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maitre-de-carte.livejournal.com) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
tampered2007-07-25 03:40 am
maitre-de-carte.livejournal.com) wrote in tampered2007-07-25 03:40 am
log; complete
when; 19 July, evening, following this.
rating; PG-13.
characters; Mori Ranmaru (![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
elegantorchid), Alexis Hargreaves (maitre_de_carte).
summary; Ranmaru gets revenge - but at what cost?
log;
It had made his heart wrench when Subaru had walked out of there. A hint of hope had lit within him and in the Sakurazukamori's action, he knew... that all was not lost. He'd held his hand again, and perhaps in that act alone, Ranmaru had felt the confidence needed to deal with this. Lawrence and Subaru-kun had been shocked as well, but he had assured them not to worry, and picked up the older man and set him on his bed. The only reason he was living now was because of the fact that he was related to Cain-san and whatever relation that was was the only reason his attack wasn't being punished.
Once he'd closed the door to his bedroom, he untied the man, only to tie his hands firmly behind his back, as well as his ankles. He was proficient in the act and he made sure to be careful, but constant. There was no escaping this, not without breaking your wrists.
A bowl of water with cleaing towels kept nearby, the man's glasses removed and kept to a side, he picked up one of the moist towlettes as he sat next to him on the futon and pressed the cloth to his forehead. Subaru-san had done quite a number on him... and he certainly wasn't going to attack an unconscious man.
Blackness. That was all that he could see for a while, and, really, it was all that he could remember. Aside from the clatter and shatter of porcelain, silver, and hardwood flooring. A tall man in all black... yes, he remembered that. The man had accosted - no, more than such, he had nearly assaulted him... and then it was all darkness. The patterns of light behind his eyes seemed to form fireworks, cascading in patterns like weeping willows.... and then he actually could see the light from a corner not too far away. His eyes had opened - when, even he didn't know. It was blurry, at best... and when his vision focused, he only could see a ceiling that didn't look very familiar.
A gentle groan left him as he attempted to rise - but his hands didn't want to cooperate in pushing him upwards. They seemed stuck together.... bound. Now he was awake.
"What the-!" Alexis struggled a moment later, then scowled as he lie back down. He had been captured. But by whom? And how could it possibly have happened, in the first place? The man with the mismatched eyes... Damnit. Then he heard movements in the room. Someone else was there. "Show yourself at once," he commanded gruffly, eyes narrowing with irritation. Such grave errors had been committed if such a thing were to take place.
Having moved away from the other to set his things aside, Ranmaru was mildly surprised by the fact that the other still had the energy to command in his condition. He was battered, and that was an understatement. Subaru-san had certainly gone all out on him and Ranmaru felt bad, but only mildly. A man who could use force and drugging to take control of someone wasn't one to be pitied.
The room he was in now was completely covered in oriental-decor, the kind one would see in palaces of lore from older centuries. Ranmaru's house was beautiful, like the very palaces he had often stayed in. There were bedrooms fit to be homes themselves, a blessing from the deities during that one curse day those months ago. Huge, strangely spaced in small areas, but no less livable.
Alexis himself was on a futon, a large one enough for two or three people, canopied on the ceiling and the rest of the room lit in a soft evening candle lamp glow, though these were electrical lamps as the city offered. He turned the corner from behind one of the partitions, on which a peacock was painted in silks and returned, looking completely relaxed as he approached the man and knelt before him.
His eyes remained calm as they went over Alexis' body, almost expressionless, and he reached out and touched the older man's cheek.
"Does it hurt?" he asked. It was obvious it wasn't mockingly said, because of the tone in which he spoke. He sincerely was feeling bad that the other was in this state at all.
The moment skin touched his cheek, Alexis began to feel a cold wave of fury. His very captor, playing games with him... but he paused once he saw the face... a little blurred, true, but the features were unmistakable. Yes, the boy he had taken advantage of. No expression in those platinum eyes... he dully glared at the boy, making to rise once more, but giving up once it seemed futile. He'd rather conserve what little strength he had. And it had seemed that the man in all black had taken care of the majority of his energy. It rather annoyed him - and just to learn the situation he now was in positively infuriated him.
"Pray tell, divulge as to why I am here," he answered coldly, with a shaky sort of authority in the form of a weaker voice. Authority, nonetheless - yes, he would maintain composure and command. To show weakness was to be weak. In such a situation, power was to be guarded closely. "If one can loosen that tongue for being such the gentleman you've proven to be," he scathingly added.
"It was not my tongue loosened." he told him in a firm response, speaking very much like the general he was of his Lord's army. "I am a warrior of my word, sir. No one knows. No one who would act as such... but you underestimated my presence." At this, Ranmaru swiftly pulled off his half-gloves and revealed to the other man the signs that would have given him away, even without speaking. The five point pentagram, burned into his skin, though they looked almost faded for the moment. A work of his own onmyoujitsu. "So long as I am marked by that very man who brought you here, there is nothing that can be kept secret from him about me." He smirked a bit, almost bitterly. "He acted on his own will. Did you think I had no one who would care? I would have rather not seen you again."
Lowering his hands, he then moved one to pin to the side of Alexis' head, his eyes cool as he hovered over him. "Do you really have any right to speak about being a gentleman, when your act was as despicable as a conniving harlot wishing to deface a lord?" his voice was low, perhaps he didn't want the others to hear. Or perhaps, he was actually respecting the fact that he shouldn't speak in a raised tone with a man older than him. In a swift motion, his other hand came and gripped Alexis' chin and tugged his face upwards to face him directly. "But now that you are here... I'm just giving you back what you gave me, Lord Hargreaves."
The tone was much less gentle... more ferocious. It only inspired a small amount of fear, but Alexis had been good at keeping such emotions deel within him, never to be seen by the light of day. He merely maintained that flat look on his face, a portion of his lip curling upward while he moved his face away from the touch of the other's hand. No, he would not stand for any of it. The ropes at his wrists were constricting, indeed. And, it seemed it also applied to his ankles. Damnit. Alexis mentally cursed himself and his underlings - this should not have happened.
"I've no need for a paltry, tawdry courtesan," he spat out, attempting to move away from Ranmaru. No, he could not - would not - stand for this. And certainly, even though Ranmaru had a strange attraction, he had little interest, truly, in being taken by the boy. The thought made him outright scowl, and he seemed to emit an icy fury while he stared, with thin emerald shards, at the bindings that held him mostly in suspended animation. "And I've certainly... no need...." He was feeling a little wave of weakness.... like his energy was fading, being sucked out by an external force. He damned the boy before him, outright cursed him to the Devil. Surely he had something to do with it. His teeth gritted as he fought to keep down the wave of pain coursing through his body. No - he would not lose composure.
"You will find that words lose their impact when spoken from a position of weakness, Hargreaves-sama..." Ranmaru's voice was low, and he trailed his hand down to settle against the side of the other's neck. He remembered how it was that night, that neck, taut and extended, his face in the side of his own, taking full advantage of every weak spot on his upper body. It was a nightmare of pleasure, in a sense, and he simply tilted his head to a side, watching the man below him. How easy it would be to repeat those same actions onto him, to make him regret ever taking advantage of him in the way he had.
But Ranmaru wasn't Alexis Hargreaves. He was raised a noble, even though he wasn't born one, but he had enough morals of his own. The expression of pain, as subtle and small as it was, wasn't missed by him, and he looked down at him. "It would be so easy to repay you in kind, Alexis-san." he shifted to his first name now. "Had I been in control that night, of mind and body... on a normal day, you would not live." So saying, he stood up and from the stand to the head of the bed, he lifted a sword, not his regular one, but of the same make, and gently drew it out of it's sheath. Alexis would be able to see him out of the corner of his eye if he cared to do so, and calmly, Ranmaru walked back, in a swift movement like the wind, pointing the tip of the sword to the older man's neck.
"You took me for an easy, common being, willing to satisfy you." His words were icy now. "Therein lay your first mistake." The back of the blade's tip touched the other's chin. "And there is nothing stopping me from ruining your chances to return to your world forever for this insolence."
The blade felt cool underneath his chin - a deadly sort of cool, rather like a reptile. He knew well enough that, indeed, he wasn't currently in a position to properly oppose or toss about authority like cheap playing cards. No, in such an instance, it would be far better to calculate each thought, each breath, each word - survival was necessary. It was all about survival.And survival was such a deadly game - especially right now.
His breath tensed, but he remained with his facial expression of outright rejection of force. No, he would not cave in - but he certainly would not remain so stubborn as to compromise his life. A cool head was required, and all taking a firm stance would do was guarantee failure. "And you, willing to shove the blade through my body, is that it?" he replied, his voice growing only slightly weaker, even though his grimace seemed to intensify. And then a darkly amused look began to mutate his features. The chuckle, low and rich as port wine, started softly. A challenging look hardened his eyes as he defiantly looked up to his captor. "Go ahead... I'd welcome nothing less," he hissed.
His expression didn't flicker. No more than the way the other attempted to twist thing to his advantage... he'd seen it many a time in a corrupt warlord trying to buy his way through a winning attack, trying to get some time to live by some force of chance. Ranmaru smiled suddenly, a cool, expectant smile and before Alexis would see it, he would have moved. His hand on the older man's shirt, grabbing it and pushing him over, so that he could hold the sword at his neck and lift his head up, while straddling him in a way that kept him safe from any injury to his body from Alexis if he struggled.
"You're not ready for death yet. Or perhaps you are and I am prolonging it, my Lord." Ranmaru's voice was chilly now, his anger had become a sort of calm chill that was haunting in itself. "But if you welcome it, far be it from me to refuse." He moved his face down, so he could whisper into Alexis' ear from behind. "Honorable is he who dies when still in a state of beauty, Alexis-san. You do not want to be tortured, do you." The blade was then held sideways, pressing upwards without cutting, into the man's throat.
Even though the blade was pushing into his throat... even though it seemed that he was nearing the threshold of death with an even stride, Alexis didn't dare flinch or make a sound of pain. No, he wasn't afraid of near-death - the tumble off the cliffs at the estate, the poison in his mouth... it had done him a justice, in a sense. One hardened to death would hardly resist the coming. That defiant glint in his eyes remained, and he didn't waver.
"Do as you wish," he coldly responded, looking down the length of the brilliant sword that stood like a sentinel underneath his chin. No, he knew better of this boy, even if it had been a brief, chance meeting. One such as him seemed too relenting to carry through with such a dastardly act. He didn't have the look... the one someone sees in a person who would murder in cold blood. No, he knew better. Even though he didn't realise he wasn't breathing, he glared upward still. He would not be taken.
That was where Alexis was underestimating him. He had taken lives, in the near ten years he had been on the battlefield. The spray of blood and the scream of death's laughter were things not unfamiliar to the young warrior, except those were things that were earned with an honorable fight. He stayed behind the other, the blade held to the other's neck, before he stilled, and then sighed softly, moving his face to whisper in the other's ear, "I intend to. Alexis-san." And the blade was pulled.
But not across the skin of his neck, though the lash from it would indeed make one think he had done it and blood would come spilling forth, instead, Ranmaru's blade was drawn back and with a small hiss, he sliced the blade downwards through the ropes binding Alexis' wrists together and undid them, and then in yet another swift motion, he was off the man and pushing him onto his back. His feet were still bound, and Ranmaru then turned away, to set the blade aside, only to slide free an ofuda from under his wristband and press it, with index and middle finger, to Alexis' forehead, chanting a spell that would light up his vision with a white glow and a searing pain to go through his every limb. Yet it wasn't one to harm, the spell that Ranmaru used. Rather, it was a healing spell, working on fixing the internal injuries Subaru had caused.
And then the light died, with Ranmaru moving his hand away slowly while the older man was still in the sting of the healing, and moved to pick up one of the smaller towlettes. "Stay still. You still have physical injuries to be treated."
He still felt such a sting course through his body... just what had that been? A sheet of paper on his forehead, and then all he could see was white.... Even though it was dying down, the sensation of electricity running through each of his capillaries, blood vessels and veins still stung as it would have had an electrical current been run through his entire body. He hissed through gritted teeth, and yet he remained as still as he had before when Ranmaru had ordered him to. If he were going to be healed, he may as well accept it without much question. And he was there to ensure that no strange business was to be conducted in the meantime. No, unlike those many years ago, he wasn't as foolish and carefree with his body and his material possessions.
All the while, he watched Ranmaru with careful, calculating eyes. He was healing him... how curious, indeed, for such treatment to be bestowed upon what - as far as Alexis could tell - would be considered his enemy. Human nature sometimes baffled him, really... and yet, it still remained the same. Of course, to know people well was to be able to use them well. And if anyone knew of how to use people well, Alexis was one of those fortunate persons. He had yet to see if anything of this would be fruitious, but he already could see a proper use of such a situation he had found himself in. And a proper use for the boy that was tending to those wounds of his.
Ranmaru had a rather good reason for not killing him right then. Not that deaths mattered so much in The City, and he was living proof of that- alive again, due to one person's care, but the fact that death to him, was a sacred thing. Death was a blessing to end suffering, death was an entry into purity. To kill this man now would be giving him a release from all the sins he continued to do, the sins he would have the chance to rectify in jigoku after a period of penance. No, he didn't want that. Perhaps he was more than selfish, perhaps he wanted this man to continue tainting himself till the day came that his life was taken from him and he would have nothing to save him in sight.
And as a death was honorable to him, he only knew that a man like Alexis had death written in the hands of a pathetic end.
That alone was good enough to him. As he worked to clean the stains of released blood on the other's face, and then took his hands to begin to bandage his wrists where the rope cut into them, he worked in silence.
"You have two things protecting you right now, Alexis-san. The fact that you do not deserve a noble death and..." he looked up then as he began to wrap the bandages around his wrists, silver eyes looking directly into his. "... your humiliation at Subaru-san's hands pays in favor to what you did to me."
You do not deserve a noble death... Somehow, it seemed like something he had heard before, muddled by the passage of time. Of course, a noble death. The Oriental society seemed to promote honour in nearly every aspect of life. Honour in death, though... in such a mundane thing as that. Alexis had contemplated upon death a few times in his life, but he could not see how the manner of death would so dictate this "honour". It didn't matter, once one was dead. Things could be done to raise the dead... and more than a few people had been witness to such acts.
Icy green eyes watched as bandages were wound about his wrists so gingerly. The deed had been negated, then. Not that the deed itself had been a true source of worry. At least, it hadn't when information belonged solely to the two persons in the same room as of this moment. And the thought almost made Alexis wish to crush the boy's neck with his hands... like an anaconda. Gentlemanly conduct, indeed. "Only humiliation if one lets it be so, Ranmaru," he growled, pausing a moment to let a small hiss of pain out - the electrifying sensation he had felt had, apparently, not left quite yet.
Ranmaru finished tying the bandage around the other's wrist as he began to talk to him and the words made him look up. There was something about this man that put him off, severely, though unaware of his own acts of blasphemy against the dead, he only put him off as a dominating man who had always had everything he'd ever wanted, and everything to go his way.
"The dead don't choose how they die. Perhaps you're fated to die a hero. Or perhaps..." he reached down to begin to undo the knots tied on the man's feet, before pulling the cords low, off his ankles and heels and once done, massaged the area a little to restore the bloodflow, before bandaging the space as well. "You're fated to die with your face down in the mud while flies make you their new habitat. Either way... I have been avenged. I want nothing from you."
Once he was done tending to the other's feet, he cleaned up and then moved to press the moist towelette to the side of Alexis' brow, working silently. "Move your arms and see if you feel any pain." he should, a little, but on a whole, with the spell... he should be mildly better than when he was brought in.
He was so close to simply retorting that it wasn't the death that mattered so much. Death was such a transient thing, really... as transient as the tingling pain he had felt in his body moments ago. It had faded now into just a slight little prickling, rather more like sandpaper being pressed against his skin. No, it wasn't at all that bad. And he found a pleasant surprise as his arms flexed. There lingered no true pain - at least, not the kind of pain that was hard to ignore. A soreness lingered... transient.
Alexis looked over to Ranmaru once more, a coolly together stare taking in every move the other made. His words were foolish more often than not, frankly... and it begged the question of just how some sort of attraction had compelled him beforehand to seize the boy that he had met in the gardens. The whole affair, really, felt rather like a long, heavy hangover. Funny, though, that not even a drop of alcohol had touched his lips. He pushed himself up with his hands - his muscles seemed to ache, but he endured it nonetheless. "And if you want nothing, what business have I to continue to be here?" he inquired, taking a firm grip upon Ranmaru's wrist as he dabbed at his forehead.
Ranmaru stopped in his actions, fixing the older man with an icy glare before he jerked his hand away and lowered it. "Nothing anymore. While you are free to leave, the spell I have used will exhaust your body if you strain yourself. I am merely waiting for you to relax before I return you to your quarters." Still kneeling, he turned around to set the towels aside. That evening had been a mistake, and he became far too aware of their closeness now as he had been that night. After all, it had been hardly a full week since the incident even though he was certain Alexis held no more interest in him than was invoked by that curse.
"You wouldn't want to collapse in the middle of the streets walking barefoot, after all." he added, with a hint of a snarkiness to his tone as he turned to set the bowl aside. "Of course, if you wish to leave in your condition, feel free." perhaps there was a hint of sadism in the fact that Alexis was in the most unpresentable condition right now and hardly in control of the situation to help to his advantage that was making Ranmaru so bold.
Alexis grumbled to himself underneath his breath, and he internally cursed as he noted his appearance. The three-piece greenish-brown twill suit he wore was stained by blood in some parts... he was bandaged on his wrists, and his appearance in general was quite disheveled. He had been lucky, truly, that his glasses had not shattered or cracked - he found that to be an interesting development when he reached for them as they sat on a bedstand close by. And the clearer he could see, the clearer it became that, truly, he was not as well-groomed as he should be.
And once his eyes were again on Ranmaru, he stared with a flat sort of look. It seemed clearer now than before that Ranmaru was obviously male... and it made Alexis wonder, again, just what the attraction had been. Perhaps the charm had lie in how submissive he had seemed. Strangely, he wanted to see such a display once more. Slowly, deliberately, he rose to his feet and stood before Ranmaru, allowing his height to loom over the other. "And if I did collapse, it would be on your account, boy," he remarked scathingly.
As he was still kneeling to clean up the messed up towels and dumping them into the side basket, surprised that Alexis had made a motion to move but not going to stop him. If he wanted to leave, it was his own choice and he was no longer responsible for his well-being. He had what he wanted.
However, when the other spoke to him, Ranmaru didn't turn his head up, because he didn't want to face the older man. He was one of the people who could say that he had overpowered him, however improperly, but managed to do so anyway. And that fact alone made him wary of him. Standing next to the bed side table then, he put the water bowl away, and wiped his hands. "Perhaps." he replied calmly. "And the only reason I would care is because you are my senior. Or is that too, a ploy for obedience, Alexis-san?"
Obedience. The word seemed such a pleasant one on the ears, really. It gave many thoughts rise in his mind - the obedience of his own son as he tolerated his punishments, the obedience of the members of Delilah. And to have this boy's obedience, as well, was an interesting thought. He had thought the grip upon it was firm, as far as taking a simple order and running with it, but apparently it had not been. The idea enraged and yet emboldened him.
Quickly, he shoved the boy into the nearest wall, whirling him about to look him in the eye as he effectively pinned him there. He had a feeling that such an obedience was anathema to Ranmaru - he served another master, did he? It would not matter. "Obedience is best impressed upon someone until they learn what duty truly means," he replied in a low voice, looking him directly in the eye as his glasses caught the light with a small glint.
Having not expected Alexis to make any such moves at all, he was completely caught off-guard. Normally never to be caught in a predicament like this but also taking a mild sort of satisfaction in the fact that Alexis couldn't overpower him in his state, however his displeasure showed in his face. It was still too soon for him to be near anyone- and the very person who had instilled such a fear in him at all doing this right now was probably not the best idea. He was ready to lash out, and perhaps Alexis' fortune lay in the fact that he was still recovering from his fever because Ranmaru didn't plan to injure him right now. He was a foolish old man with urges to prove his dominance over everyone, and he wasn't going to get that way with Ranmaru again.
"That really is none of your business, is it?" Ranmaru's voice was mildly chilly as he quickly turned his face away from the other, looking to the side. No, no, he wasn't going to face him, and he wasn't going to show him any fear. "Release me now." he commanded, though it was obvious from the way his breathing had picked up that he was feeling great discomfort in the other man's closeness right now.
"That isn't for you to decide, is it?" he asked with a chuckle before he raised a hand to slap across the side of Ranmaru's face that still faced him. Aversion certainly wasn't the way to go about it - and even though it stung his hand a bit, Alexis knew that it was nothing compared to, perhaps, what Ranmaru felt at that moment on his cheek. Roughly, then, he turned the boy's face to look at him directly, and he took a great deal of advantage over the proximity as he moved in closer. "Now, there's no need for such impertinent remarks, you know."
Truly, Alexis's anger had been incited. He didn't outright show it - it was truly an unnecessary exhaustion of energy to do so in more evident manners. Only the stony look in his eyes betrayed him, and the weakened grip with which he held Ranmaru's chin was pure evidence of such. More or less imprisoned, his reputation compromised, his body injured and threatened of rape... he was ready to lash back. And so he would, in such ways that it would be well-published knowledge that it was unwise to trifle about with Alexis Hargreaves.
"--!!" Ranmaru felt the breath leave him at the slap-- no one, no one as long as he'd lived had dared touch him that way, and it shocked him enough to turn around to face the Lord in shock. But before he could move his hand to the stinging cheek, now turning a rosy hue, he felt something else lurch in the pit of his stomach-- the same sort of fear that had risen when Alexis had taken him that night, the realization of what was happening and what he was going to do. Being a warrior with pride had disallowed him from begging to be released, but the fear had been there-- and now, it shone for a moment in his eyes as he stared at each other, before the look turned into a glare and he shoved his arms to the other's chest to push him back, also careful not to make too much sound lest Lawr and Subaru hear him and try to come in.
"Stop this now!" he hissed, "We're even!"
Alexis seemed to seethe with a silent, cold, yet equally as deadly sort of anger. Oh, yes, he was ready to take control of the situation in the only way he could see at the moment. He never had believed he would make a good captive, and it seemed as though his suspicions had been correct. "Then it must be better the other way, correct?" He quickly took hold of the boy's entire body and pushed it onto the very bed upon which he had lie mere moments ago. Before there was a time allowance for a proper protest, Alexis hovered above the boy, his hands pushing Ranmaru's wrists into the downy covers of his bed.
"Is this better?" he inquired as one of his knees staked a claim of the covers just between Ranmaru's legs. He had done it once before - it seemed just as easy, if not more so with experience under his belt, to do it a second time. "Is this the only manner in which you can comprehend clearly?" he asked, letting his lips brush over Ranmaru's... already, he was that close to the boy, and he certainly didn't mind. There was no sexual thought in his mind... only the lust of dominion seemed to drive him to such lengths.
Startled became an understatement as Ranmaru's mind went back to that night. At the very least, then, there had been a curse as an excuse for Alexis' actions-- actions that were hardly justifiable, but understandable even if Ranmaru had been unfortunate enough to not be cursed. However now, he felt sick-- because the fear came running back, silver eyes widened in horror as he looked up at the man, pressing his lips firmly together and turning his face away, his heartbeat pounding. Not this again. Not this again.
"Get off me!! Get off me or by Bishamonten's blade, I will make you regret it!!" he was panicking, a warning sign of it's own. He writhed, attempting to loosen his hands from under the grip so he could punch him, throw him off and knock him out. But then, he jerked his face to glare piercingly into the other's eyes. "Lay your claim over this body all you want, but you will never touch my spirit. I submit to no one!!"
The glare didn't faze him. Within the range of his existence, Alexis had seen far more threatening things... and this didn't seem to register very highly within the ranks. Instead of seeming even mildly threatened, a chuckle rumbled low in his throat and an accompanying smirk matched the scorning humour he found in the situation. Ranmaru wasn't in any position to act in such a manner. Not while Alexis had the upper hand - and he knew far well that he did, for the panic the other displayed was too much to ignore. His hands coiled tighter at the boy's wrists, as though to enforce and encourage defeat.
"And yet you did, didn't you?" he mused aloud. "Interesting." And once he had a hold of Ranmaru's lip with his own mouth, a forceful bite mimicked the tone in his voice.
His expression faltered momentarily, breath catching in his throat and his cheeks beginning to burn from the closeness the other was initiating. It wasn't so much as arousal as it was embarrassment and it was amazing how, even in his state, he was attempting to force control over him. All to get him to submit? It was mind-boggling, and then his words came, searing him through the same way the pain from his bite shot through his lips, into his chest.
He didn't tug away at the risk of bruising, but he did go still, just after a short gasp escaped him, and turned his icy glare up at him, controlling himself from trembling. If he showed fear now, he would be no better than last time. However, one thing he had at hand that he hadn't had then- pride, and now, after seeing Subaru again, a reinstilled hope. It came from a weak confidence but it was confidence all the same, but mustering all the disgust he felt, he did something that was rather below his honor and spit at him, the saliva aimed to hit his face and he didn't care how or where.
"You're no less than a territorial dog." he hissed. "Consider that payment for the slap. Now get OFF."
The spit seemed to coagulate while it stuck to Alexis's face, right on the right side of his cheek. It took a moment for him to register the full physical act of it - he had been spat upon. Then the feeling of disrespect seethed through him, coursed through him like a strong vodka's false warmth. The boy below him had shown tremendous disrespect... how dare he. How dare he. An almost feral growl rumbled in his throat, and Alexis placed his hands quickly around Ranmaru's throat with almost murderous intent. Oh, he was furious.
"You're shameful," he hissed lowly, squeezing at the boy's neck with as much power as he could muster. And then the dizziness hit him forcefully. All action he had been carrying out stilled, and... the room appeared to spin, wobble around him. His grip became loose... looser with every passing second. "You're...." He couldn't hear his own voice as he collapsed atop the boy, and blackness began to fall at his eyes like heavy velvet curtains. "...shameless," he whispered as he sank further into unconsciousness.
It was easier, perhaps, to focus on what he was doing now that he'd let out his disrespect and anger at the man, though for the while he couldn't believe what he had done. While less humiliating than what Alexis had attempted to do to him, it was still a blow- and he knew that. He didn't want to give the man the satisfaction of overpowering him. Ever.
But he didn't expect what came next, and that alone stunned him into not being able to react when the other man's hands came around his neck. He had a powerful grip, he could not deny- but right now, he was certain it was hardly up to full strength in his state and the overexertion wouldn't allow him to go very far. The words, however, caused him to shiver as he moved his hands, gripping the other's to pull them off, when he noticed Alexis' loss of focus.
Not wasting a moment, Ranmaru tugged- pulling the hands off his neck, he flung the man down to his side with an added knee to the gut and with his hand free, a whispered enchantment from the onmyoujitsu he had learned, he pressed two fingers to Alexis' forehead and channeled the spell to fully knock him out.
Victory... he thought to himself, breathing heavily after he'd coughed, and once he was sure Alexis was out, he approached him to wipe his cheek, looking down at the face that seemed to belong to the peaceful visage of a resting corpse.
"If I am shameless... then you're despicable." he whispered to no one in particular. "And that is one thing I will never be." It was time for this man to leave.
This battle was just beginning... but for now, he was certain. Vengeance was complete.
And that was all that truly mattered.
rating; PG-13.
characters; Mori Ranmaru (
elegantorchid), Alexis Hargreaves (maitre_de_carte).summary; Ranmaru gets revenge - but at what cost?
log;
It had made his heart wrench when Subaru had walked out of there. A hint of hope had lit within him and in the Sakurazukamori's action, he knew... that all was not lost. He'd held his hand again, and perhaps in that act alone, Ranmaru had felt the confidence needed to deal with this. Lawrence and Subaru-kun had been shocked as well, but he had assured them not to worry, and picked up the older man and set him on his bed. The only reason he was living now was because of the fact that he was related to Cain-san and whatever relation that was was the only reason his attack wasn't being punished.
Once he'd closed the door to his bedroom, he untied the man, only to tie his hands firmly behind his back, as well as his ankles. He was proficient in the act and he made sure to be careful, but constant. There was no escaping this, not without breaking your wrists.
A bowl of water with cleaing towels kept nearby, the man's glasses removed and kept to a side, he picked up one of the moist towlettes as he sat next to him on the futon and pressed the cloth to his forehead. Subaru-san had done quite a number on him... and he certainly wasn't going to attack an unconscious man.
Blackness. That was all that he could see for a while, and, really, it was all that he could remember. Aside from the clatter and shatter of porcelain, silver, and hardwood flooring. A tall man in all black... yes, he remembered that. The man had accosted - no, more than such, he had nearly assaulted him... and then it was all darkness. The patterns of light behind his eyes seemed to form fireworks, cascading in patterns like weeping willows.... and then he actually could see the light from a corner not too far away. His eyes had opened - when, even he didn't know. It was blurry, at best... and when his vision focused, he only could see a ceiling that didn't look very familiar.
A gentle groan left him as he attempted to rise - but his hands didn't want to cooperate in pushing him upwards. They seemed stuck together.... bound. Now he was awake.
"What the-!" Alexis struggled a moment later, then scowled as he lie back down. He had been captured. But by whom? And how could it possibly have happened, in the first place? The man with the mismatched eyes... Damnit. Then he heard movements in the room. Someone else was there. "Show yourself at once," he commanded gruffly, eyes narrowing with irritation. Such grave errors had been committed if such a thing were to take place.
Having moved away from the other to set his things aside, Ranmaru was mildly surprised by the fact that the other still had the energy to command in his condition. He was battered, and that was an understatement. Subaru-san had certainly gone all out on him and Ranmaru felt bad, but only mildly. A man who could use force and drugging to take control of someone wasn't one to be pitied.
The room he was in now was completely covered in oriental-decor, the kind one would see in palaces of lore from older centuries. Ranmaru's house was beautiful, like the very palaces he had often stayed in. There were bedrooms fit to be homes themselves, a blessing from the deities during that one curse day those months ago. Huge, strangely spaced in small areas, but no less livable.
Alexis himself was on a futon, a large one enough for two or three people, canopied on the ceiling and the rest of the room lit in a soft evening candle lamp glow, though these were electrical lamps as the city offered. He turned the corner from behind one of the partitions, on which a peacock was painted in silks and returned, looking completely relaxed as he approached the man and knelt before him.
His eyes remained calm as they went over Alexis' body, almost expressionless, and he reached out and touched the older man's cheek.
"Does it hurt?" he asked. It was obvious it wasn't mockingly said, because of the tone in which he spoke. He sincerely was feeling bad that the other was in this state at all.
The moment skin touched his cheek, Alexis began to feel a cold wave of fury. His very captor, playing games with him... but he paused once he saw the face... a little blurred, true, but the features were unmistakable. Yes, the boy he had taken advantage of. No expression in those platinum eyes... he dully glared at the boy, making to rise once more, but giving up once it seemed futile. He'd rather conserve what little strength he had. And it had seemed that the man in all black had taken care of the majority of his energy. It rather annoyed him - and just to learn the situation he now was in positively infuriated him.
"Pray tell, divulge as to why I am here," he answered coldly, with a shaky sort of authority in the form of a weaker voice. Authority, nonetheless - yes, he would maintain composure and command. To show weakness was to be weak. In such a situation, power was to be guarded closely. "If one can loosen that tongue for being such the gentleman you've proven to be," he scathingly added.
"It was not my tongue loosened." he told him in a firm response, speaking very much like the general he was of his Lord's army. "I am a warrior of my word, sir. No one knows. No one who would act as such... but you underestimated my presence." At this, Ranmaru swiftly pulled off his half-gloves and revealed to the other man the signs that would have given him away, even without speaking. The five point pentagram, burned into his skin, though they looked almost faded for the moment. A work of his own onmyoujitsu. "So long as I am marked by that very man who brought you here, there is nothing that can be kept secret from him about me." He smirked a bit, almost bitterly. "He acted on his own will. Did you think I had no one who would care? I would have rather not seen you again."
Lowering his hands, he then moved one to pin to the side of Alexis' head, his eyes cool as he hovered over him. "Do you really have any right to speak about being a gentleman, when your act was as despicable as a conniving harlot wishing to deface a lord?" his voice was low, perhaps he didn't want the others to hear. Or perhaps, he was actually respecting the fact that he shouldn't speak in a raised tone with a man older than him. In a swift motion, his other hand came and gripped Alexis' chin and tugged his face upwards to face him directly. "But now that you are here... I'm just giving you back what you gave me, Lord Hargreaves."
The tone was much less gentle... more ferocious. It only inspired a small amount of fear, but Alexis had been good at keeping such emotions deel within him, never to be seen by the light of day. He merely maintained that flat look on his face, a portion of his lip curling upward while he moved his face away from the touch of the other's hand. No, he would not stand for any of it. The ropes at his wrists were constricting, indeed. And, it seemed it also applied to his ankles. Damnit. Alexis mentally cursed himself and his underlings - this should not have happened.
"I've no need for a paltry, tawdry courtesan," he spat out, attempting to move away from Ranmaru. No, he could not - would not - stand for this. And certainly, even though Ranmaru had a strange attraction, he had little interest, truly, in being taken by the boy. The thought made him outright scowl, and he seemed to emit an icy fury while he stared, with thin emerald shards, at the bindings that held him mostly in suspended animation. "And I've certainly... no need...." He was feeling a little wave of weakness.... like his energy was fading, being sucked out by an external force. He damned the boy before him, outright cursed him to the Devil. Surely he had something to do with it. His teeth gritted as he fought to keep down the wave of pain coursing through his body. No - he would not lose composure.
"You will find that words lose their impact when spoken from a position of weakness, Hargreaves-sama..." Ranmaru's voice was low, and he trailed his hand down to settle against the side of the other's neck. He remembered how it was that night, that neck, taut and extended, his face in the side of his own, taking full advantage of every weak spot on his upper body. It was a nightmare of pleasure, in a sense, and he simply tilted his head to a side, watching the man below him. How easy it would be to repeat those same actions onto him, to make him regret ever taking advantage of him in the way he had.
But Ranmaru wasn't Alexis Hargreaves. He was raised a noble, even though he wasn't born one, but he had enough morals of his own. The expression of pain, as subtle and small as it was, wasn't missed by him, and he looked down at him. "It would be so easy to repay you in kind, Alexis-san." he shifted to his first name now. "Had I been in control that night, of mind and body... on a normal day, you would not live." So saying, he stood up and from the stand to the head of the bed, he lifted a sword, not his regular one, but of the same make, and gently drew it out of it's sheath. Alexis would be able to see him out of the corner of his eye if he cared to do so, and calmly, Ranmaru walked back, in a swift movement like the wind, pointing the tip of the sword to the older man's neck.
"You took me for an easy, common being, willing to satisfy you." His words were icy now. "Therein lay your first mistake." The back of the blade's tip touched the other's chin. "And there is nothing stopping me from ruining your chances to return to your world forever for this insolence."
The blade felt cool underneath his chin - a deadly sort of cool, rather like a reptile. He knew well enough that, indeed, he wasn't currently in a position to properly oppose or toss about authority like cheap playing cards. No, in such an instance, it would be far better to calculate each thought, each breath, each word - survival was necessary. It was all about survival.And survival was such a deadly game - especially right now.
His breath tensed, but he remained with his facial expression of outright rejection of force. No, he would not cave in - but he certainly would not remain so stubborn as to compromise his life. A cool head was required, and all taking a firm stance would do was guarantee failure. "And you, willing to shove the blade through my body, is that it?" he replied, his voice growing only slightly weaker, even though his grimace seemed to intensify. And then a darkly amused look began to mutate his features. The chuckle, low and rich as port wine, started softly. A challenging look hardened his eyes as he defiantly looked up to his captor. "Go ahead... I'd welcome nothing less," he hissed.
His expression didn't flicker. No more than the way the other attempted to twist thing to his advantage... he'd seen it many a time in a corrupt warlord trying to buy his way through a winning attack, trying to get some time to live by some force of chance. Ranmaru smiled suddenly, a cool, expectant smile and before Alexis would see it, he would have moved. His hand on the older man's shirt, grabbing it and pushing him over, so that he could hold the sword at his neck and lift his head up, while straddling him in a way that kept him safe from any injury to his body from Alexis if he struggled.
"You're not ready for death yet. Or perhaps you are and I am prolonging it, my Lord." Ranmaru's voice was chilly now, his anger had become a sort of calm chill that was haunting in itself. "But if you welcome it, far be it from me to refuse." He moved his face down, so he could whisper into Alexis' ear from behind. "Honorable is he who dies when still in a state of beauty, Alexis-san. You do not want to be tortured, do you." The blade was then held sideways, pressing upwards without cutting, into the man's throat.
Even though the blade was pushing into his throat... even though it seemed that he was nearing the threshold of death with an even stride, Alexis didn't dare flinch or make a sound of pain. No, he wasn't afraid of near-death - the tumble off the cliffs at the estate, the poison in his mouth... it had done him a justice, in a sense. One hardened to death would hardly resist the coming. That defiant glint in his eyes remained, and he didn't waver.
"Do as you wish," he coldly responded, looking down the length of the brilliant sword that stood like a sentinel underneath his chin. No, he knew better of this boy, even if it had been a brief, chance meeting. One such as him seemed too relenting to carry through with such a dastardly act. He didn't have the look... the one someone sees in a person who would murder in cold blood. No, he knew better. Even though he didn't realise he wasn't breathing, he glared upward still. He would not be taken.
That was where Alexis was underestimating him. He had taken lives, in the near ten years he had been on the battlefield. The spray of blood and the scream of death's laughter were things not unfamiliar to the young warrior, except those were things that were earned with an honorable fight. He stayed behind the other, the blade held to the other's neck, before he stilled, and then sighed softly, moving his face to whisper in the other's ear, "I intend to. Alexis-san." And the blade was pulled.
But not across the skin of his neck, though the lash from it would indeed make one think he had done it and blood would come spilling forth, instead, Ranmaru's blade was drawn back and with a small hiss, he sliced the blade downwards through the ropes binding Alexis' wrists together and undid them, and then in yet another swift motion, he was off the man and pushing him onto his back. His feet were still bound, and Ranmaru then turned away, to set the blade aside, only to slide free an ofuda from under his wristband and press it, with index and middle finger, to Alexis' forehead, chanting a spell that would light up his vision with a white glow and a searing pain to go through his every limb. Yet it wasn't one to harm, the spell that Ranmaru used. Rather, it was a healing spell, working on fixing the internal injuries Subaru had caused.
And then the light died, with Ranmaru moving his hand away slowly while the older man was still in the sting of the healing, and moved to pick up one of the smaller towlettes. "Stay still. You still have physical injuries to be treated."
He still felt such a sting course through his body... just what had that been? A sheet of paper on his forehead, and then all he could see was white.... Even though it was dying down, the sensation of electricity running through each of his capillaries, blood vessels and veins still stung as it would have had an electrical current been run through his entire body. He hissed through gritted teeth, and yet he remained as still as he had before when Ranmaru had ordered him to. If he were going to be healed, he may as well accept it without much question. And he was there to ensure that no strange business was to be conducted in the meantime. No, unlike those many years ago, he wasn't as foolish and carefree with his body and his material possessions.
All the while, he watched Ranmaru with careful, calculating eyes. He was healing him... how curious, indeed, for such treatment to be bestowed upon what - as far as Alexis could tell - would be considered his enemy. Human nature sometimes baffled him, really... and yet, it still remained the same. Of course, to know people well was to be able to use them well. And if anyone knew of how to use people well, Alexis was one of those fortunate persons. He had yet to see if anything of this would be fruitious, but he already could see a proper use of such a situation he had found himself in. And a proper use for the boy that was tending to those wounds of his.
Ranmaru had a rather good reason for not killing him right then. Not that deaths mattered so much in The City, and he was living proof of that- alive again, due to one person's care, but the fact that death to him, was a sacred thing. Death was a blessing to end suffering, death was an entry into purity. To kill this man now would be giving him a release from all the sins he continued to do, the sins he would have the chance to rectify in jigoku after a period of penance. No, he didn't want that. Perhaps he was more than selfish, perhaps he wanted this man to continue tainting himself till the day came that his life was taken from him and he would have nothing to save him in sight.
And as a death was honorable to him, he only knew that a man like Alexis had death written in the hands of a pathetic end.
That alone was good enough to him. As he worked to clean the stains of released blood on the other's face, and then took his hands to begin to bandage his wrists where the rope cut into them, he worked in silence.
"You have two things protecting you right now, Alexis-san. The fact that you do not deserve a noble death and..." he looked up then as he began to wrap the bandages around his wrists, silver eyes looking directly into his. "... your humiliation at Subaru-san's hands pays in favor to what you did to me."
You do not deserve a noble death... Somehow, it seemed like something he had heard before, muddled by the passage of time. Of course, a noble death. The Oriental society seemed to promote honour in nearly every aspect of life. Honour in death, though... in such a mundane thing as that. Alexis had contemplated upon death a few times in his life, but he could not see how the manner of death would so dictate this "honour". It didn't matter, once one was dead. Things could be done to raise the dead... and more than a few people had been witness to such acts.
Icy green eyes watched as bandages were wound about his wrists so gingerly. The deed had been negated, then. Not that the deed itself had been a true source of worry. At least, it hadn't when information belonged solely to the two persons in the same room as of this moment. And the thought almost made Alexis wish to crush the boy's neck with his hands... like an anaconda. Gentlemanly conduct, indeed. "Only humiliation if one lets it be so, Ranmaru," he growled, pausing a moment to let a small hiss of pain out - the electrifying sensation he had felt had, apparently, not left quite yet.
Ranmaru finished tying the bandage around the other's wrist as he began to talk to him and the words made him look up. There was something about this man that put him off, severely, though unaware of his own acts of blasphemy against the dead, he only put him off as a dominating man who had always had everything he'd ever wanted, and everything to go his way.
"The dead don't choose how they die. Perhaps you're fated to die a hero. Or perhaps..." he reached down to begin to undo the knots tied on the man's feet, before pulling the cords low, off his ankles and heels and once done, massaged the area a little to restore the bloodflow, before bandaging the space as well. "You're fated to die with your face down in the mud while flies make you their new habitat. Either way... I have been avenged. I want nothing from you."
Once he was done tending to the other's feet, he cleaned up and then moved to press the moist towelette to the side of Alexis' brow, working silently. "Move your arms and see if you feel any pain." he should, a little, but on a whole, with the spell... he should be mildly better than when he was brought in.
He was so close to simply retorting that it wasn't the death that mattered so much. Death was such a transient thing, really... as transient as the tingling pain he had felt in his body moments ago. It had faded now into just a slight little prickling, rather more like sandpaper being pressed against his skin. No, it wasn't at all that bad. And he found a pleasant surprise as his arms flexed. There lingered no true pain - at least, not the kind of pain that was hard to ignore. A soreness lingered... transient.
Alexis looked over to Ranmaru once more, a coolly together stare taking in every move the other made. His words were foolish more often than not, frankly... and it begged the question of just how some sort of attraction had compelled him beforehand to seize the boy that he had met in the gardens. The whole affair, really, felt rather like a long, heavy hangover. Funny, though, that not even a drop of alcohol had touched his lips. He pushed himself up with his hands - his muscles seemed to ache, but he endured it nonetheless. "And if you want nothing, what business have I to continue to be here?" he inquired, taking a firm grip upon Ranmaru's wrist as he dabbed at his forehead.
Ranmaru stopped in his actions, fixing the older man with an icy glare before he jerked his hand away and lowered it. "Nothing anymore. While you are free to leave, the spell I have used will exhaust your body if you strain yourself. I am merely waiting for you to relax before I return you to your quarters." Still kneeling, he turned around to set the towels aside. That evening had been a mistake, and he became far too aware of their closeness now as he had been that night. After all, it had been hardly a full week since the incident even though he was certain Alexis held no more interest in him than was invoked by that curse.
"You wouldn't want to collapse in the middle of the streets walking barefoot, after all." he added, with a hint of a snarkiness to his tone as he turned to set the bowl aside. "Of course, if you wish to leave in your condition, feel free." perhaps there was a hint of sadism in the fact that Alexis was in the most unpresentable condition right now and hardly in control of the situation to help to his advantage that was making Ranmaru so bold.
Alexis grumbled to himself underneath his breath, and he internally cursed as he noted his appearance. The three-piece greenish-brown twill suit he wore was stained by blood in some parts... he was bandaged on his wrists, and his appearance in general was quite disheveled. He had been lucky, truly, that his glasses had not shattered or cracked - he found that to be an interesting development when he reached for them as they sat on a bedstand close by. And the clearer he could see, the clearer it became that, truly, he was not as well-groomed as he should be.
And once his eyes were again on Ranmaru, he stared with a flat sort of look. It seemed clearer now than before that Ranmaru was obviously male... and it made Alexis wonder, again, just what the attraction had been. Perhaps the charm had lie in how submissive he had seemed. Strangely, he wanted to see such a display once more. Slowly, deliberately, he rose to his feet and stood before Ranmaru, allowing his height to loom over the other. "And if I did collapse, it would be on your account, boy," he remarked scathingly.
As he was still kneeling to clean up the messed up towels and dumping them into the side basket, surprised that Alexis had made a motion to move but not going to stop him. If he wanted to leave, it was his own choice and he was no longer responsible for his well-being. He had what he wanted.
However, when the other spoke to him, Ranmaru didn't turn his head up, because he didn't want to face the older man. He was one of the people who could say that he had overpowered him, however improperly, but managed to do so anyway. And that fact alone made him wary of him. Standing next to the bed side table then, he put the water bowl away, and wiped his hands. "Perhaps." he replied calmly. "And the only reason I would care is because you are my senior. Or is that too, a ploy for obedience, Alexis-san?"
Obedience. The word seemed such a pleasant one on the ears, really. It gave many thoughts rise in his mind - the obedience of his own son as he tolerated his punishments, the obedience of the members of Delilah. And to have this boy's obedience, as well, was an interesting thought. He had thought the grip upon it was firm, as far as taking a simple order and running with it, but apparently it had not been. The idea enraged and yet emboldened him.
Quickly, he shoved the boy into the nearest wall, whirling him about to look him in the eye as he effectively pinned him there. He had a feeling that such an obedience was anathema to Ranmaru - he served another master, did he? It would not matter. "Obedience is best impressed upon someone until they learn what duty truly means," he replied in a low voice, looking him directly in the eye as his glasses caught the light with a small glint.
Having not expected Alexis to make any such moves at all, he was completely caught off-guard. Normally never to be caught in a predicament like this but also taking a mild sort of satisfaction in the fact that Alexis couldn't overpower him in his state, however his displeasure showed in his face. It was still too soon for him to be near anyone- and the very person who had instilled such a fear in him at all doing this right now was probably not the best idea. He was ready to lash out, and perhaps Alexis' fortune lay in the fact that he was still recovering from his fever because Ranmaru didn't plan to injure him right now. He was a foolish old man with urges to prove his dominance over everyone, and he wasn't going to get that way with Ranmaru again.
"That really is none of your business, is it?" Ranmaru's voice was mildly chilly as he quickly turned his face away from the other, looking to the side. No, no, he wasn't going to face him, and he wasn't going to show him any fear. "Release me now." he commanded, though it was obvious from the way his breathing had picked up that he was feeling great discomfort in the other man's closeness right now.
"That isn't for you to decide, is it?" he asked with a chuckle before he raised a hand to slap across the side of Ranmaru's face that still faced him. Aversion certainly wasn't the way to go about it - and even though it stung his hand a bit, Alexis knew that it was nothing compared to, perhaps, what Ranmaru felt at that moment on his cheek. Roughly, then, he turned the boy's face to look at him directly, and he took a great deal of advantage over the proximity as he moved in closer. "Now, there's no need for such impertinent remarks, you know."
Truly, Alexis's anger had been incited. He didn't outright show it - it was truly an unnecessary exhaustion of energy to do so in more evident manners. Only the stony look in his eyes betrayed him, and the weakened grip with which he held Ranmaru's chin was pure evidence of such. More or less imprisoned, his reputation compromised, his body injured and threatened of rape... he was ready to lash back. And so he would, in such ways that it would be well-published knowledge that it was unwise to trifle about with Alexis Hargreaves.
"--!!" Ranmaru felt the breath leave him at the slap-- no one, no one as long as he'd lived had dared touch him that way, and it shocked him enough to turn around to face the Lord in shock. But before he could move his hand to the stinging cheek, now turning a rosy hue, he felt something else lurch in the pit of his stomach-- the same sort of fear that had risen when Alexis had taken him that night, the realization of what was happening and what he was going to do. Being a warrior with pride had disallowed him from begging to be released, but the fear had been there-- and now, it shone for a moment in his eyes as he stared at each other, before the look turned into a glare and he shoved his arms to the other's chest to push him back, also careful not to make too much sound lest Lawr and Subaru hear him and try to come in.
"Stop this now!" he hissed, "We're even!"
Alexis seemed to seethe with a silent, cold, yet equally as deadly sort of anger. Oh, yes, he was ready to take control of the situation in the only way he could see at the moment. He never had believed he would make a good captive, and it seemed as though his suspicions had been correct. "Then it must be better the other way, correct?" He quickly took hold of the boy's entire body and pushed it onto the very bed upon which he had lie mere moments ago. Before there was a time allowance for a proper protest, Alexis hovered above the boy, his hands pushing Ranmaru's wrists into the downy covers of his bed.
"Is this better?" he inquired as one of his knees staked a claim of the covers just between Ranmaru's legs. He had done it once before - it seemed just as easy, if not more so with experience under his belt, to do it a second time. "Is this the only manner in which you can comprehend clearly?" he asked, letting his lips brush over Ranmaru's... already, he was that close to the boy, and he certainly didn't mind. There was no sexual thought in his mind... only the lust of dominion seemed to drive him to such lengths.
Startled became an understatement as Ranmaru's mind went back to that night. At the very least, then, there had been a curse as an excuse for Alexis' actions-- actions that were hardly justifiable, but understandable even if Ranmaru had been unfortunate enough to not be cursed. However now, he felt sick-- because the fear came running back, silver eyes widened in horror as he looked up at the man, pressing his lips firmly together and turning his face away, his heartbeat pounding. Not this again. Not this again.
"Get off me!! Get off me or by Bishamonten's blade, I will make you regret it!!" he was panicking, a warning sign of it's own. He writhed, attempting to loosen his hands from under the grip so he could punch him, throw him off and knock him out. But then, he jerked his face to glare piercingly into the other's eyes. "Lay your claim over this body all you want, but you will never touch my spirit. I submit to no one!!"
The glare didn't faze him. Within the range of his existence, Alexis had seen far more threatening things... and this didn't seem to register very highly within the ranks. Instead of seeming even mildly threatened, a chuckle rumbled low in his throat and an accompanying smirk matched the scorning humour he found in the situation. Ranmaru wasn't in any position to act in such a manner. Not while Alexis had the upper hand - and he knew far well that he did, for the panic the other displayed was too much to ignore. His hands coiled tighter at the boy's wrists, as though to enforce and encourage defeat.
"And yet you did, didn't you?" he mused aloud. "Interesting." And once he had a hold of Ranmaru's lip with his own mouth, a forceful bite mimicked the tone in his voice.
His expression faltered momentarily, breath catching in his throat and his cheeks beginning to burn from the closeness the other was initiating. It wasn't so much as arousal as it was embarrassment and it was amazing how, even in his state, he was attempting to force control over him. All to get him to submit? It was mind-boggling, and then his words came, searing him through the same way the pain from his bite shot through his lips, into his chest.
He didn't tug away at the risk of bruising, but he did go still, just after a short gasp escaped him, and turned his icy glare up at him, controlling himself from trembling. If he showed fear now, he would be no better than last time. However, one thing he had at hand that he hadn't had then- pride, and now, after seeing Subaru again, a reinstilled hope. It came from a weak confidence but it was confidence all the same, but mustering all the disgust he felt, he did something that was rather below his honor and spit at him, the saliva aimed to hit his face and he didn't care how or where.
"You're no less than a territorial dog." he hissed. "Consider that payment for the slap. Now get OFF."
The spit seemed to coagulate while it stuck to Alexis's face, right on the right side of his cheek. It took a moment for him to register the full physical act of it - he had been spat upon. Then the feeling of disrespect seethed through him, coursed through him like a strong vodka's false warmth. The boy below him had shown tremendous disrespect... how dare he. How dare he. An almost feral growl rumbled in his throat, and Alexis placed his hands quickly around Ranmaru's throat with almost murderous intent. Oh, he was furious.
"You're shameful," he hissed lowly, squeezing at the boy's neck with as much power as he could muster. And then the dizziness hit him forcefully. All action he had been carrying out stilled, and... the room appeared to spin, wobble around him. His grip became loose... looser with every passing second. "You're...." He couldn't hear his own voice as he collapsed atop the boy, and blackness began to fall at his eyes like heavy velvet curtains. "...shameless," he whispered as he sank further into unconsciousness.
It was easier, perhaps, to focus on what he was doing now that he'd let out his disrespect and anger at the man, though for the while he couldn't believe what he had done. While less humiliating than what Alexis had attempted to do to him, it was still a blow- and he knew that. He didn't want to give the man the satisfaction of overpowering him. Ever.
But he didn't expect what came next, and that alone stunned him into not being able to react when the other man's hands came around his neck. He had a powerful grip, he could not deny- but right now, he was certain it was hardly up to full strength in his state and the overexertion wouldn't allow him to go very far. The words, however, caused him to shiver as he moved his hands, gripping the other's to pull them off, when he noticed Alexis' loss of focus.
Not wasting a moment, Ranmaru tugged- pulling the hands off his neck, he flung the man down to his side with an added knee to the gut and with his hand free, a whispered enchantment from the onmyoujitsu he had learned, he pressed two fingers to Alexis' forehead and channeled the spell to fully knock him out.
Victory... he thought to himself, breathing heavily after he'd coughed, and once he was sure Alexis was out, he approached him to wipe his cheek, looking down at the face that seemed to belong to the peaceful visage of a resting corpse.
"If I am shameless... then you're despicable." he whispered to no one in particular. "And that is one thing I will never be." It was time for this man to leave.
This battle was just beginning... but for now, he was certain. Vengeance was complete.
And that was all that truly mattered.