire as he chose to relive his days as a normal boy. Barely eighteen at the time of his changing, Zelman hadn"t made much of himself before agreeing to the bloodline. "Be sure you stay young while you can, or you"ll find that adulthood is less than what you wanted it to be."
Having been distracted from his feeding, he focused again on the blood filling his mouth and sliding down his throat. Thoughts of the taste floated around in his mind, thoughts that were disposed of so that he wouldn"t make Ranmaru feel so strange. There really were no other memories that he could give to Ranmaru; those days had been some of his happiest. The rest of his life was too ordinary.
So many thoughts.. the more Ranmaru watched, the more he realized the effect of years that had taken it's toll on the vampire that was feeding from him. His own voice, which was now reduced to gentle whimpers, his body arching to meet his in a way that would seem a little more than improper, Ranmaru slid his hand over Zelman's back, his eyes watering slowly.
Finally, he could see himself, and the rather debauched looking state he was going into. It made him blush even more, seeing what he looked like through Zelman's eyes, and finally, with a cry as though he'd hit his peak, he breathed heavily and released a breath, feeling his mind go numb, holding the vampire closer, over him. His lips parted to merely voice softly, "... pleasant" though he didn't know he had said it so, and closed his eyes, just letting Zelman feed until he was done.
With a low, pleased almost-growl, the vampire"s jaws unlocked and the long fangs shrank in the flesh until they were nothing more than above average length teeth with a sharp point. Gently Zelman's tongue lapped at the blood that continued to flow over his skin until the flow seemed to stop. His senses became more aware as he noticed that the ticking sound floating in his mind was not present almost immediately.
Not removing himself from Ranmaru"s grasp, he allowed the human to continue to hold him, a smirk on his lips. His comment had amused more than anything else. Never had someone shown such self-restraint as this one had, and there had been many humans that he had fed from. Not even Sayuka had held herself back, and she had worked under him for a few years. "Not too much pain I take it?" wondered the sated one, keeping his thoughts high-spirited and happy. "I didn"t want to be rough."
Feeling rather dazed, Ranmaru re-opened his eyes as he looked up at Zelman. His vision felt slightly blurry and his face was visibly flustered, and for the brief moments that he believed he could have seen himself through the other's eyes, his own state almost embarrassed him. Silver eyes appearing glassier than normal, he closed them, and shook his head once.
"... felt good." He didn't say it aloud, though. The words remained in his thoughts, and he smiled weakly as he re-opened his eyes to look at Zelman.
"Was... Ranmaru alright?" he asked in a small voice.
"Just perfect, actually." One arm slid under the boy's midsection as the other went to his shoulders and his hand cradled his head. Zelman wished to take a seat beside him, and to do so he would either have to extricate himself from Ranmaru or he would have to take him along with him. Decision already made, he had moved the smaller human so that he could lean into Zelman"s body if he desired to. He thought Ranmaru might want a nap anyway.
His eyes flashed, though in a way different from using his power, as he was reminded suddenly of another boy, one many years younger than Ranmaru, that had enjoyed napping against him so. His hair was considerably darker than Zelman's, but still very much a red tone, and his eyes were gentler than his, with an ongoing battle of whether they were green or hazel between him and his mother.
"Hah!" the relaxing Zelman nearly shouted, running a hand through his hair. "Of all the people to do so, it had to be you."
It felt nice to be held that way, and for a short moment, Ranmaru almost forgot everything he had been going through since his return here. There had been so many things that had been more than a constant source of pain for him ever since returning, and in all honesty, this had been a little more than helpful in making sure he didn't fall into that gloom again.
Keeping an arm around Zelman's back, Ranmaru leaned into him, though when the vampire made his exclamation, he blinked, feeling slightly drowsy and then raised his silver gaze to the other's face. "Wh.. what's the matter, Zelman-san...?" he asked, feeling somewhat tired, and easily content.
Giving him a shake of his head as a reply, Zelman rubbed at the back of his neck before allowing his gaze to travel around the room that he had "created". Pleased altogether with his situation, he leaned his head back against the back of the couch and smiled.
"Nothing at all," he told Ranmaru before settling further in his seat. The memories of the young boy from the past had sparked something in the vampire, and he brought his hand up to once again muss up the boy's hair. "Leave when you feel up to it. You obviously need to rest."
"Mmm..." Ranmaru chuckled softly despite himself and leaned his head against the other's shoulder, feeling somewhat more drowsy and at the ruffling of his hair, he gave him a small nod. "Thank you... Nii-san..." the words were muttered before Ranmaru found the lull of sleep overtake him. His hands fell slack and he closed his eyes, not realizing that he'd just called Zelman by the title of his brother.
Once, a very long time back, in the same manner, Ranmaru's rough and stronger soldier brother would often treat him with the same gentleness that Zelman was now giving him. Tonight, the memories were stronger than before, and he let himself drown into the darkness of his slumber.
/Brother... perhaps you're watching over us now too? Zelman-san reminds me of you.../