Gravitation Fan Fiction ❯ Captivation (formerly The Spoils of War) ❯ Chapter Seven: Death and a Dinner Party Part I ( Chapter 7 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: BakaYasha 
Anime/Manga: Gravitation Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Fantasy / Hentai / Drama / Sci-fi | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 07.03.2011 | Updated On: 07.03.2011 | Pages: 3 | Words: 7.6K | Visits: 240 | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: Gravitation Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Fantasy / Hentai / Drama / Sci-fi | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 07.03.2011 | Updated On: 07.03.2011 | Pages: 3 | Words: 7.6K | Visits: 240 | Status: Work In Progress
Night fell quickly on Shuichi’s pairing day and for the second time since the boy’s arrival Hiro was roused by a flashing alert beacon. Groggily he shifted Shu out of his arms and sat up. With one arm stretched behind his neck he flicked his hand in front of his forehead to bring up the holo-screen. The alert flaring to life quickly thereafter cast an eerie green glow over the pitch black room.
He frowned when his elliptical pupils readjusted to the invasive light and managed to focus on the screen. An all too familiar pair of symmetrically posed cloudfins were emblazoned beside a message labelled ‘URGENT!’.
One was blue outlined in white, the other white outlined in blue; their claws interlocked, with wings unfurled dramatically behind them. It was the Attendant Academy’s insignia and it meant that the message had to be coming from his second in command, Miaukis; the attendant currently filling the role of headmaster in Hiro’s absence.
The well-meaning youth worried ceaselessly over things that really weren’t important and although Hiro knew he was just overly concerned with not failing in his duties, it did not make dealing with his messages each day any more enjoyable. What was the point of having a replacement around to manage things while he was gone, if said replacement relied on him to make even the most insignificant of decisions regardless?
Wiping sleep from his eyes and groaning quietly in frustration, he wondered what horrendous disaster was plaguing the academy now.
Were the simulation training rooms running dangerously low on green irrithmium crystals again?
Had the strict morning meal schedule fallen into chaos because the cooks hadn’t ordered enough cloudfin eggs?
After checking the time to confirm his suspicions (it was indeed the middle of the night), Hiro uttered a select string of Lutarian curse words and decided that whatever Miaukis was fretting about could wait until morning.
As he repositioned himself under the blankets Shuichi resumed his snuggled position against his chest; his much smaller hands gently stroked the velvet softness of Hiro’s micro-thin coat of fur. The boy often did this unconsciously as he was sleeping and Hiro found it especially endearing.
His fur, and likewise the fur of all attendants, happened to be a source of disconcertion for breeding facilities across the galaxy. The fur created conduction issues between the skin and the several thousand monitors and transfusion implants attached during gestation inside the breeding orbs. These issues frequently resulted in defects that lead to fetal expiration. Some of the faulty young survived the birthing process but were swiftly terminated soon after. No pet would want a deformed attendant serving them, and so despite cries of outrage from a small portion of the population who thought it inhumane, to save on costs the practice continued. An attendant was simply too expensive, both to create and train, to waste resources on a single one that would never sell.
Geneticists had managed to shorten the fur to its current length, but no matter how many attempts they made, they could not remove it entirely from the attendant genetic code without also removing the gene for their skin. It had remained a bane of the elite scientific community for centuries, though to Shuichi, who was blissfully oblivious to this prior history, it simply provided a source of comfort. Such a small thing, yet it warmed Hiro’s heart immensely.
“You’re so soft.” Shuichi mumbled, his eyes still closed.
“Does that please you, my little love?”
Shu’s heart fluttered a little when Hiro addressed him with this new, and much more affectionate, pet name. It was the first time he’d heard it clearly, with nothing fogging his awareness and it made him feel strangely giddy. He nodded.
“May I ask you why?”
Shu stirred with a bit more purpose this time. Blinking rapidly to clear the sleep out of his eyes he asked, “Why do I like your fur?”
“Affirmative.”
Shuichi thought for a moment, not really sure what to say.
“I guess just because it’s so soft and it’s something else about you that’s unique. People don’t have fur back where I…”
Shuichi trailed off softly, and then sat in silence. He tried not to think about his old life, about where he’d come from and all those he would never see again, but the memories soon flooded his mind anyway.
Sensing his distress, Hiro apologized. “Please forgive me little one, It was not my intent to make you dwell upon unhappy thoughts.”
Shuichi looked up. “Oh, no don’t be. It wasn’t anything you did, Hiro. Sometimes thinking about my home… it doesn’t bother me, but then there are times that it does. This time it just caught me off guard, that’s all.”
“I see. Is there anything I can do to help ease your…your suffering?”
“You could sneak me off this ship and take me home.”
Hiro couldn’t tell if Shuichi was being serious or taking a stab at humour. He smiled uneasily. “Is there anything I can do to help besides doing that, little one?”
Shu sighed and curled back up next to Hiro.
“Hold me?”
The lilac skinned man smiled and put an arm around the boy’s shoulders. He dutifully pulled the covers back up over them both, his agile tail curling gently over their thighs and then up to caress Shu’s lower back.
Surely, those he loved would want to know where he had been when he magically showed up alive one day with not a scratch on him. What would he tell them? He knew they would want to hear all about his adventures, and find out where he had been, but their realm of understanding was not broad enough to fathom the things he might describe to them. He knew too much about all the worlds outside his own, knowledge his family would never possess and in fact knowledge he himself had no right possessing for that matter.
He knew they would pretend to believe him, and talk about the tragedy of it all; that he should come back to them so ill in the head. Shuichi was certain too, that his younger brother Al-chi would believe everything he told him, and would not keep such fanciful tales to himself. Word of it would get out to other people, slowly but surely.
They’d think Shuichi was crazy, that much he knew for certain.
They’d think he had a broken mind, no doubt caused by the horrific things he’d seen during the war.
It’s Soldier’s Heart, they’d say.
His stories about beings from other worlds and magic ships flying through the heavens would no doubt get him labelled a raving lunatic.
Still, he longed to see his home and family again, whatever the cost.
As he thought about this, his dream rapidly evolved into something truly unlikely that he had never thought about before that night; that Hiro would somehow be able to come back with him so they could remain together. This unsettled him because it truly was inconceivable to imagine such a thing, but also because he wasn’t exactly sure when he had grown to feel such affection towards his caregiver in the first place. It was as if it had happened over night.
Shuichi wondered if he truly cared for Hiro, or if his feelings were the result of some technological or pharmacological trick, courtesy of his new surroundings. He had never been in love before and had no real idea what it felt like, so how could he know for certain that his emotions were real, and not merely the result of some cleverly executed illusion?
Putting all his mental effort into it, he tried for a moment to repel whatever artificial forces might be holding sway over his emotions. Eyes clamped shut, jaw locked, he tried with all his might to feel hatred and loathing toward this strange alien being who, for the moment, was his warden; however, he simply couldn’t do it. He sighed as he gave up his small experiment, then, inhaled Hiro’s wonderfully exotic scent in defeat. The heated softness of the man’s body pressing against him was so comforting in the darkness, and the unconscious caresses from the long furry tail draped over his hips warmed his heart.
No, he thought, his love for his attendant was no forgery. He could feel it pulsing inside his body. It was in his chest, his arms, his head, and his loins; it pulsated everywhere at once filling him with a unique warmth he truly could not describe with words. While he didn’t know what love was supposed to feel like, he knew that he enjoyed whatever he was feeling and even if it wasn’t love, he didn’t care because he never wanted to stop feeling it. He contemplated this as sleep began to claim his consciousness; dragging it down into a dream world filled with family, friends…and Hiro.
~~~~
“…chi…Shuichi…little one, please, you must wake up now.”
Shuichi was roused from his slumber by someone shaking his shoulders. The shaking was also accompanied by the low purr of Hiro’s voice. He connected the dots blearily and realized Hiro was trying to get him up.
“Wha? Did I sleep in? W-what’s wrong?”
“Come now, we must hurry.” Hiro wasted no time scooping Shuichi out of bed in both arms, carrying him as though he were a young child, or a damsel in distress.
“Whoa! Okay, I’m awake now, I can walk!”
“This is much quicker,” came Hiro’s response before he took off at a brisk pace toward the bath hall, his long, agile, legs indeed making strides Shuichi would have had to trot to keep up with.
Luckily Shu was already naked because the attendant walked them both directly into the bath. He quickly took off his robe and set it sopping wet on the floor beside the tub, where a towel-bot came quickly to whisk it, and the residual puddle, away.
“Hey wait!” Shuichi cried when Hiro grabbed his arm. “You aren’t going to do that thing again with the straps, are you?”
The boy shuddered as he remembered the bath he had taken the day before.
“No, we haven’t time for that today, and I doubt you’ll be mounted during dinner in any case.” The cat-man replied lightly, acquiring hair cleanser from the automatic dispenser on the side of the tub. “Now come here little one, so I can wash your hair.”
Relieved, yet slightly bewildered by the sudden excitement, Shuichi did as he was asked.
“So what’s going on?” the boy asked as his attendant lathered his hair gently with both hands. The soap smelled of some exotic fruit he couldn’t put a name to.
“Teams are still looking into it, so details regarding the situation are uncertain, however, King Aescal is dead.”
Shuichi was a bit puzzled. He was sure he had heard the name somewhere before, but he wasn’t sure what this king’s death had to do with him being woken up and hauled into the bath.
Noting his young charge’s confusion Hiro continued to explain.
“King Aescal is ruler of Lutanum, and is father to Lord Tatsuha, Crown Prince Eiri and of course Empress Mika, who is sadly off world, ruling Austrajia with her husband, the esteemed Emperor Romande.”
“Oh. Well…that’s terrible…I guess.”
Hiro smiled, the boy was still clearly befuddled by this news and what it had to do with him. He gently dipped the boy back into the water to rinse the soap from his hair before replying.
“King Aescal was to be your master, Shuichi. Because he is now dead, what shall happen to you is as of yet undecided, but--” he leaned in close so he could whisper in the boy’s ear, “-- this is a blessing for you and I both.” The attendant paused to look around the bath hall, checking for any wayward ears, metallic or otherwise, that could be listening. Satisfied that they were alone he turned back to Shuichi.
“Do not breathe a word of what I’m about to tell you to anyone, understood?”
Shuichi nodded and listened intently.
“King Aescal was a bitter ruler and a cruel master. He had a large menagerie, all females, and he often took out his daily frustrations on his pets, who could do nothing except take his abuse. His days of having males in his menagerie passed with his youth, and I strongly doubted he would have solicited any sexual performances from you, however I was still worried about you going to him.”
Hiro had been worried about his fate this entire time, and had not breathed a word about it? Shuichi felt touched and yet saddened by this news, because it meant that Hiro had been suffering internally their entire journey.
The attendant leaned in even closer, pulling Shuichi into a hug.
“Let us just say that I am very glad that your fate is now up in the air, because whether you wind up on the auction block, or you remain with Lord Tatsuha it will be infinitely better than what you would have experienced living in the King’s menagerie.”
“If I am auctioned to someone else…will you still be with me, Hiro?”
Hiro smiled. “Yes, of course. As I told you before, little one, I am with you until you choose to send me away.”
Relieved by this information, Shuichi quickly relaxed into Hiro’s arms. He hadn’t even noticed the tension in his body until he felt his muscles go slack. Hiro took the opportunity to place a kiss on the young man’s cheek.
Nuzzling against him in a decidedly feline manner, Hiro softly asked, “Would you ever choose to send me away, love? Because I couldn’t bare to be away from you, not now that I have such feelings for you in here.” He placed a hand over his heart, separating their bodies with it slightly and causing Shuichi to look first at his hand, and then up into Hiro’s eyes.
His elliptical pupils were semi-dilated in the glowing, indirect light of the bath hall. They weren’t completely dilated, but nonetheless they were far past what a human eye could achieve. Shuichi stared into those large, alien, eyes which now appeared so very cat-like and out of place in his human shaped face. He stared and yet he felt no revulsion; no fear. They were simply Hiro’s eyes and as he thought about this, and about how in his earlier days upon the ship Hiro’s eyes had been a source of great uneasiness to him, he realised what he had concluded the night before; he loved Hiro for who he was. He loved him and couldn’t care less that he had an extra furry body part, or that his eyes sometimes caused his face to take on a more alien appearance. He didn’t care about any of these things, because he knew Hiro would not be Hiro without them.
“No.” Shu replied. “I don’t think I could ever send you away.”
He took his hand and placed it over his own heart. “You’re in here, despite how hard I’ve tried to keep you out.”
Hiro blinked a tear out of his eye, and gave a broken laugh as he pulled the boy back to his chest. “So, you’ve been trying to keep me out?”
“Briefly, yes.”
“And how did that work out for you?”
“I think you know the answer to that.”
“I do now, yes.”
“Hiro?”
“Yes, little one?”
“I think…I might love you.”
Hiro gave him a sideways glance. “You might love me? Why the uncertainty?”
“It doesn’t feel like anything is certain anymore.”
Hiro took the boys chin in his hand. “I will always be here for you, that much you should know is a certainty, love.”
He leaned down to draw Shuichi’s mouth into a long, slow kiss. They explored each other more deeply and passionately than they ever had before; the acknowledgment of their feelings for one another passing between them and settling deep down into each others hearts. They continued to kiss and, as had happened the previous morning in the bath, their encounter began to escalate into something much more sexual in nature. As before, Shuichi started to drift inside himself, his body rejecting his minds attempt to control it.
“Hiro, d-do something…please…I--”
And then it was as if a switch had been flipped; the sweet boy Hiro knew melted into the background and his more aggressive counter-part emerged.
“Ohh…you smell so good, Master. Let me...”
Not waiting for a response, Shu reached under the water to fondle Hiro aggressively. Gasping at the sensations, Hiro fought his own internal battle.
He knew now that Lord Aescal was not to be Shuichi’s master, which meant that he could let Shuichi have his way with him, and risk things going wrong, but that did not mean he felt any better about engaging in coitus with Shu when he was under the influence of his instincts, despite it being what he should do as the boy’s instructor.
With great effort, Hiro gently pushed the boy away and pinned his arms to his sides to keep him from touching himself.
Shu started to groan and pant as he thrust his hips in a futile attempt to obtain friction. Hiro turned the boy around and pulled him tightly against his chest, binding him with his arms. Predictably, Shu began to try and wriggle free. Hiro just squeezed tighter and tried to ignore the boys firm, vulnerable ass squirming against his erection.
It took a few minutes, but Shuichi finally relaxed and Hiro was able to let go. When Hiro turned him back around he caught the glimmer of tears trickling down the boy’s face, before Shu hung his head and refused to look up.
“Shh,” Hiro soothed, pulling the young pet back into his embrace, “It’s alright little one. I had to restrain you out of necessity. I was not angry with you in the least.”
Shuichi sighed miserably. “I know that.” he moaned.
“Then why are you crying, my love?”
“Because I’m embarrassed!”
“Embarrassed? I do not understand. How can you be embarrassed about something that comes to you naturally; something over which you have no control?”
Shuichi covered his face in his hands, wanting desperately to bury himself in a hole somewhere.
“That’s why! Because I have so little control over my own body that I can’t even kiss you without turning into that…that thing!”
Hiro turned his head quizzically, trying to understand the full scope of Shuichi’s somewhat foreign emotions.
He knew the boy was upset, but because it was over his sexual responsiveness, something highly valued in Hiro’s culture, he didn’t fully recognize the problem in its entirety.
Regardless, he tried his best to offer him comfort. He pressed his cheek against Shuichi’s and ran fingers through the boy’s hair as his other arm cradled the small pet against his chest.
“You do not become a thing, love. You are still you, just…more aggressive, more sensual, and more deeply in touch with your inner passion.”
Shuichi leaned into Hiro’s arms, relaxing his body while his mind remained in tumultuous knots. He sighed heavily, idly stroking Hiro’s forearms with his fingertips.
“You say that, but it doesn’t feel that way to me. Since yesterday I haven’t been able to think about anything sexual, or get aroused at all, without feeling like I’m going to disappear inside my own body.”
Hiro’s mood elevated at this.
“Oh? And what sexual thoughts have you been having, might I ask?”
Shuichi blushed a deep red, but did not reply.
Hiro smiled. “Based on that reaction I am going to guess that they were about myself.”
Shuichi simply blushed an even darker shade of crimson.
The attendant was thrilled his assumptions were correct, not that he’d really had any doubts as to whom the boys thoughts would be about in the first place.
“W-why am I like this all of a sudden?” Shuichi whispered. “This has never happened to me before.”
Hiro thought on the subject for a moment, trying to decide how best to explain such a large amount of information to his young charge without overwhelming him and without setting Shu up to ask a question that he could not answer.
“I will attempt to explain. Please try and save any questions you may have until I have finished. I’m sure you will have many.”
Shuichi nodded and listened keenly, desperate for answers.
“When you become aroused, or, you come in close contact with someone who is aroused, you turn into, as you say, ‘that thing’. This response, and the behaviours that follow, are triggered primarily by the trace detection, or emission, of certain hormones; As well, in minor part, by sight and touch. You have these instincts because you are an Angelis, a very rare, and very valuable breed of pet. The only “breed” ever created as a matter of fact. All Angeli shared the same characteristic trait, that being their skill as the most exquisite lovers. Even if it was your first encounter with one, they knew exactly where and how to touch you, as though you had been pairing mates for years.”
A faint whisper escaped Shuichi’s lips. “S-so I’m not human?” This was all too much.
“Biologically, you are still classified as a human, love, but extensive breeding and genetic manipulation of the Angelis line has provided you with acute sensitivity to the minute bodily changes caused by arousal; so much so that you no longer need to consciously think during coitus, which is why you ‘slip away’, or so it feels to you.”
Shuichi remained silent, in deep contemplation. So many questions raced through his mind, but he just couldn’t seem to grab hold of one long enough to let it out of his mouth. He had some sort of superhuman ability to smell arousal? If that were true, then why was he just starting to notice these things now? Not to mention Hiro’s description of these Angeli fit the descriptions of the ancient Ashnae Porta; the jewelled folk that were talked about on his home world, the race from whom he was descended. They too had been avidly sought out for their skills as bed partners. So, did that mean they were the same race of people, and if that were true, how had they gotten to his home world from Lutanum? What did all of this mean?
Hiro placed a hand on Shuichi’s back tenderly, afraid to spook the boy out of his daze.
“It appears that I’ve…shocked you little one. I--”
Just then a rather frazzled looking young attendant with braided purple hair skidded through the archway into a haphazardly dignified pose. He bowed swiftly, “Apologies for my interruption Headmaster, but I was sent by some of the others to request your assistance! The visiting Thorians have only just finished boarding our ship, but already Lord Tatsuha has called for dinner to be served within the hour. He has also requested several other pets to be presented during dinner--” he motioned to Shu,”--apart from the Angelis. They are nowhere near ready and we have no time to--”
“Jamlin, is it not?” Hiro mercifully interrupted the poor boys rambling.
“Y-yes, that is correct, Headmaster.”
He quietly stroked Shu’s hair as the boy lay motionless in his embrace. “Jamlin, tell the others that I shall be down to oversee preparation of the requested pets shortly. I am assuming Lord Tatsuha wants to show off his freshly acquired exotic stock to the Thorians?”
The young attendant nodded sharply.
“I see.” Hiro smiled knowingly. “And would Rune be on the requested list by any chance?”
The boy nodded. “Yes Headmaster. He’s the one who’s been giving us the most trouble; You know he has that…biting problem.”
Hiro chuckled and shook his head. “I see. He’s still snapping at you is he?”
Jamlin blushed, embarrassed that the Headmaster had laughed. “Y-yes Headmaster. He has calmed down somewhat, but…”
“Has he bitten anyone recently?”
Jamlin nodded. “He bit Gnolus when he… tried to put him in the bath restraints yesterday.”
The young attendant blushed even deeper. He was not making himself look very competent by letting the Headmaster know that he had been requesting and accepting help from others simply to bathe his charge. Rune was so aggressive though, and so fit that it was difficult for Jamlin to overpower the young man by himself. Not many would tolerate a pet so uncouth as to bite like a wild animal, but fortunately for him, (and unfortunately for Jamlin) he was unusually rare and exceptionally beautiful.
As well, he had the benefit of coming from Jorgund, a small planet on the fringes of the Sond Galaxy only accessible once every 90 years or so, when the orbits of its 122 moons aligned harmoniously enough to create a narrow passage through which a spacecraft of appropriate size could be navigated. If the vessel was too small, it would get caught in, and bounced between, several of the larger moons gravitational orbits and be lost; if it was too large, it simply would not fit through. Needless to say, the planet was very isolated and its inhabitants very much independent, both in their nature and from the goings on in the rest of the galaxy.
Almost all pets coming from Jorgund were formerly incarcerated free citizens, sold by the state to subsidize prison costs. Not many slave traders wanted to deal with them because of this, even less wanted to attempt the task of navigating to the planet and making it back out before the passage closed for the better part of a century. The few that were willing to brave the first two obstacles often had difficulty trying to find the perfect combination of variables in any one single individual, and even fewer still had the capital, time or resources to invest in such high risk stock.
Only individuals with minor crimes on their records were considered for example, then within that small group, they had to be dazzlingly beautiful, fine featured, without scars or imperfections, without family to contest their enslavement and deportation off world. They had to be within certain age parameters, within certain health parameters, etc. etc. etc. The list went on for miles. Only one or two each century made the cut, which made them highly sought after acquisitions. How Rune, with his propensity to be violent, had checked out on every facet of such an insurmountable list of qualifications, Hiro could not understand, but then again Lord Tatsuha did like taking on challenges and he dealt with many foreign dignitaries who were often not interested in the docile, purpose-bred fair flooding the markets of the elite. Someone would buy Rune, certainly, but who that would be was anyone’s guess.
Hiro gave a broad smile; flashing his fine, razor sharp fangs. “How has he been performing? Or is he still biting in the bedroom too?”
The boy fidgeted nervously, and clamped his mouth shut in submission. Hiro was subtly criticising him for not curbing his charge of his habit. By flashing his impressive set of fang teeth along with his question he was implying that he was mature enough to know how to stop such a habit, and that Jamlin was not. Self-consciously, the boy ran his tongue over the blunt little points inside his closed mouth, now very anxious to return to help the others and escape the Headmasters impromptu scrutiny of his training practices.
“He’s not tolerating the training very well, Headmaster, but he does calm down a lot more when he’s being pleasured; he doesn’t yell or thrash about so much, or at least not in a violent sort of way. He’s still on all-hour leash and manacles, but he’s much better than he was when I was first assigned to him.”
Hiro nodded in acknowledgment. “That’s good to hear, but you best keep working with him. If he does not sell the fault will rest on your shoulders. Now--” he waved his hand dismissively, “--off with you to inform the others. I must finish up with Shuichi and I will be right along.”
Glad to finally be released, Jamlin turned on his heels and vanished, his robes swirling behind him.
Hiro gave a small sigh and rolled his eyes once the youth had gone. He hadn’t meant to intimidate him that much with his display, but he often forgot the overwhelming effect his fangs had on the younger ones, especially those who were not used to seeing such a well developed set of them. The practice was one of the last remaining vestiges of their alien heritage. Long ago, on their home world, if two evenly matched males returned flashes at one another it meant that they each felt dominant over the other and it would often lead to a fight if compromise and submission on the part of one male could not be reached through other means. Among modern attendants, flashing fangs had boiled down to something akin to a visual call for respect, rather than an outright challenge for dominance. Their systems did not process calcium well and what did make it into their blood stream went to calcifying their super-dense bone structure. It was not until after their skeletons had hardened completely that there was spare calcium in their bodies to go towards growing adult fang teeth. This meant that it took an extremely long time to develop a full, lethal, size set of them and it was because of this that they were viewed as symbols of physical strength, maturity and to a certain degree, sexual prowess and experience.
Younger males often gave full display grins to their peers as their budding fangs developed to silently and orderly establish a pecking order amongst themselves.
Hiro turned to Shu, who looked as though he was about to be ill.
“My apologies little one, for the interruption and for telling you more than I should have. I wish with all my heart that you were not being put on display this afternoon, but I have no control over this.”
Shu shrugged and sighed.
“I am so confused right now. I don’t know what to feel. I have so many questions--”
“Questions I wish I could answer for you right now, love, but our timeline has gotten so much shorter and you must be ready on time today. I will answer them all tonight, I promise.” He kissed the side of Shu’s head gently and the boy leaned into him. “For now, just try and set it all aside. You want to make a good impression on Lord Tatsuha and his distinguished guests don’t you? Show them what a good pet you are?”
Shuichi honestly didn’t care one way or another. He hated Lord Tatsuha and he couldn’t care less about making him look good in front of his guests, but he gave Hiro a small smile and nodded weakly. He would be putting his brave face on for Hiro, and not for anyone else.
~~~~~
The grand dining hall aboard the Neela was truly magnificent. Shu had never seen such a place before in all his life. It radiated opulence from it’s ornately carved dark-wood furniture to the plush blue cushions and lush brown draperies. The artwork on the walls varied from depictions of battles, to sweeping landscapes a dozen feet across. Long metal chandeliers floated by themselves in mid air over the long row-table set in the center of the massive space. Shuichi could still not believe that he was onboard a ship, and not in some grand castle.
The table could seat thirty comfortably, and each place was set out with goblets and glasses and cutlery of every kind. There were plates upon plates and platters upon platters heaped with delicious smelling food, all covered by large, polarized glass domes to keep things warm. It truly was a dining hall fit for a king, but what truly took the prize was not the artwork, or the furniture of anything in the room itself; it was the immense clear wall, opening the hall up on one entire side from floor to ceiling to the vast twinkling darkness of space. The view was so vast and so breathtakingly beautiful that for a moment Shuichi stopped to stare, mouth agape. He had seen space before, through the portal windows in his suite, but this was something different entirely. He continued to gaze longingly across the black vastness of the heavens until Hiro cleared his throat and gently tugged on the leash. Shu blinked and turned his attention back to his attendant, but even as he was lead toward the pets lounging area about ten feet from the head of the table, his eyes kept darting back to take in the dazzling view.
There were was a flurry of activity going on around them as they neared the quiet lounge area, which was a low wood platform on the dark metal floor, with several smaller platforms stacked haphazardly on top of it to create a tier like effect. Each tier except the smallest, highest one, had several comfortable looking divans, chaises and bedrolls at varying heights, as well as many overly large floor cushions in shades of brown, blue, red and green. The area was blanketed with plush rugs and backed in a half circle by an artfully arranged jungle of potted trees, ferns and dazzlingly flowers of every color and size. There was a waist high barrier of floating, crystal clear glass wrapped around three quarters of the circular area, and that was surrounded by a water feature laid into the floor around the first platform. Shuichi thought it looked like a castles mote. There was an ornately carved black bridge spanning the shallow blue water which led to the bottom platform.
Hiro lead Shuichi over the bridge quickly and stood in front of him protectively as two attendants lead a very irritated looking young man over the bridge behind them. One was the servant, Jamlin, that had come to request Hiro’s help earlier that day, and one Shuichi had never seen before with light green skin and blonde hair. He saw what looked to be a healing bite mark on his left wrist. Shu figured that this had to be Rune, the pet Hiro and Jamlin had been discussing earlier.
“Get your filthy fucking hands off me!” Rune shouted abruptly as one of the two attendants attempted to remove his outer robe. He whipped his head of royal purple hair around to look at Shuichi, who was staring at the spectacle with wide eyes. “And what the fuck do you think you’re looking at pretty boy?”
Shuichi averted his gaze, but said nothing. The only other pet he’d ever met was Ryuichi and he had not been very kind to him either. So far things were not looking promising in the friend department. Shu was frightened of this aggressive dark haired young man, yet even so he wanted to know why he was so angry. Maybe he wasn’t angry at all, maybe he was just afraid to show that he was scared.
Shuichi watched as Hiro went to assist the two younger servants remove the boys hazel robe and seat him on one of the higher divans. He had his collar on, as Shuichi did, but he also had wrist and ankle cuffs similar to those in the bath hall. The attendants fiddled with the cuffs and collar for a moment before stepping back. The boy struggled and swore some more before sighing loudly and flopping back onto the cushion with his hands behind his head. Though his bonds were not visible to the eye Shuichi knew they were there. A boundary line had been set and if he tried to cross it his collar and cuffs would prevent him from leaving.
Hiro said something to Jamlin and placed a hand on his back to lead him off the platform, Shuichi guessed so they could speak more privately. Rune watched them leave but continued to lay there with an unconcerned look on his face. He didn’t even try to cover himself, even though he was rather impressively nude from the neck down.
Rune cracked an eye open to look at him.
“See something you like, pretty boy?”
Shuichi’s face flushed when he realized that he’d been quite obviously staring and he averted his eyes.
Rune laughed derisively. “Apparently anyone can have their way with me now that I’m a piece of shit pet, so if you want something I guess you can come over here and take it.” He thrust his hips suggestively and laughed again when Shuichi hurried off to settle himself on one of the other bedrolls, his face flushed a deep scarlet.
Soon after, other attendants began to file into the grand hall with pets in tow. Several of the pets walking together stopped talking and looked at Shuichi with intense interest. Whether their collective gazes were hostile or just curious, Shu couldn’t tell and he desperately wanted Hiro to return so he could have an excuse to avert his eyes from their approach.
Luckily he didn’t have to wait very long. Hiro returned and handed him a glass of pink liquid.
“Here you are, little one, hopefully it is to your liking.”
Shuichi took a hesitant sip and was delighted by the taste of the beverage. He’d never tasted anything like it before in his life; it was sweet, tangy and bubbly.
“It’s wonderful! What is it?”
“It’s peach cocktail, I am glad you enjoy it. Now, we really should move you to your seat.” He looked around at the other pets and attendants milling about and getting settled on the platform, noting that they had all wisely kept off of the half backed circular lounger on the highest tier.
“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t know we had assigned seating--”
“Seating isn’t assigned, but generally when we are doing a display like this one, the most valuable pet--that would be you--goes on the top tier, followed in descending order from there. That is why Rune was placed on the seat closest to yours, as next to you he is the most valuable.”
Shuichi hedged a quick glance at Rune further up the platform. Luckily he was preoccupied, staring at a pair of identical looking female pets with very perky breasts seated across from him.
Hiro didn’t wait for a response. He took Shuichi’s hand and helped him off the cushion.
“Come now, lets get you up there.”
Most of the pets on the platform turned to look at them as they moved to the high tier. Hiro didn’t seem to notice, or if he did he made it obvious that he didn’t care. Shuichi was fairly used to being stared at back home, but this was a different. He felt exposed here, like he had before he had paired with Ryuichi.
Hiro seated him at the front of the pale pink lounger on the top tier and urged him to settle down on his side. Hiro set his drink on a small table off to one side of the cushion, and then knelt in front of the boy.
“You must be strong on your own, I will be just off to the side there with the others. If you need anything just raise your hand like this--” Hiro demonstrated the gesture “--and I will come to you.”
“Hiro, they’re all staring at me I don’t know if I can be by myself up here. Why are they staring at me?”
“As I told you earlier, it is because you are an Angelis, and they have most likely never seen any of your kind outside of holographs. They are looking you over to see why you are so much more valuable than they are. I warned you this would happen, and it will most likely continue to happen so you just need to ignore it, okay?”
Shuichi nodded bravely. When he leaned in to get a kiss Hiro abruptly pulled away from him and went to sit with the other attendants.
Had he done something wrong? Shuichi was scared and now double confused as to what he had done to make Hiro reject his advances. Frustrated and upset, Shu crossed his arms and sulked just as Lord Tatsuha and his dinner guests began to file into the room.
~*~*~*~*~For Gurabite reviewers:
Bakayarona: Thank you I am glad you are enjoying it!
Salamander: Thank you for reviewing! I am so flattered by your compliments, and I am happy to know that you would enjoy reading this as a novel. It really fuels my motivational fire!
Mia: Darling you are just too cute for words. I am very happy to have you reading and reviewing it always bring a smile to my face. I am so glad you are enjoying the story so far, and I hope you enjoy this latest chapter as much as the others. Things are picking up now for the story and hopefully you will come to enjoy the interesting things I have planned.
BCKanady: Oh yes, there is definitely more to come *lol pun intended* and I promise that updates will be coming faster now that it is summer. When I am in school I have less time to write. I wrote the first half of this story in a few months and the second half in three days, and I have already begun chapter 8. I am working on this every day now and I plan on having another chapter out within a few weeks if I am able. Definitely before the end of the summer at any rate. ^_~
For Mediaminer reviewers:
SenacaNya: I'm so happy you enjoyed the latest chapter. In all honesty Ryu didn't have much choice in the matter I don't think lol. Things were happening Shuichi's way whether he liked it (and he did) or not. Oh yes he is *smirk* he's going to have to learn a lot of things about his new master. But his new master is probably going to have to learn a lot more... Hope to see you around, updates should be coming sooner ^_~
Converting /tmp/phpNdR7f6 to /dev/stdout
He frowned when his elliptical pupils readjusted to the invasive light and managed to focus on the screen. An all too familiar pair of symmetrically posed cloudfins were emblazoned beside a message labelled ‘URGENT!’.
One was blue outlined in white, the other white outlined in blue; their claws interlocked, with wings unfurled dramatically behind them. It was the Attendant Academy’s insignia and it meant that the message had to be coming from his second in command, Miaukis; the attendant currently filling the role of headmaster in Hiro’s absence.
The well-meaning youth worried ceaselessly over things that really weren’t important and although Hiro knew he was just overly concerned with not failing in his duties, it did not make dealing with his messages each day any more enjoyable. What was the point of having a replacement around to manage things while he was gone, if said replacement relied on him to make even the most insignificant of decisions regardless?
Wiping sleep from his eyes and groaning quietly in frustration, he wondered what horrendous disaster was plaguing the academy now.
Were the simulation training rooms running dangerously low on green irrithmium crystals again?
Had the strict morning meal schedule fallen into chaos because the cooks hadn’t ordered enough cloudfin eggs?
After checking the time to confirm his suspicions (it was indeed the middle of the night), Hiro uttered a select string of Lutarian curse words and decided that whatever Miaukis was fretting about could wait until morning.
As he repositioned himself under the blankets Shuichi resumed his snuggled position against his chest; his much smaller hands gently stroked the velvet softness of Hiro’s micro-thin coat of fur. The boy often did this unconsciously as he was sleeping and Hiro found it especially endearing.
His fur, and likewise the fur of all attendants, happened to be a source of disconcertion for breeding facilities across the galaxy. The fur created conduction issues between the skin and the several thousand monitors and transfusion implants attached during gestation inside the breeding orbs. These issues frequently resulted in defects that lead to fetal expiration. Some of the faulty young survived the birthing process but were swiftly terminated soon after. No pet would want a deformed attendant serving them, and so despite cries of outrage from a small portion of the population who thought it inhumane, to save on costs the practice continued. An attendant was simply too expensive, both to create and train, to waste resources on a single one that would never sell.
Geneticists had managed to shorten the fur to its current length, but no matter how many attempts they made, they could not remove it entirely from the attendant genetic code without also removing the gene for their skin. It had remained a bane of the elite scientific community for centuries, though to Shuichi, who was blissfully oblivious to this prior history, it simply provided a source of comfort. Such a small thing, yet it warmed Hiro’s heart immensely.
“You’re so soft.” Shuichi mumbled, his eyes still closed.
“Does that please you, my little love?”
Shu’s heart fluttered a little when Hiro addressed him with this new, and much more affectionate, pet name. It was the first time he’d heard it clearly, with nothing fogging his awareness and it made him feel strangely giddy. He nodded.
“May I ask you why?”
Shu stirred with a bit more purpose this time. Blinking rapidly to clear the sleep out of his eyes he asked, “Why do I like your fur?”
“Affirmative.”
Shuichi thought for a moment, not really sure what to say.
“I guess just because it’s so soft and it’s something else about you that’s unique. People don’t have fur back where I…”
Shuichi trailed off softly, and then sat in silence. He tried not to think about his old life, about where he’d come from and all those he would never see again, but the memories soon flooded his mind anyway.
Sensing his distress, Hiro apologized. “Please forgive me little one, It was not my intent to make you dwell upon unhappy thoughts.”
Shuichi looked up. “Oh, no don’t be. It wasn’t anything you did, Hiro. Sometimes thinking about my home… it doesn’t bother me, but then there are times that it does. This time it just caught me off guard, that’s all.”
“I see. Is there anything I can do to help ease your…your suffering?”
“You could sneak me off this ship and take me home.”
Hiro couldn’t tell if Shuichi was being serious or taking a stab at humour. He smiled uneasily. “Is there anything I can do to help besides doing that, little one?”
Shu sighed and curled back up next to Hiro.
“Hold me?”
The lilac skinned man smiled and put an arm around the boy’s shoulders. He dutifully pulled the covers back up over them both, his agile tail curling gently over their thighs and then up to caress Shu’s lower back.
~~*~~
Shuichi lay there for some time, thinking long into the night about his home world, and about the new world that awaited him. He desperately wished he could return to his village, even though he knew it was pointless to dwell on something so impossible. The chances of him seeing home again were remote at best, yet still the thought was there; what his life would be if he ever did managed to return there.Surely, those he loved would want to know where he had been when he magically showed up alive one day with not a scratch on him. What would he tell them? He knew they would want to hear all about his adventures, and find out where he had been, but their realm of understanding was not broad enough to fathom the things he might describe to them. He knew too much about all the worlds outside his own, knowledge his family would never possess and in fact knowledge he himself had no right possessing for that matter.
He knew they would pretend to believe him, and talk about the tragedy of it all; that he should come back to them so ill in the head. Shuichi was certain too, that his younger brother Al-chi would believe everything he told him, and would not keep such fanciful tales to himself. Word of it would get out to other people, slowly but surely.
They’d think Shuichi was crazy, that much he knew for certain.
They’d think he had a broken mind, no doubt caused by the horrific things he’d seen during the war.
It’s Soldier’s Heart, they’d say.
His stories about beings from other worlds and magic ships flying through the heavens would no doubt get him labelled a raving lunatic.
Still, he longed to see his home and family again, whatever the cost.
As he thought about this, his dream rapidly evolved into something truly unlikely that he had never thought about before that night; that Hiro would somehow be able to come back with him so they could remain together. This unsettled him because it truly was inconceivable to imagine such a thing, but also because he wasn’t exactly sure when he had grown to feel such affection towards his caregiver in the first place. It was as if it had happened over night.
Shuichi wondered if he truly cared for Hiro, or if his feelings were the result of some technological or pharmacological trick, courtesy of his new surroundings. He had never been in love before and had no real idea what it felt like, so how could he know for certain that his emotions were real, and not merely the result of some cleverly executed illusion?
Putting all his mental effort into it, he tried for a moment to repel whatever artificial forces might be holding sway over his emotions. Eyes clamped shut, jaw locked, he tried with all his might to feel hatred and loathing toward this strange alien being who, for the moment, was his warden; however, he simply couldn’t do it. He sighed as he gave up his small experiment, then, inhaled Hiro’s wonderfully exotic scent in defeat. The heated softness of the man’s body pressing against him was so comforting in the darkness, and the unconscious caresses from the long furry tail draped over his hips warmed his heart.
No, he thought, his love for his attendant was no forgery. He could feel it pulsing inside his body. It was in his chest, his arms, his head, and his loins; it pulsated everywhere at once filling him with a unique warmth he truly could not describe with words. While he didn’t know what love was supposed to feel like, he knew that he enjoyed whatever he was feeling and even if it wasn’t love, he didn’t care because he never wanted to stop feeling it. He contemplated this as sleep began to claim his consciousness; dragging it down into a dream world filled with family, friends…and Hiro.
~~~~
“…chi…Shuichi…little one, please, you must wake up now.”
Shuichi was roused from his slumber by someone shaking his shoulders. The shaking was also accompanied by the low purr of Hiro’s voice. He connected the dots blearily and realized Hiro was trying to get him up.
“Wha? Did I sleep in? W-what’s wrong?”
“Come now, we must hurry.” Hiro wasted no time scooping Shuichi out of bed in both arms, carrying him as though he were a young child, or a damsel in distress.
“Whoa! Okay, I’m awake now, I can walk!”
“This is much quicker,” came Hiro’s response before he took off at a brisk pace toward the bath hall, his long, agile, legs indeed making strides Shuichi would have had to trot to keep up with.
Luckily Shu was already naked because the attendant walked them both directly into the bath. He quickly took off his robe and set it sopping wet on the floor beside the tub, where a towel-bot came quickly to whisk it, and the residual puddle, away.
“Hey wait!” Shuichi cried when Hiro grabbed his arm. “You aren’t going to do that thing again with the straps, are you?”
The boy shuddered as he remembered the bath he had taken the day before.
“No, we haven’t time for that today, and I doubt you’ll be mounted during dinner in any case.” The cat-man replied lightly, acquiring hair cleanser from the automatic dispenser on the side of the tub. “Now come here little one, so I can wash your hair.”
Relieved, yet slightly bewildered by the sudden excitement, Shuichi did as he was asked.
“So what’s going on?” the boy asked as his attendant lathered his hair gently with both hands. The soap smelled of some exotic fruit he couldn’t put a name to.
“Teams are still looking into it, so details regarding the situation are uncertain, however, King Aescal is dead.”
Shuichi was a bit puzzled. He was sure he had heard the name somewhere before, but he wasn’t sure what this king’s death had to do with him being woken up and hauled into the bath.
Noting his young charge’s confusion Hiro continued to explain.
“King Aescal is ruler of Lutanum, and is father to Lord Tatsuha, Crown Prince Eiri and of course Empress Mika, who is sadly off world, ruling Austrajia with her husband, the esteemed Emperor Romande.”
“Oh. Well…that’s terrible…I guess.”
Hiro smiled, the boy was still clearly befuddled by this news and what it had to do with him. He gently dipped the boy back into the water to rinse the soap from his hair before replying.
“King Aescal was to be your master, Shuichi. Because he is now dead, what shall happen to you is as of yet undecided, but--” he leaned in close so he could whisper in the boy’s ear, “-- this is a blessing for you and I both.” The attendant paused to look around the bath hall, checking for any wayward ears, metallic or otherwise, that could be listening. Satisfied that they were alone he turned back to Shuichi.
“Do not breathe a word of what I’m about to tell you to anyone, understood?”
Shuichi nodded and listened intently.
“King Aescal was a bitter ruler and a cruel master. He had a large menagerie, all females, and he often took out his daily frustrations on his pets, who could do nothing except take his abuse. His days of having males in his menagerie passed with his youth, and I strongly doubted he would have solicited any sexual performances from you, however I was still worried about you going to him.”
Hiro had been worried about his fate this entire time, and had not breathed a word about it? Shuichi felt touched and yet saddened by this news, because it meant that Hiro had been suffering internally their entire journey.
The attendant leaned in even closer, pulling Shuichi into a hug.
“Let us just say that I am very glad that your fate is now up in the air, because whether you wind up on the auction block, or you remain with Lord Tatsuha it will be infinitely better than what you would have experienced living in the King’s menagerie.”
“If I am auctioned to someone else…will you still be with me, Hiro?”
Hiro smiled. “Yes, of course. As I told you before, little one, I am with you until you choose to send me away.”
Relieved by this information, Shuichi quickly relaxed into Hiro’s arms. He hadn’t even noticed the tension in his body until he felt his muscles go slack. Hiro took the opportunity to place a kiss on the young man’s cheek.
Nuzzling against him in a decidedly feline manner, Hiro softly asked, “Would you ever choose to send me away, love? Because I couldn’t bare to be away from you, not now that I have such feelings for you in here.” He placed a hand over his heart, separating their bodies with it slightly and causing Shuichi to look first at his hand, and then up into Hiro’s eyes.
His elliptical pupils were semi-dilated in the glowing, indirect light of the bath hall. They weren’t completely dilated, but nonetheless they were far past what a human eye could achieve. Shuichi stared into those large, alien, eyes which now appeared so very cat-like and out of place in his human shaped face. He stared and yet he felt no revulsion; no fear. They were simply Hiro’s eyes and as he thought about this, and about how in his earlier days upon the ship Hiro’s eyes had been a source of great uneasiness to him, he realised what he had concluded the night before; he loved Hiro for who he was. He loved him and couldn’t care less that he had an extra furry body part, or that his eyes sometimes caused his face to take on a more alien appearance. He didn’t care about any of these things, because he knew Hiro would not be Hiro without them.
“No.” Shu replied. “I don’t think I could ever send you away.”
He took his hand and placed it over his own heart. “You’re in here, despite how hard I’ve tried to keep you out.”
Hiro blinked a tear out of his eye, and gave a broken laugh as he pulled the boy back to his chest. “So, you’ve been trying to keep me out?”
“Briefly, yes.”
“And how did that work out for you?”
“I think you know the answer to that.”
“I do now, yes.”
“Hiro?”
“Yes, little one?”
“I think…I might love you.”
Hiro gave him a sideways glance. “You might love me? Why the uncertainty?”
“It doesn’t feel like anything is certain anymore.”
Hiro took the boys chin in his hand. “I will always be here for you, that much you should know is a certainty, love.”
He leaned down to draw Shuichi’s mouth into a long, slow kiss. They explored each other more deeply and passionately than they ever had before; the acknowledgment of their feelings for one another passing between them and settling deep down into each others hearts. They continued to kiss and, as had happened the previous morning in the bath, their encounter began to escalate into something much more sexual in nature. As before, Shuichi started to drift inside himself, his body rejecting his minds attempt to control it.
“Hiro, d-do something…please…I--”
And then it was as if a switch had been flipped; the sweet boy Hiro knew melted into the background and his more aggressive counter-part emerged.
“Ohh…you smell so good, Master. Let me...”
Not waiting for a response, Shu reached under the water to fondle Hiro aggressively. Gasping at the sensations, Hiro fought his own internal battle.
He knew now that Lord Aescal was not to be Shuichi’s master, which meant that he could let Shuichi have his way with him, and risk things going wrong, but that did not mean he felt any better about engaging in coitus with Shu when he was under the influence of his instincts, despite it being what he should do as the boy’s instructor.
With great effort, Hiro gently pushed the boy away and pinned his arms to his sides to keep him from touching himself.
Shu started to groan and pant as he thrust his hips in a futile attempt to obtain friction. Hiro turned the boy around and pulled him tightly against his chest, binding him with his arms. Predictably, Shu began to try and wriggle free. Hiro just squeezed tighter and tried to ignore the boys firm, vulnerable ass squirming against his erection.
It took a few minutes, but Shuichi finally relaxed and Hiro was able to let go. When Hiro turned him back around he caught the glimmer of tears trickling down the boy’s face, before Shu hung his head and refused to look up.
“Shh,” Hiro soothed, pulling the young pet back into his embrace, “It’s alright little one. I had to restrain you out of necessity. I was not angry with you in the least.”
Shuichi sighed miserably. “I know that.” he moaned.
“Then why are you crying, my love?”
“Because I’m embarrassed!”
“Embarrassed? I do not understand. How can you be embarrassed about something that comes to you naturally; something over which you have no control?”
Shuichi covered his face in his hands, wanting desperately to bury himself in a hole somewhere.
“That’s why! Because I have so little control over my own body that I can’t even kiss you without turning into that…that thing!”
Hiro turned his head quizzically, trying to understand the full scope of Shuichi’s somewhat foreign emotions.
He knew the boy was upset, but because it was over his sexual responsiveness, something highly valued in Hiro’s culture, he didn’t fully recognize the problem in its entirety.
Regardless, he tried his best to offer him comfort. He pressed his cheek against Shuichi’s and ran fingers through the boy’s hair as his other arm cradled the small pet against his chest.
“You do not become a thing, love. You are still you, just…more aggressive, more sensual, and more deeply in touch with your inner passion.”
Shuichi leaned into Hiro’s arms, relaxing his body while his mind remained in tumultuous knots. He sighed heavily, idly stroking Hiro’s forearms with his fingertips.
“You say that, but it doesn’t feel that way to me. Since yesterday I haven’t been able to think about anything sexual, or get aroused at all, without feeling like I’m going to disappear inside my own body.”
Hiro’s mood elevated at this.
“Oh? And what sexual thoughts have you been having, might I ask?”
Shuichi blushed a deep red, but did not reply.
Hiro smiled. “Based on that reaction I am going to guess that they were about myself.”
Shuichi simply blushed an even darker shade of crimson.
The attendant was thrilled his assumptions were correct, not that he’d really had any doubts as to whom the boys thoughts would be about in the first place.
“W-why am I like this all of a sudden?” Shuichi whispered. “This has never happened to me before.”
Hiro thought on the subject for a moment, trying to decide how best to explain such a large amount of information to his young charge without overwhelming him and without setting Shu up to ask a question that he could not answer.
“I will attempt to explain. Please try and save any questions you may have until I have finished. I’m sure you will have many.”
Shuichi nodded and listened keenly, desperate for answers.
“When you become aroused, or, you come in close contact with someone who is aroused, you turn into, as you say, ‘that thing’. This response, and the behaviours that follow, are triggered primarily by the trace detection, or emission, of certain hormones; As well, in minor part, by sight and touch. You have these instincts because you are an Angelis, a very rare, and very valuable breed of pet. The only “breed” ever created as a matter of fact. All Angeli shared the same characteristic trait, that being their skill as the most exquisite lovers. Even if it was your first encounter with one, they knew exactly where and how to touch you, as though you had been pairing mates for years.”
A faint whisper escaped Shuichi’s lips. “S-so I’m not human?” This was all too much.
“Biologically, you are still classified as a human, love, but extensive breeding and genetic manipulation of the Angelis line has provided you with acute sensitivity to the minute bodily changes caused by arousal; so much so that you no longer need to consciously think during coitus, which is why you ‘slip away’, or so it feels to you.”
Shuichi remained silent, in deep contemplation. So many questions raced through his mind, but he just couldn’t seem to grab hold of one long enough to let it out of his mouth. He had some sort of superhuman ability to smell arousal? If that were true, then why was he just starting to notice these things now? Not to mention Hiro’s description of these Angeli fit the descriptions of the ancient Ashnae Porta; the jewelled folk that were talked about on his home world, the race from whom he was descended. They too had been avidly sought out for their skills as bed partners. So, did that mean they were the same race of people, and if that were true, how had they gotten to his home world from Lutanum? What did all of this mean?
Hiro placed a hand on Shuichi’s back tenderly, afraid to spook the boy out of his daze.
“It appears that I’ve…shocked you little one. I--”
Just then a rather frazzled looking young attendant with braided purple hair skidded through the archway into a haphazardly dignified pose. He bowed swiftly, “Apologies for my interruption Headmaster, but I was sent by some of the others to request your assistance! The visiting Thorians have only just finished boarding our ship, but already Lord Tatsuha has called for dinner to be served within the hour. He has also requested several other pets to be presented during dinner--” he motioned to Shu,”--apart from the Angelis. They are nowhere near ready and we have no time to--”
“Jamlin, is it not?” Hiro mercifully interrupted the poor boys rambling.
“Y-yes, that is correct, Headmaster.”
He quietly stroked Shu’s hair as the boy lay motionless in his embrace. “Jamlin, tell the others that I shall be down to oversee preparation of the requested pets shortly. I am assuming Lord Tatsuha wants to show off his freshly acquired exotic stock to the Thorians?”
The young attendant nodded sharply.
“I see.” Hiro smiled knowingly. “And would Rune be on the requested list by any chance?”
The boy nodded. “Yes Headmaster. He’s the one who’s been giving us the most trouble; You know he has that…biting problem.”
Hiro chuckled and shook his head. “I see. He’s still snapping at you is he?”
Jamlin blushed, embarrassed that the Headmaster had laughed. “Y-yes Headmaster. He has calmed down somewhat, but…”
“Has he bitten anyone recently?”
Jamlin nodded. “He bit Gnolus when he… tried to put him in the bath restraints yesterday.”
The young attendant blushed even deeper. He was not making himself look very competent by letting the Headmaster know that he had been requesting and accepting help from others simply to bathe his charge. Rune was so aggressive though, and so fit that it was difficult for Jamlin to overpower the young man by himself. Not many would tolerate a pet so uncouth as to bite like a wild animal, but fortunately for him, (and unfortunately for Jamlin) he was unusually rare and exceptionally beautiful.
As well, he had the benefit of coming from Jorgund, a small planet on the fringes of the Sond Galaxy only accessible once every 90 years or so, when the orbits of its 122 moons aligned harmoniously enough to create a narrow passage through which a spacecraft of appropriate size could be navigated. If the vessel was too small, it would get caught in, and bounced between, several of the larger moons gravitational orbits and be lost; if it was too large, it simply would not fit through. Needless to say, the planet was very isolated and its inhabitants very much independent, both in their nature and from the goings on in the rest of the galaxy.
Almost all pets coming from Jorgund were formerly incarcerated free citizens, sold by the state to subsidize prison costs. Not many slave traders wanted to deal with them because of this, even less wanted to attempt the task of navigating to the planet and making it back out before the passage closed for the better part of a century. The few that were willing to brave the first two obstacles often had difficulty trying to find the perfect combination of variables in any one single individual, and even fewer still had the capital, time or resources to invest in such high risk stock.
Only individuals with minor crimes on their records were considered for example, then within that small group, they had to be dazzlingly beautiful, fine featured, without scars or imperfections, without family to contest their enslavement and deportation off world. They had to be within certain age parameters, within certain health parameters, etc. etc. etc. The list went on for miles. Only one or two each century made the cut, which made them highly sought after acquisitions. How Rune, with his propensity to be violent, had checked out on every facet of such an insurmountable list of qualifications, Hiro could not understand, but then again Lord Tatsuha did like taking on challenges and he dealt with many foreign dignitaries who were often not interested in the docile, purpose-bred fair flooding the markets of the elite. Someone would buy Rune, certainly, but who that would be was anyone’s guess.
Hiro gave a broad smile; flashing his fine, razor sharp fangs. “How has he been performing? Or is he still biting in the bedroom too?”
The boy fidgeted nervously, and clamped his mouth shut in submission. Hiro was subtly criticising him for not curbing his charge of his habit. By flashing his impressive set of fang teeth along with his question he was implying that he was mature enough to know how to stop such a habit, and that Jamlin was not. Self-consciously, the boy ran his tongue over the blunt little points inside his closed mouth, now very anxious to return to help the others and escape the Headmasters impromptu scrutiny of his training practices.
“He’s not tolerating the training very well, Headmaster, but he does calm down a lot more when he’s being pleasured; he doesn’t yell or thrash about so much, or at least not in a violent sort of way. He’s still on all-hour leash and manacles, but he’s much better than he was when I was first assigned to him.”
Hiro nodded in acknowledgment. “That’s good to hear, but you best keep working with him. If he does not sell the fault will rest on your shoulders. Now--” he waved his hand dismissively, “--off with you to inform the others. I must finish up with Shuichi and I will be right along.”
Glad to finally be released, Jamlin turned on his heels and vanished, his robes swirling behind him.
Hiro gave a small sigh and rolled his eyes once the youth had gone. He hadn’t meant to intimidate him that much with his display, but he often forgot the overwhelming effect his fangs had on the younger ones, especially those who were not used to seeing such a well developed set of them. The practice was one of the last remaining vestiges of their alien heritage. Long ago, on their home world, if two evenly matched males returned flashes at one another it meant that they each felt dominant over the other and it would often lead to a fight if compromise and submission on the part of one male could not be reached through other means. Among modern attendants, flashing fangs had boiled down to something akin to a visual call for respect, rather than an outright challenge for dominance. Their systems did not process calcium well and what did make it into their blood stream went to calcifying their super-dense bone structure. It was not until after their skeletons had hardened completely that there was spare calcium in their bodies to go towards growing adult fang teeth. This meant that it took an extremely long time to develop a full, lethal, size set of them and it was because of this that they were viewed as symbols of physical strength, maturity and to a certain degree, sexual prowess and experience.
Younger males often gave full display grins to their peers as their budding fangs developed to silently and orderly establish a pecking order amongst themselves.
Hiro turned to Shu, who looked as though he was about to be ill.
“My apologies little one, for the interruption and for telling you more than I should have. I wish with all my heart that you were not being put on display this afternoon, but I have no control over this.”
Shu shrugged and sighed.
“I am so confused right now. I don’t know what to feel. I have so many questions--”
“Questions I wish I could answer for you right now, love, but our timeline has gotten so much shorter and you must be ready on time today. I will answer them all tonight, I promise.” He kissed the side of Shu’s head gently and the boy leaned into him. “For now, just try and set it all aside. You want to make a good impression on Lord Tatsuha and his distinguished guests don’t you? Show them what a good pet you are?”
Shuichi honestly didn’t care one way or another. He hated Lord Tatsuha and he couldn’t care less about making him look good in front of his guests, but he gave Hiro a small smile and nodded weakly. He would be putting his brave face on for Hiro, and not for anyone else.
~~~~~
The grand dining hall aboard the Neela was truly magnificent. Shu had never seen such a place before in all his life. It radiated opulence from it’s ornately carved dark-wood furniture to the plush blue cushions and lush brown draperies. The artwork on the walls varied from depictions of battles, to sweeping landscapes a dozen feet across. Long metal chandeliers floated by themselves in mid air over the long row-table set in the center of the massive space. Shuichi could still not believe that he was onboard a ship, and not in some grand castle.
The table could seat thirty comfortably, and each place was set out with goblets and glasses and cutlery of every kind. There were plates upon plates and platters upon platters heaped with delicious smelling food, all covered by large, polarized glass domes to keep things warm. It truly was a dining hall fit for a king, but what truly took the prize was not the artwork, or the furniture of anything in the room itself; it was the immense clear wall, opening the hall up on one entire side from floor to ceiling to the vast twinkling darkness of space. The view was so vast and so breathtakingly beautiful that for a moment Shuichi stopped to stare, mouth agape. He had seen space before, through the portal windows in his suite, but this was something different entirely. He continued to gaze longingly across the black vastness of the heavens until Hiro cleared his throat and gently tugged on the leash. Shu blinked and turned his attention back to his attendant, but even as he was lead toward the pets lounging area about ten feet from the head of the table, his eyes kept darting back to take in the dazzling view.
There were was a flurry of activity going on around them as they neared the quiet lounge area, which was a low wood platform on the dark metal floor, with several smaller platforms stacked haphazardly on top of it to create a tier like effect. Each tier except the smallest, highest one, had several comfortable looking divans, chaises and bedrolls at varying heights, as well as many overly large floor cushions in shades of brown, blue, red and green. The area was blanketed with plush rugs and backed in a half circle by an artfully arranged jungle of potted trees, ferns and dazzlingly flowers of every color and size. There was a waist high barrier of floating, crystal clear glass wrapped around three quarters of the circular area, and that was surrounded by a water feature laid into the floor around the first platform. Shuichi thought it looked like a castles mote. There was an ornately carved black bridge spanning the shallow blue water which led to the bottom platform.
Hiro lead Shuichi over the bridge quickly and stood in front of him protectively as two attendants lead a very irritated looking young man over the bridge behind them. One was the servant, Jamlin, that had come to request Hiro’s help earlier that day, and one Shuichi had never seen before with light green skin and blonde hair. He saw what looked to be a healing bite mark on his left wrist. Shu figured that this had to be Rune, the pet Hiro and Jamlin had been discussing earlier.
“Get your filthy fucking hands off me!” Rune shouted abruptly as one of the two attendants attempted to remove his outer robe. He whipped his head of royal purple hair around to look at Shuichi, who was staring at the spectacle with wide eyes. “And what the fuck do you think you’re looking at pretty boy?”
Shuichi averted his gaze, but said nothing. The only other pet he’d ever met was Ryuichi and he had not been very kind to him either. So far things were not looking promising in the friend department. Shu was frightened of this aggressive dark haired young man, yet even so he wanted to know why he was so angry. Maybe he wasn’t angry at all, maybe he was just afraid to show that he was scared.
Shuichi watched as Hiro went to assist the two younger servants remove the boys hazel robe and seat him on one of the higher divans. He had his collar on, as Shuichi did, but he also had wrist and ankle cuffs similar to those in the bath hall. The attendants fiddled with the cuffs and collar for a moment before stepping back. The boy struggled and swore some more before sighing loudly and flopping back onto the cushion with his hands behind his head. Though his bonds were not visible to the eye Shuichi knew they were there. A boundary line had been set and if he tried to cross it his collar and cuffs would prevent him from leaving.
Hiro said something to Jamlin and placed a hand on his back to lead him off the platform, Shuichi guessed so they could speak more privately. Rune watched them leave but continued to lay there with an unconcerned look on his face. He didn’t even try to cover himself, even though he was rather impressively nude from the neck down.
Rune cracked an eye open to look at him.
“See something you like, pretty boy?”
Shuichi’s face flushed when he realized that he’d been quite obviously staring and he averted his eyes.
Rune laughed derisively. “Apparently anyone can have their way with me now that I’m a piece of shit pet, so if you want something I guess you can come over here and take it.” He thrust his hips suggestively and laughed again when Shuichi hurried off to settle himself on one of the other bedrolls, his face flushed a deep scarlet.
Soon after, other attendants began to file into the grand hall with pets in tow. Several of the pets walking together stopped talking and looked at Shuichi with intense interest. Whether their collective gazes were hostile or just curious, Shu couldn’t tell and he desperately wanted Hiro to return so he could have an excuse to avert his eyes from their approach.
Luckily he didn’t have to wait very long. Hiro returned and handed him a glass of pink liquid.
“Here you are, little one, hopefully it is to your liking.”
Shuichi took a hesitant sip and was delighted by the taste of the beverage. He’d never tasted anything like it before in his life; it was sweet, tangy and bubbly.
“It’s wonderful! What is it?”
“It’s peach cocktail, I am glad you enjoy it. Now, we really should move you to your seat.” He looked around at the other pets and attendants milling about and getting settled on the platform, noting that they had all wisely kept off of the half backed circular lounger on the highest tier.
“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t know we had assigned seating--”
“Seating isn’t assigned, but generally when we are doing a display like this one, the most valuable pet--that would be you--goes on the top tier, followed in descending order from there. That is why Rune was placed on the seat closest to yours, as next to you he is the most valuable.”
Shuichi hedged a quick glance at Rune further up the platform. Luckily he was preoccupied, staring at a pair of identical looking female pets with very perky breasts seated across from him.
Hiro didn’t wait for a response. He took Shuichi’s hand and helped him off the cushion.
“Come now, lets get you up there.”
Most of the pets on the platform turned to look at them as they moved to the high tier. Hiro didn’t seem to notice, or if he did he made it obvious that he didn’t care. Shuichi was fairly used to being stared at back home, but this was a different. He felt exposed here, like he had before he had paired with Ryuichi.
Hiro seated him at the front of the pale pink lounger on the top tier and urged him to settle down on his side. Hiro set his drink on a small table off to one side of the cushion, and then knelt in front of the boy.
“You must be strong on your own, I will be just off to the side there with the others. If you need anything just raise your hand like this--” Hiro demonstrated the gesture “--and I will come to you.”
“Hiro, they’re all staring at me I don’t know if I can be by myself up here. Why are they staring at me?”
“As I told you earlier, it is because you are an Angelis, and they have most likely never seen any of your kind outside of holographs. They are looking you over to see why you are so much more valuable than they are. I warned you this would happen, and it will most likely continue to happen so you just need to ignore it, okay?”
Shuichi nodded bravely. When he leaned in to get a kiss Hiro abruptly pulled away from him and went to sit with the other attendants.
Had he done something wrong? Shuichi was scared and now double confused as to what he had done to make Hiro reject his advances. Frustrated and upset, Shu crossed his arms and sulked just as Lord Tatsuha and his dinner guests began to file into the room.
~*~*~*~*~For Gurabite reviewers:
Bakayarona: Thank you I am glad you are enjoying it!
Salamander: Thank you for reviewing! I am so flattered by your compliments, and I am happy to know that you would enjoy reading this as a novel. It really fuels my motivational fire!
Mia: Darling you are just too cute for words. I am very happy to have you reading and reviewing it always bring a smile to my face. I am so glad you are enjoying the story so far, and I hope you enjoy this latest chapter as much as the others. Things are picking up now for the story and hopefully you will come to enjoy the interesting things I have planned.
BCKanady: Oh yes, there is definitely more to come *lol pun intended* and I promise that updates will be coming faster now that it is summer. When I am in school I have less time to write. I wrote the first half of this story in a few months and the second half in three days, and I have already begun chapter 8. I am working on this every day now and I plan on having another chapter out within a few weeks if I am able. Definitely before the end of the summer at any rate. ^_~
For Mediaminer reviewers:
SenacaNya: I'm so happy you enjoyed the latest chapter. In all honesty Ryu didn't have much choice in the matter I don't think lol. Things were happening Shuichi's way whether he liked it (and he did) or not. Oh yes he is *smirk* he's going to have to learn a lot of things about his new master. But his new master is probably going to have to learn a lot more... Hope to see you around, updates should be coming sooner ^_~
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