Chapter Twenty-Nine
Subaru was poking around at some chicken on the stove, that he’d decided to cook when it had become clear that it was not going to cook itself. He was cooking some rice to go with it. On the whole, this was about as nutritious as he ever got when he was just cooking for himself. He glanced over as the phone rang and picked it up. “Moshi moshi.”
“Subaru-kun?” As usual when Subaru’s phone rang recently, it was Seishirou. “It’s me.”
Subaru smiled a smile that was audible over the phone. “Hello, Seishirou-san,” he said, poking the chicken around in the pan.
“I was wondering if you’d like to come out to dinner,” Seishirou said.
Subaru stared at the chicken and thought that it figured. “Normally I would love to, but I already have it half-cooked in front of me.” He paused. “You could come over. There’s enough for two.” There wasn’t, but he could make more by the time that Seishirou got there.
“Are you sure?” Seishirou asked. Ever since he and Subaru had come to their understanding, he seemed to be mortally afraid of offending the other man. It was as if, now that he had accepted he loved Subaru, and wanted him, he had also accepted the fact that he needed him.
“Of course I’m sure,” Subaru said with a laugh, and walked over to the fridge to beat a second serving out of it.
“All right,” Seishirou said. “I’ll be over soon.”
He was over soon indeed. Subaru was beginning to wonder about the safety of his driving when the doorbell rang. He let Seishirou in and gave him a quick kiss.
“What are you cooking?” Seishirou asked, before turning it into a much longer kiss.
“Teriyaki chicken and rice,” Subaru said, when Seishirou came up for air.
“Sounds good.” Seishirou seemed quite happy where he was, pinning Subaru up against the wall. After he was finally done kissing Subaru, he paused to take off his shoes and coat, then kissed him again.
“It’s going to burn,” Subaru told him, squirming out of his grip.
Seishirou looked disappointed, but wasn’t particularly fond of burned food, so he let Subaru go. Then followed him into the kitchen and proceeded to ‘distract’ him while he was cooking.
They sat and ate and had a surprisingly mundane evening. It was probably the first time they had done so in nearly ten years, and both of them enjoyed it thoroughly. Seishirou was actually rather surprised at how much he enjoyed the simple fact of Subaru’s company. He didn’t want to leave after dinner, nor did he want to go back to his own apartment. Seimei didn’t pry, but his very presence made him act differently. He loved Seimei dearly, but, well, privacy was privacy.
Subaru suggested a movie, and Seishirou hastened to agree. Since Subaru only had one chair in his main room, he suggested they go into the bedroom. Seishirou suppressed all his lecherous comments, and was quick to agree to this plan.
He looked suspiciously at the bed. Subaru laughed at him. “The bed doesn’t bite,” he said.
Seishirou leaned over and said, right into his ear, “No, but I might.”
“That might be nice,” Subaru said, with a demure smile.
Seishirou laughed and flopped onto the bed.
Subaru settled next to him with the remote, and started the movie. He snuggled right into Seishirou’s arms. Later, Seishirou was never able to recall much of the movie. He spent most of it staring in fascination at the beautiful man he was holding. He still couldn’t quite get over the fact that Subaru was his, and loved him, and wouldn’t leave him. He still didn’t think he deserved it, but he no longer denied the fact that he wanted it.
So he lay there and held Subaru, and thought only about the fact that he was with Subaru, one of his arms draped loosely over Subaru’s waist, his fingers laced through the Sumeragi’s.
Halfway through the movie, he found that his arm was falling asleep. He sat up, leaning against the wall, with Subaru draped across his lap. It was quite comfortable. The rest of the movie seemed altogether too short. “So . . .” he said, wondering if Subaru was going to make him leave.
“Yes?” Subaru asked, sitting up and moving so he was sitting in Seishirou’s lap, with his legs to one side. He thought Seishirou’s obvious nervousness was rather endearing.
Seishirou gave up and kissed him, but kept the kiss gentle. It was Subaru that deepened it, lifting one hand and running it through Seishirou’s hair. Seishirou wrapped an arm around his waist. There was a brief pause as they pulled away to catch their breath, but no words were spoken. They just kissed again, more hungrily this time. Seishirou was definitely the one in charge, but he didn’t move beyond kissing, waiting for some silent signal of permission.
Subaru did, though it was tentative, sliding one hand underneath Seishirou’s sweater to rest at his waist. He didn’t go under the T-shirt underneath, but it was a definite sign that he wanted to go further. Seishirou’s hands wandered slowly up Subaru’s back, taking his time and staying outside Subaru’s clothes.
Subaru pulled away for air, then began to kiss hesitantly at Seishirou’s neck. He really had no idea what he was doing, but was acting entirely on instinct. Seishirou captured his lips again, nibbling on Subaru’s lower lip and working his hands under the T-shirt in back. Subaru mirrored his actions in the front, hoping to hell that Seishirou didn’t notice he was just copying him.
Seishirou didn’t. He started to push Subaru back onto the bed, very slowly, giving Subaru time to escape if he was so minded. Subaru was willing, though shy, but he made sure that Seishirou came with him, by locking his arms around Seishirou’s neck.
Seishirou lowered himself carefully next to Subaru, and propped himself on one elbow. He did nothing for a long minute, his hand idly tracing a pattern on Subaru’s chest and staring down at the younger man.
“Am I that enthralling?” Subaru asked. He was sprawled out quite nicely, though totally by accident.
“Yes,” Seishirou said with a smile. “Quite.”
“Ah,” Subaru said, not seeing much else he could say and not really feeling like talking anyway. He wrapped his arms around Seishirou and pulled him down for another kiss.
Seishirou took this as permission to basically do whatever he wanted. He pulled away from the kiss to nibble Subaru’s throat, his hands again tracing over Subaru’s chest, but this time without the layer of cloth between them. “Are you sure about this?” he murmured, wanting to double check.
Subaru blinked. “Yes,” he decided. Then he paused. “Aren’t you?” He was wondering if he’d done something wrong, or somehow spoiled the mood.
“Of course I am.” Seishirou kissed his forehead with surprising gentleness. “I just didn’t want to go too fast for you.”
“You weren’t,” Subaru said, kissing him on the lips. In truth, part of the reason he had delayed this was because he wanted to be sure Seishirou was going to stick around this time. He’d been fooled too often to take his presence for granted. Now that he was sure, he was more than ready; one wasn’t a twenty-five year old virgin without being frustrated.
Seishirou kissed him back, running his hands through Subaru’s hair, not pulling. Subaru just smiled, trailing one hand up Seishirou’s back. Seishirou pulled him upright long enough to pull his T-shirt over his head, mussing his hair. It had gotten somewhat longer lately, and now was totally in his face. Seishirou laughed and brushed it out of the way, then kissed Subaru’s nose before pushing him down again.
Subaru also laughed, knowing that Seishirou wasn’t really laughing at him, tugging on Seishirou’s sweater. “I feel a little silly,” he confessed. “I have no idea what I’m doing.”
Seishirou trailed his finger over Subaru’s bare chest. “You don’t need to know, really,” he said, as Subaru shivered, obviously enjoying the touch. “Just do whatever you feel like.” His fingers traced over Subaru’s stomach.
Subaru took this to heart, tugging on Seishirou’s sweater. The T-shirt pulled with it, a victim of static electricity, but he managed to get them both off with relatively little effort. Seishirou lifted his arms long enough to let it happen, then went back to caressing Subaru’s chest and stomach, his touch so light that it was barely felt. He seemed intent on finding every sensitive spot on Subaru’s body.
Subaru pulled him down and nibbled on his ear, figuring that he at least knew that much about sex. His breathing sped up slightly as he felt Seishirou’s fingers dip just barely underneath the waistline of his pants. He ran his fingers up Seishirou’s spine in retaliation.
Seishirou shivered. “You know, for someone with no idea what they’re doing, you’re surprisingly good at this,” he mentioned, kissing his way down Subaru’s neck.
“Oh,” was about all Subaru could manage, tipping his head back to give Seishirou more access as Seishirou nipped at his collarbone. He slid his hands underneath Seishirou’s pants, though not far underneath, to rest on his hips. Seishirou recognized that he was trying to be daring and fought the urge to either laugh or make a comment.
He only suppressed that urge by deciding it was high time they moved onto more serious matters anyway. It was a distinctly odd feeling to want, more than anything, this to be good for Subaru. Usually, when he had sex, it was a one-night stand or someone from a Soapland, and he thought only about how much enjoyment he could get from it. But with Subaru, for some reason, his pleasure seemed far more important. Not that he wasn’t enjoying himself; he was. Subaru’s shy touch was somehow enough to set his skin on fire.
He lowered his lips to Subaru’s chest, raining down kisses and the occasional nip, listening to the quiet noises Subaru tried to choke back and noting what he seemed to like best. Sex got better with time; he was well aware of that. And the reason it got better in time was because partners memorized each others’ bodies; they knew what they liked and what was only okay. He personally planned on memorizing Subaru’s body as early as possible. Subaru’s hands tightened on his hips, his fingers digging in. He didn’t mind.
Seishirou’s hand trailed down Subaru’s chest and just barely brushed over the front of his pants. He was slightly afraid, even after all the signs Subaru had given of his willingness to continue, that he might get punched. Subaru squirmed, but not as if he was trying to get away. If anything, he seemed to be squirming closer to Seishirou.
Seishirou smiled a little, experimentally pressing down a little harder. Subaru didn’t even bother to hold back his gasp. He had no idea what to do. His brain was breaking. Seishirou, meanwhile, thought it was extremely amusing that he hadn’t even needed to remove Subaru’s pants to get such a positive reaction. He rubbed his hand lightly over the area, stroking Subaru through his pants and going back to lick at his chest, at the sensitive areas he had earlier noticed. He was wondering vaguely if he’d be able to make Subaru come in his pants, and if he should try. Probably not. Of course, the fact that Subaru was clawing at his back was sort of a sign that he might want to back off slightly. Either that or live with scars.
He undid the button and zipper of Subaru’s pants, letting Subaru pull him down for a kiss. Subaru seemed quite content with this, tangling one hand in Seishirou’s hair and very definitely working the other down Seishirou’s pants.
Seishirou smirked. Subaru finally seemed to be getting the hang of this. He pushed Subaru’s pants and underwear down; Subaru lifted himself up to make it easier, and managed to kick them away. He decided it was high time he did the same to Seishirou, though the older man seemed quite happy to have them on, given that Subaru’s hands were between him and them.
“You’re so forward, Subaru-kun,” he said with a grin, as Subaru began the effort to rid him of his pants.
“Don’t be mean,” Subaru said, shoving them down.
“I never said I didn’t like it,” Seishirou said, licking at Subaru’s throat.
“Right.” Subaru shoved the pants down without looking at what was underneath them. Seishirou closed his hands over Subaru’s and helped him get them off. Subaru waited until his hands were free, then ran them up and down the length of Seishirou’s body, exploring. He twisted one hand in Seishirou’s hair and pulled him down for a forceful kiss.
Seishirou relaxed into it, letting Subaru momentarily take control. “Would you like to be on top?” he asked, his tone light and joking.
“I’m okay here.” Subaru tipped Seishirou’s head back to nip at Seishirou’s throat and shoulder.
“Just checking.” Seishirou’s hands wandered downward, now very carefully avoiding the more sensitive areas.
Subaru didn’t seem too fond of this. He rubbed up against the older man in a direct effort to get him to hurry up.
“Impatient, Subaru-kun?” Seishirou asked, amused.
“Maybe a little,” Subaru admitted.
Seishirou laughed and got down to business, stroking Subaru gently. Subaru squirmed desperately and tried not to whimper. Seishirou fumbled around on the bedside table for a minute, then remembered that he wasn’t at home and let out a rather potent curse without thinking about it.
“What’s wrong?” Subaru asked, not liking the sound of that.
“Uh, I don’t have any . . .” Seishirou had no idea how knowledgeable Subaru was on this subject, and didn’t care. “Any lube.”
Blink, pause. “Ah.”
“Have anything?”
“There’s some hand cream in the bathroom. Will that work?”
“Yeah.” Seishirou got up to retrieve it, mostly because he thought Subaru might pass out if he had to walk naked across the bedroom. Not that he seemed to have any problems with admiring the view of Seishirou doing the same.
He came back quickly, getting back onto the bed. “I love you,” he said, and kissed Subaru before he could reply, knowing the reply and for once not needing to hear it. He didn’t hurry, though Subaru’s fingers again clawing at his back made him think that the Sumeragi was more than a little impatient.
He obliged him, after a few more minutes of torture, entering him slowly and carefully. Subaru let out a gasping moan, closing his eyes tightly. Seishirou tried to avoid hurting him, though he knew there was no way around it, but he gave Subaru time to adjust before he started to move against him.
It was the strangest feeling he’d ever had. Being with Subaru was like . . . belonging. Like he’d finally found where he was supposed to be. He could only wonder if Subaru felt it too. If nothing else, the Sumeragi seemed to be enjoying himself thoroughly, if one were to judge by the volume of his cries.
He dragged it out as long as he could, but eventually Subaru couldn’t hold on any longer. Seishirou managed to choke back his own cry, though he was unsure of why he did so, and let himself fall on top of Subaru.
There were several long minutes before either of them spoke. “I love you,” Seishirou finally murmured.
“That’s good,” Subaru replied with a smile. “I love you too.”
Seishirou lifted himself slightly and moved over, so Subaru could breathe. He lay down on his side and draped an arm over Subaru’s stomach. “Can I stay here tonight?” he asked, leaning over to kiss Subaru’s cheek.
“You thought I was going to let you leave?” Subaru raised an eyebrow at him.
Seishirou didn’t reply. He just sighed contentedly and snuggled closer. Then his eyes opened. “Oh, hell. I’d better call Seimei. Tell me there’s a phone in here.”
Subaru flailed in the direction of the bedside table, then picked up the phone and handed it to Seishirou, who dialed. “Hi, Sei-kun . . . I’m still at Subaru-kun’s. . . . I won’t be home tonight . . . I know I still have to take you to school. Will you be okay on your own? . . . okay . . . see you tomorrow morning then . . . night.” He hung up the phone and burrowed underneath the blankets.
“You’re going to make me set the alarm, aren’t you,” Subaru said. “That, more than anything else, is a sign of your evilness.”
Seishirou rolled his eyes. “I think Sei-kun might be a bit put out if I never showed up tomorrow morning.”
“Oh, fine.” Subaru rolled over and turned the alarm clock on. “This is a sign of true love, you know.”
“Really?” Seishirou yawned. “That’s good.”
~~~~
Subaru hadn’t exactly moved into Seishirou’s, but after a couple weeks had passed, it had gotten to the point where he spent the majority of nights there. Most of his belongings were still at his apartment, and he still occasionally spent the night with Kamui and the rest of the Seals. But for all intents and purposes, Subaru was living at Seishirou’s.
He had discovered quickly that Seishirou wasn’t big on cooking. His idea of a good meal was one that could be delivered in ten minutes or less. Subaru liked to cook, and Seishirou liked to eat real food, so Subaru had taken to cooking the meals.
“Is Seishirou-san going to be home soon?” he asked Seimei, who was sitting at the kitchen table doing his homework.
“Pretty soon, I think,” Seimei said absently. Seishirou and Chimori had gone out for coffee; they were expecting him home soon.
Subaru was opening cupboards and shutting them, looking somewhat distressed. “Where does Seishirou-san keep the extra flour?”
Seimei glanced up and saw the cupboard that Subaru was peering into. “It should be in there. Isn’t there any?”
“No, I think he must be out.” Subaru glared at the cupboard. “Only Seishirou-san would run out of something like flour.”
“You use that phrase with him a lot, don’t you,” Seimei remarked. He closed his textbook and stood up. “I’ll run down to the store and buy some. It’s only a couple blocks away.”
Subaru glanced at him. “You sure?”
“Yeah, I’ll take Jack. He needs a walk anyway.”
“Okay.” Subaru turned back to what he was doing as Seimei left the apartment. He finished chopping the vegetables and started boiling water to cook the noodles in, and hadn’t really realized how much time had gone by when the door opened and Seishirou came in. “Konban wa,” he said, looking up.
Seishirou leaned over the table and gave him a quick kiss. “Konban wa. Where’s Sei-kun?”
“He ran down to the corner store to get some flour because you don’t know how to keep a well-stocked kitchen,” Subaru told him, and frowned slightly. “How far is the store, anyway?”
“Only about a block and a half. Five minute walk, no more. Why? When did he leave?” Seishirou had toed off his shoes and was now taking off his coat, looking at Subaru questioningly.
“About twenty minutes, but he said he was taking Jack for a walk, too,” Subaru replied.
Seishirou considered this. “He already took Jack for a walk earlier, so he probably wouldn’t have taken him on much of a walk now,” he said thoughtfully.
“Do you want to go look for him?” Subaru asked, reaching to turn the burner off.
“One second.” Seishirou turned inward. ::Have you talked to Sei-kun lately? In the past twenty minutes or so?::
::No,:: the Tree replied. ::Did you need him for something? I could get him for you.::
::Please do. Tell him I’m home and he needs to get his ass back here because he’s worrying me.::
::Gotcha.::
There was a pause. A long one, during which Seishirou shifted uneasily from foot to foot. He had expected the Tree to make fun of him, but he supposed it was trying to not squash his paternal instinct. ::What’s taking so long?:: he finally snapped.
::I’m not sure. He’s not answering me.::
::What? Why not?::
::I don’t know. Because he’s not. Most obvious answer is because he can’t. I don’t think there’s any reason he would be specifically ignoring me.::
“Oh . . . dear,” Seishirou finally managed to say.
“Oh dear?” Subaru asked. “That doesn’t sound good.”
“The Tree can’t reach Sei-kun. Do you know if he took his cell phone?”
“He didn’t say either way.”
Seishirou went to the phone and dialed a number. A few seconds later they heard a shrill ringing from the direction of Seimei’s room. Seishirou hung up and got his coat. “Come on. Let’s just drive to the store and see if we can track him down.”
“Okay.” Subaru turned off the burner over which he was boiling water and followed Seishirou down to his car. They had only driven about a minute before they saw a crowd of people. Seishirou breathed a soft curse and pulled over. Both of them got out and hurried up to the bystanders.
“What’s going on?” Seishirou asked, trying to push his way through.
“A dog got hit by a car,” one of the people told him, just as he managed to get through and see Jack try to take off someone’s hand.
“Jack,” he said sharply. “Don’t bite.”
Jack stopped and whined softly in the back of his throat.
“Where’s Seimei?” he asked, kneeling beside him and looking the dog over. It had been hurt badly, that much was obvious, but Seishirou knew from his experience that it wasn’t the kind of wound a car would have caused. The fur was singed, like it had been burned.
Jack tried to get up.
“No, stay still,” Seishirou instructed. “Sei-kun’s gone? I’m talking to a dog. This is sad.” He stood up and looked around. He knew it probably wasn’t a good idea to try to move the dog, but it needed medical attention. “Shit shit shit shit fuck.”
Subaru tried to be the voice of reason. “Take the dog to a vet and ask the Tree if it can find Seimei.”
“He can’t find Sei-kun if he’s unconscious,” Seishirou said, his voice surprisingly steady. “It doesn’t work like that.”
“Send your Shiki out,” Subaru suggested.
Seishirou stared at him. “I can’t think.”
“That’s okay. That’s why I’m doing it for you.”
Seishirou lifted his arm slightly and sent his hawk winging off into the sky. Fortunately, the crowd didn’t notice; Shiki weren’t visible to most human eyes. Seishirou very carefully picked up Jack, with Subaru’s help, and put him in the backseat of the car. He debated between taking the dog to his apartment or to a vet, but didn’t figure he could fit Jack in the elevator, at least not easily, so he went with a vet.
By the time that was finished, his Shiki had covered all of Tokyo, and had seen neither hide nor hair of Seimei.
They left Jack sedated in the vet’s office and went back out to the car. Seishirou thudded into his seat. “Now what?” he asked. “My Shiki didn’t see any sign of him.”
“Well, we could do the obvious and call the police,” Subaru suggested. “Though I’m not sure how much help it’ll be.”
“I very much doubt any,” Seishirou said. “What does the police do when they get magical cases? They call you. You’re already here. I don’t need them.”
“Let’s go to your family.”
“All right.” Seishirou turned on the car. “I don’t know how well Meiri will take it. She’ll probably be thrilled beyond all reason, but what the hell.”
“I didn’t get the impression that the rest of your relatives would like it very much.”
Seishirou shrugged. “She’s Clan Head. What she says goes.”
“I really don’t think it works like that,” Subaru said thoughtfully. “I’m Clan Head and my grandmother still pushes me around.”
Seishirou rolled his eyes. “Well, not only is Meiri Clan Head, but she’s the eldest, too. Well, I think so, if she isn’t then one of my other two grandparents is. It doesn’t really matter.”
“They’ll want to help you,” Subaru assured him.
“Right.”
::Seishirou? Sumeragi?::
Subaru jumped. The Tree had never spoken directly to him before. In fact, he’d been unaware of the fact that it could.
::What?:: Seishirou asked impatiently.
::Seimei is awake.::
“Well?” Seishirou demanded, too flustered to focus enough to speak mentally. “Where is he?”
::He doesn’t know, so I don’t know.::
Seishirou hesitated. “It is . . . it is Muraki, isn’t it?”
::Unfortunately, yes. They can’t be too far, Seishirou. Seimei was unconscious for less than a half an hour, and that was enough to get them to their destination.::
“Then why couldn’t my Shiki find him?” Seishirou snapped.
::Duh. Because wards are up.::
Seishirou ground his teeth in frustration. “I don’t suppose Sei-kun’s in any sort of position to take them down for me, is he.”
::No.::
Seishirou let loose on a string of invectives that Subaru had never even heard before.
“Can you get the family moving before we get there?” Subaru asked, glancing at the clock.
::Unfortunately no,:: the Tree said. ::I can only speak with either my guardian or people who are exceptionally close to him. I might be able to get a message through to Senichi because his magic is so strong, but it would be garbled and unclear. He wouldn’t figure it out until you’d gotten there anyway.::
“What’s their phone number?” Subaru asked. “I brought my cell.”
Blank silence greeted him.
“Right,” Subaru said, and put the phone down in defeat.
“Sei-kun always called them,” Seishirou said quietly.
More silence.
::I’ve got to go. I think Seimei could use my assistance.::
“Oh, that’s just fucking great,” Seishirou muttered, knowing that he was speaking to nobody.
~~~~
Seimei was not very pleased with his current situation. He had awoken to a burning pain in his wrists and shoulders. He glanced above himself and realized he was suspending from some unknown point in the ceiling by his wrists. He was handcuffed, which at least meant that he still had circulation to his hands. But his shoulders were throbbing from the strain already and he had a vague feeling that he’d only been there for about fifteen minutes. He could see a small window, and there was light coming through it. Not much; it was still dusk.
He remembered very little about what had happened. He had seen light out of the corner of his eye, and then Jack had fallen. He hadn’t even had time to get a panicked message to the Tree before he’d seen another burst of light and he’d passed out.
His feet were dangling, just barely touching the ground. Enough that he could support some of his weight, but not all. He was neither gagged nor blindfolded; that was a plus. But he had no concept of where he was. The best approximation he could give was someone’s basement. Really, Muraki wasn’t even original when he was evil.
This was not good.
::Tree-san?::
::Oh, good, you’re awake. Seishirou is worrying himself into a panic right about now.::
::I’m not sure it’s good,:: Seimei said. ::Just tell him to stop panicking and start finding me.::
::Any idea where you are?::
::A basement, I think.::
::I meant geographically.::
::In that case, no. Is Jack still alive?::
::Yeah, Seishirou took him to a vet. Listen, we can’t find you. Seishirou sent his Shiki but there are wards up around wherever you are, so it’s going to take him a while. He’s going to get help from the rest of the family.::
::Um,:: Seimei said. ::I think Meiri wants me dead.::
::I think Meiri will get over herself or Seishirou will kill her,:: the Tree replied. ::How’re you holding out?::
::I don’t see Muraki, so pretty good.::
::Are you even sure it’s Muraki?::
::Who else would kidnap me and suspend me from my wrists in a basement?:: Seimei asked, losing a bit of his patience from panic.
::Good point. I’m going to talk to Seishirou for a bit. If you need me, call me.::
::Right.:: Seimei began to try to free himself. His hands were too big to squirm out of the cuffs, and whatever they were suspended from was too strong to break. A few minutes and bleeding wrists later, he gave up. He was in the midst of trying to break his own thumb when Muraki walked in.
“There’s really no way to get out of them,” he said conversationally, taking off his glasses and hanging them on his suitcoat pocket. He had taken off his long white coat and tossed it over the back of a chair; the only other piece of furniture in the room.
“Are you implying that I shouldn’t try to escape?” Seimei asked. He was determined to act very cool and calm, so Muraki wouldn’t realize he was panicking.
Muraki shrugged. “Make of it what you will,” he said, taking a few steps closer. “Do you know why you’re here?”
Seimei began to wonder if he swung back and forth enough, if he’d be able to kick him. “No,” he said. He wanted to say ‘because you’re a perverted weirdo,’ but wanted neither to piss the man off nor give him ideas.
“It’s very simple, really,” Muraki said. “I didn’t appreciate being shot. Or having my heart ripped out. But I don’t want to go up against Seishirou again, so I’ll hurt him by hurting you. Sound fair?”
“Not at all,” Seimei said.
“Good,” Muraki replied. “That’s what I was hoping you’d say.”
Seimei said nothing.
“Do your shoulders hurt?”
“No,” Seimei lied.
Muraki raised an eyebrow. “If you’re not lying, which I doubt, don’t worry. They’ll start to very shortly. I was going to offer some words of comfort, though; I won’t leave you hanging like that for long.”
“I think I’m okay where I am,” Seimei said coolly.
Muraki took a few more steps forward, reaching out to caress Seimei’s face. “But I can hardly have any fun with you up there.”
Seimei bent his knees and swung forward, managing to kick Muraki in the shins. He stumbled back, but only slightly, and stood looking impassively at Seimei. He seemed to be pondering the situation. Then he waved briefly. Seimei felt whatever was tying him loosen slightly, letting him drop down a few inches so his feet were on solid ground. Immediately, the aching in his shoulders lessened. He managed to stay on his feet, and was somewhat disconcerted a minute later when he found they seemed to be glued to the ground. He couldn’t move at all from the waist down, and from the waist up he could only struggle uselessly.
He stopped moving, trying to conserve his energy. Then his eyes widened as Muraki took a knife out of his suit pocket. “Yours, I believe?” Muraki asked. “Did I make you paranoid, Seimei?”
“Just a little.”
Muraki was turning it in his hand, apparently getting a feel for it. “It’s a very good knife,” he remarked offhandedly.
Seimei said nothing. For now, that seemed to be the best course of action. Well, that and struggling against the spell that was holding him captive.
“Is it one of those that’s advertised to be able to cut through anything?” Muraki asked, as if they were having this conversation over tea.
“No,” Seimei said.
“What about . . . fabric?” Muraki asked with an innocent smile. “Can it cut through fabric?”
Seimei didn’t even bother.
“Well, let’s find out.” Muraki held the knife at Seimei’s throat, then slid it under his shirt and made a jagged cut down the center of it. The knife parted the cloth easily, leaving it gaping open.
::Um, Tree-san? Little moral support please? Can you zap by remote?::
There was a pause. ::Hold on.::
Muraki pocketed the knife and pulled the remains of Seimei’s shirt off. Thankfully, he didn’t get any further than that, because a voice interrupted, “Excuse me. Not to interrupt . . .”
Muraki turned and frowned at the figure that was standing about ten feet away. No one should have been able to get through the wards and get in, at least, not without his knowledge. “And you are . . .?” he asked.
“The owner of that knife,” the Tree said, and the knife cut its way through Muraki’s pocket and flew to its hand. “See? It likes me.” The Tree was smiling, but its eyes were glowing pink with anger.
Muraki considered. “I know what you are,” he finally said. “You’re an illusion. You can’t really hurt me.”
“The funny thing about illusions,” the Tree said casually, “is that they can be good enough to kill. If someone’s heart stops in an illusion, it will stop in real life. It’s the power of suggestion, you see. If you believe that you’re dying, you will.”
“But I know it’s an illusion, so I won’t believe it,” Muraki said coldly. “Your little parlor tricks won’t help you here.”
The Tree smiled. It was quite possibly the scariest thing Seimei had ever seen.
“How are you holding the knife?” Muraki asked curiously.
“Telekinesis,” the Tree said, still smiling. It didn’t bother to explain further. But it did twitch its fingers in Seimei’s direction, and Seimei felt the cuffs loosen. Abruptly, he was on the floor. He knew that the Tree couldn’t do very much telekinesis unless it expended enormous amounts of energy, the way it had to get Seishirou home after Rainbow Bridge. He also knew that the Tree wouldn’t want to expend large amounts of energy if it didn’t have to, because it was the only link Seimei and Seishirou had. If it was forced to rest, to ‘sleep’, then contact would be severed.
“Did you know,” the Tree said casually, still smiling brilliantly, “that only rudimentary knowledge of telekinesis is necessary to kill someone? Just a little . . . twitch . . . and you can stop someone’s heart in their chest for up to a full minute at a time. Amateurs can do this. Children have been known to accidentally do it to parents or siblings during a tantrum. Doesn’t that interest you?”
Muraki looked at him. “If you were going to kill me, you would have done so already. You obviously have no intentions of doing it.”
“Correct,” the Tree said, “and I’ll tell you why.” It walked up to Muraki, going nose to nose with him. “If I kill you, I don’t get to devour your soul and all the power that goes along with it. I want Seishirou to kill you. I want to feed on you and make your power mine.”
Muraki said nothing.
“So I’m not going to kill you,” the Tree said. “Unless you hurt Seimei. If you do, all bets are off. Power like yours doesn’t come around every day, but I don’t need it. I just want it. And I’ll kill you if you touch him again.”
“I reserve the right to take steps to ensure he doesn’t escape.”
“I’m sure the door has a lock,” the Tree said, its voice dripping sarcasm.
Muraki leaned over and picked up the handcuffs. Then he shook his head and dropped them, reaching up to the rope they’d been fastened to. It was attached to the rafters at the other end, but a few sharp tugs brought it down. Seimei assumed he was using some magic to do it, because it wouldn’t have held his weight if it wasn’t properly secured.
“Sit,” Muraki said, motioning to the chair.
Seimei just shook his head. He didn’t like the idea. Even if the Tree killed Muraki, he would just come back, and perhaps before Seishirou managed to find him.
“I won’t hurt you,” Muraki said sharply. “Sit.”
Seimei looked at the Tree.
The Tree smiled again. “He won’t hurt you. Sit down, you’ll be tied up for a bit, and then Seishirou will kill him, the Sumeragi will trace his soul to the phylactery, and we’ll come up with a nice pretty way to use that to destroy him, totally and utterly, for my dinner and your amusement. Okay?”
Seimei still didn’t answer, but he slowly sat down in the chair. Muraki reached out with the rope, but the Tree walked over and snatched it out of his hands. He tied Seimei loosely enough so he could still move a little, but not enough slack to squirm free. “We’ll be back soon,” he said to Seimei, and then turned to Muraki. “Remember what I said,” he reminded him, and disappeared, leaving the lingering scent of sakura. The knife fell to the floor with a clatter.
“You know,” Muraki said, after a long moment, “that rather defeats my purpose. The point was to hurt you, after all.”
Seimei just looked at him.
“I suppose I’ll just have to kill your father instead,” Muraki said with a shrug, and walked out of the room.
~~~~
Seishirou didn’t ask to see Meiri. He didn’t even demand to see Meiri. He just shoved the door guard aside and went into the room where she was in the middle of eating dinner. Senichi was there with her; it seemed to be some sort of conference. Seishirou figured it was probably about him. They both looked up, startled, as he walked in. Subaru breezed in behind him, trying to look both like he had the right to be there, and was not trying to interrupt.
Meiri bristled, but Senichi spoke over her before she could say anything. “Ah, Seishirou-san . . . what brings you here?”
Seishirou wasted no time on formalities or pleasantries. “Muraki has Seimei and I need your help.”
Meiri let out a loud, harsh laugh.
Seishirou ignored her. “I don’t know where he is, and he’s got wards up blocking my Shiki, so I can’t find him and -- ”
Both Subaru’s hand on his shoulder and Senichi’s voice stopped his panicked tirade. “Stop, and calm down,” Senichi said. He stood up and handed Seishirou a mug of tea. “Who is Muraki?”
Seishirou gulped back the mug of tea and then lit a cigarette. After a long drag, he explained his involvement with Muraki and the basics of the situation that the Tree had revealed. “That’s where it stands now.” He checked his watch. “It’s been almost an hour and a half. The Tree says that Muraki won’t hurt him, but I don’t trust him.”
“So are we talking a manual search?” Senichi asked, frowning. “Or do you want to try to break through his wards?”
“I don’t even know where his wards are, so I don’t think it’s possible,” Seishirou said. “If we start from where Seimei was kidnapped, we have a half hour radius to work from. That’s assuming that Muraki didn’t employ the use of any supernatural type of travel, but even if he can teleport, I don’t think he could teleport an unconscious person with him.”
“All right.” Senichi pinched his lower lip thoughtfully. “This is more Kaiji-nii’s type of thing than mine. I’ll give him a call if you -- ”
“You’ll do no such thing,” Meiri interrupted sharply. “Sit down and finish your dinner.”
Senichi turned to her. “Meiri-sama,” he said stiffly, “whether you like it or not, Seimei-kun is a member of this family, and as such demands our protection. As is Seishirou-san a member, and when he asks for help, it will be given.”
“Neither of them are members of the family,” Meiri said venomously. “Not after what that child said to me.”
Seishirou looked blank. “What? What did Sei-kun say to you?”
“He came in here to demand -- demand of me -- that I treat you better.” Meiri’s lip curled. “That I give you a place in the family. He had no right to say any of the things he said. He is no longer a member of this family, and he does not claim protection here.”
Seishirou started forward. Subaru grabbed the back of his shirt and dragged him backwards before Seishirou could attempt to murder his grandmother.
“Kaasan,” Senichi said softly. “You wouldn’t.”
“I would and I have,” she snapped.
Subaru stepped forward. “Seimei may not rate your protection,” he said, the picture of politeness, “but I think he rates ours.” He raised an eyebrow at the woman. “You don’t want to get the Sumeragi Clan involved . . . now would you?”
Meiri glared daggers at him. “If you want to go around turning over stones looking for that childish bastard, be my guest. You can haul your whole clan out, Sumeragi. Don’t think I don’t know who you are.” She sneered at Subaru.
“If you know who I am, then don’t I rate a little more respect, as your equal?” Subaru asked.
“Respect should not be given blindly due to rank,” she snapped back.
“You know, you’re right,” Subaru said, and smiled. He figured the rest of that statement was fairly obvious.
Meiri turned to Seishirou. “Aren’t you the winner today? You raised an insulting bastard and you’re sleeping with one too.”
“Kaasan!” Senichi interjected sharply. “Shut the hell up.”
Meiri stopped, shocked.