Weiss Kreuz Fan Fiction ❯ Boy for Sale ❯ The Best of the Worst ( Chapter 4 )

Disclaimer: Nope, don't own Weiss Kreuz nor am I profiting from this, it is for pure reading enjoyment. The wonderful Koyasu Takehito is the creator.

The Best of the Worst

Yohji had been on the run for two days already before the proper authorities came after him. He'd been holding up in the attic of an old woman who offered to give him shelter in exchange for doing chores. Discretion was of the highest importance, so each time he ventured outside the house, he wore a dark brown cloak with a hood to blend in with the general public.

One day while returning home from the market with food goods, Yohji was immediately suspicious of why his horse wasn't tied up in its usual place around back. This time it was in the front yard. From a safe distance behind some trees he was able to identify three men of the law who had come to take him into custody. They were searching the old woman's property for him. [Oh, no] he thought. Someone must have tipped them off. There was no time to doddle. Yohji had to get as far away from this place as possible. Just as he was going to head in the opposite direction, a voice from behind him spoke. “Hey you, turn around.” Slowly, Yohji faced the policeman. He was a round and stout man with a push-broom mustache.

“Yes, Sir?”

“You live around here?”

“Uhm well…” Yohji knew he had to choose his answer carefully. If he said “yes” the officer would ask where, but if he said “no” the man might realize his identity.

The officer didn't wait for the blonde boy's answer. “Well if you do, warn your folks and everyone you know that there's a runaway slave on the loose. He's desperate and will do anything not to be caught.”

“Oh, I see,” Yohji nodded.

“I mean it. He's already stolen a horse. If you come into contact with a man named Yohji Kudou, steer clear of him and contact the proper authorities.”

“Don't worry, Sir. I take your advice quite seriously.”

“Good, carry on then.” With that said, the officer went about his business. Yohji sighed in relief

With no horse and no shelter, things weren't looking up for the blonde man. But at least one positive thing was for certain. During the time that the old woman had allowed him entrance into her home, he'd been given access to paper and writing utensils in order to send a letter to Ran. Just in case anyone other than the emperor himself opened it, he kept the message very formal, but urgent.

 

Dear Ran Fujimiya,

After proper evaluation of Yohji Kudou, it has come to our attention that the wrong person has been returned to the estate. It is imperative that you reassume responsibility of this man as quickly as possible. Failure to due so will lead to dire consequences.

Sincerely,

 

Victor Sorano

 

Yohji couldn't flat out ask for help. Though he addressed it to the emperor himself, it was more likely to be taken care of by General Morrison. But, the boy included legal implications to assure that Morrison wouldn't just try handling the matter himself. He was obligated to always show threatening mail to the emperor, so that the redhead could take whatever action he felt exhibited his authority as a ruler. To the untrained eye, Yohji's letter was just like any other. But to someone like Ran who had spent several peaceful afternoons' in bed with the older boy, listening to him talk about his old life, the letter was filled with clues. First and foremost, no one in their right mind would open by addressing him simply as Ran Fujimiya as opposed to Emperor Fujimiya. Using his first name all together was socially well known to be disrespectful. Only someone very personal and very close could do something like this. Secondly, Yohji had been much too adamant, specific, and emotional about his life with the Sorano family to have been sent to their estate mistakenly. There was no way that there could have been a mix up like that. Lastly, but most importantly, Ran knew Cora Sorano was leading lady of the estate. And though she had married Bradley Crawford, she refused to change her last name out of respect for Victor Sorano, her DEAD first husband. Dead men don't write letters. Therefore, the enclosing signature was a final, blaring red flag.

Yohji waited until nightfall to sneak into the old woman's house through the attic window. He climbed up a tree and carefully crept inside, minding the creeky floorboards. Listening to the sound of her snoring let him know when to be still or keep moving. There was only one thing he needed to collect. The letter. The blonde inwardly praised himself for concealing it in a mouse hole at the bottom of a wall. He'd only wanted to keep it secret from the old woman and her family or friends who might stop by, but luckily, the hiding space had thrown off the police as well.

The blonde carefully climbed back out of the window and fled.

+++

Yohji woke up in a cemetery. It was where he had been forced to spend the night. He knew that no one would bother him here given the low amount of traffic past certain hours. But when the sun rose again, it was time to get going. His goal was to reach the post office. According to everyone he asked it was about four miles away. With no more horse and no money to take carriage, he had to get there on foot.

The walk was exhausting and although he had followed directions carefully, Yohji saw no sign of the post office anywhere. He sat on a short stone wall for a moment to rest his aching feet. His ankles bothered him the most at this point and the hot weather was beginning to make him loose focus. Once he was on his feet again, he caught himself daydreaming and nearly walking into people or buildings that he honestly didn't see at times. Wiping the sweat from his forehead, the blonde's hand shaded his view briefly from the blinding rays of the sun. That's when he saw it! Just across the street was the post office, he'd made it!”

With a smile that stung his dry lips, Yohji happily pushed through the crowd in front of him and began hurrying to mail off his letter.

“Gotcha!” Someone yelled. Yohji felt a swift tug on his arm and looked down to see that was being held by a big, fat hand. He instinctively sought out the hand's owner and was horrified to discover it was the police officer from yesterday. “You had me fooled at first, but I gotcha now. Don't I?”

The blonde knew he couldn't escape completely now, but what he could do was at least try to make it a few more feet, so that he could drop of the letter. This way, even if they did bring him back to the ranch for punishment and if he faced jail time, or if Bradley decided to kill him, Ran would find out sooner or later and he would be angrier than ever.

“I'll take that, thank you.” Yohji felt the letter being taken from his hand. Apparently, Crawford had decided to tag along. Without even wondering about the contents of the envelope, the older man began shredding it before the blonde's eyes. Whatever it was, he knew it was probably important and Yohji's days of having the slightest bit of freedom were over as far as he was concerned. “It's time to go home,” Master Bradley said quite calmly. Now that their destination had been determined, the younger man wished jail had been the option. Another officer came to his side and they dragged him off to an awaiting carriage.

+++

When they arrived at the ranch, Yohji was thrown onto the front porch while Crawford conversed with the lawmen. Their chummy behavior made it obvious that they'd known each other well before this incident had occurred. Bradley had probably paid them handsomely for helping him catch the runaway slave.

Still not prepared to give up, Yohji risked getting into even further trouble by crawling into the house while his captors were distracted to find Lady Sorano. “Ah!” the woman jumped with surprise after hearing someone call for her.

“Mistress,” Yohji began.

“What—what are you doing down there on the floor?!”

“Why are you even in the house?!” asked Clara, the servant girl.

“Please, I'm begging you to have faith in my words, Mistress.” The boy's green eyes were nearly in tears. “Think to yourself, when did all of our troubles together begin? Not `til after you remarried. Your husband is a deceiver. Let me prove it to you!”

“If you're suggesting that I talk to Irma, she's doing much better, so if it makes you feel better I'll—,”

“No, no!” Yohji shook his head feverishly. “There's no need for that.” Bradley's threat on Irma's life was still ringing in the blonde's ears. He had to take Irma out of the equation before she really got hurt. “A letter, to the emperor of Leilan—,”

“Oh Yohji,” Lady Sorano began to roll her eyes with irritation. The young man honestly looked like he'd gone mad, sitting on the floor in shackles, all disheveled and with a dampening face.

“Please, please! What could it hurt? If I'm telling the truth than your husband will be exposed and you will see him for the parasite he truly is. If I'm wrong, you'll just be out of a few sheets of paper! Just let me right to the emperor! Please!”

Just then, Crawford came storming into the house. “Where are you, boy?!” the man demanded. He saw Yohji at his wife's feet and immediately snatched his victim up. “You aren't allowed in the house anymore, don't you understand?! And I don't ever want to catch you talking to my wife again. Do you hear me?!” Yohji's refusal to answer got him thrown across the room. He started bleeding from the mouth and dizzily tried to stand up. Master Bradley yanked him outside by his hair and threw him to the ground. “Stay there!” The older man walked off momentarily

Cora came rushing out back to see what would become of her former chef. No matter what the boy had done, this all seemed too brutal. And if it had really been all that offensive, why did her husband insist on keeping Yohji around rather than surrender him to the law?

When Crawford returned, he was carrying something. The man knelt down and removed Yohji's leg shackles only to fit an unidentified object the boy's right ankle. It was a ball and chain to discourage him from running away again. “Now then,” the dark haired man smiled. “Go on and start harvesting with the rest of your peers. This little modification won't stop you from completing your duties. Just pick up the ball and carry it when you need to get from one place to the another more hastily. Otherwise, just drag it. Now, run along,” The man's voice was sickeningly chipper. He watched with amusement as Yohji's initial feeling of shock gradually turned into humiliation and sorrow.

When Yohji joined the other slaves in the field, they all noticed his wrist shackles, which were to be expected of a runaway. But due to the leafy green valleys of produce on the ground, they were unable to see the iron ball he was dragging. They attributed the “limp” he had to a probable beating that had left him injured, which was also to be expected of ranch deserters. It wasn't until the end of the day when they all needed to head back to the house that someone recognized and pointed out the new restrictive device.

“Holy geez!” said Bones, a very thin man who had been on the ranch longest. “What's that?”

Everyone drew around to see what was causing all of the commotion. Big Joe, who had been avoiding Yohji since their fight in front of the horse trough, identified the ball and chain. Honestly, he felt rather afraid of the smaller man's temper, but now that the blonde was restrained the feeling of threat was gone. “How pathetic,” Big Joe smiled and laughed. “Not so tough now, huh? You wanted to act like you had iron balls by punching me out the other day, well now you really do have one. Congratulations!” the oaf of a man smiled and dropped the iron ball before giving out orders to the rest of the slaves. “Alright men, let's leave everything where it is and go get some dinner. Mr. Deadweight here can make up for being so damn slow today by hauling all of this crap back to the house,” Big Joe announced, referring to Yohji.

Yohji was left to figure out how to move all of the crates by himself. The most efficient way was to put crates into a wheel barrel two at a time along with the steel ball from his ankle and transport it that way. By the time he was done, the sun had completely gone down and only scraps of food were left at the table for him to eat. He went to bed hungry, curled up on his makeshift cot. Although many different emotions were coursing through his body, it was just time to sleep now. There was time to be angry and moody later.

Cora was in the master bedroom looking in the mirror and brushing her hair before bed, when she suddenly stopped. Something had been on her mind all day. Remembering the sound of Yohji begging her not to forgive him, not to forget her prejudice toward him, nor to show him any leniency, but to allow him to prove his own innocence haunted her. Crawford entered the room and she watched him in the mirror as he put on his night clothes. She wondered if her attempt to share the power of her household with a new spouse had weakened her judgment and over compromised her independent mind.

What would it really hurt to write a letter to Emperor Fujimiya? Looking in the mirror again she felt like a monster. She didn't want to be wrong. “No,” she whispered shook her head.

“What's that?” asked Master Bradley.

“Nothing dear,” the woman assured.

+++

The next day was just as terrible as the previous one for Yohji. However, one good thing had finally occurred and he tried not to take it for granted. The weather was usually hot and skin blistering, but today, an overcast sky shaded the slaves as they worked hard in the fields. A cool breeze occasionally whisked by and revitalized the blonde's body.

There was bout two hours worth of work left to be done when suddenly, the clouds began to grow dark and the wind picked up. The air smelled damp and everyone could tell that it was raining someplace nearby, probably just a few miles away. “Hey look,” someone pointed to the sky. There was a visible partition of where rain was falling and where it wasn't. They could see the partition come nearer and nearer before the oncoming rain was finally on top of them.

“Just great,” Big Joe slapped his knee and stood up from where he'd been kneeling in the fields. “Let's move out!”

Everyone was more than happy to abandon their work and seek shelter against the growing storm. Yohji was so weak and exhausted from carrying around the iron ball, not to mention the solo mission of wheeling all the produce in from the fields yesterday, that he just couldn't escape the rain as fast as the others. Instead, he slowly dragged his weighted leg while his clothes began taking on water. Eventually, he made it to the shed, but no one would let him in because he was soaking wet. Ordinarily, he would have fought for his right to enter, but the fight just wasn't in him anymore. So he dragged himself into the horse stables for shelter.

Yohji began taking off his clothes and wringing them out. He found a towel to cover a hay bail and sat on it while his clothes hung out to dry. Unfortunately, the blonde was forced to rip his pants in order to get them past his foot restraint. Mending them was just another chore to add to the long list of things he was expected to take care of. The idea of Ran popped into his head for just a moment before he forced himself to forget all about him. He considered it all a dream now and saw no purpose in tormenting himself with visions of the past.

Feeling as if he was being watched, the blonde slowly turned his head to the stable entrance. A woman in a cloak was standing there. She came near and Yohji could see that it was Lady Sorano. She peeled back the black hood from her head and stood in front of him. “I'll send it,” she said.

“Send what?”

Cora made a sigh of embarrassment for preparing to do something she felt was completely ridiculous. “I'll send a letter to the emperor.” A smile of rejoice spread across Yohji's face and it made her feel good inside, but part of her still felt so foolish about the whole thing that she couldn't allow herself to act happy too. “My husband is going into town tonight, I'll sneak you in the house and we can compose the letter at the desk in your old room. We should have enough privacy there.”

“Thank you, Mistress. Really,” the young man said softly.

“Of course,” Lady Sorano nodded, but this time she couldn't hold back the little grin that came to her lips.

+++

Ran was suited up and ready to go as he collected the last of his hunting gear and had it loaded onto a horse. “How many days will you be gone?” asked the redhead's mother. “When will you be back?”

“When I'm satisfied.”

“Well, shouldn't you be taking a hunting team with you?”

“Yes. I told you mother, we'll meet up at the edge of the woods. For now I'll just be escorted by one of my generals. Nothing to make a fuss about.”

“Men, such risk takers. What's fun about leaving civilized territory to go kill things out in the middle of the forest? What if freeze at night? What if you get eaten by a bear?!”

“Mother!”

“Alright, alright. Just be careful. Don't let any wolves bite you.”

“You're right, I hadn't thought of that,” the red haired man sarcastically agreed. His mother squinted her eyes at him. “Take care, mother dear. I'm off.”

+++

Back at the ranch, things weren't going too well for Yohji Kudou who had developed a near fatal case of dehydration. It was caused by the fact that none of the other slaves were giving him access to clean water. When he came to dinner, just like the barely there food, there was barely and water. And what was left had usually been spit in. No way was he drinking that. The only way he'd survived without water all this time was sneaking fruit that his body could absorb it from. When the doctor made a house call to check on Irma's strengthening condition, he was shocked to see what he believed to be a dead person outside the older woman's bedroom window. “Heavens! Lady Sorano, come quickly!”

When the woman came rushing to the doctor's side, he pointed to his discovery and she swooned, almost collapsing to the floor before being caught.

The doctor nudged Yohji with his foot. The boy's eyes were slightly open, but they weren't looking at him. “Yohji, can you hear me? It's Dr. Cain.”

“Yohji please speak!” Cora urged. “Give us a sign that you're alive.”

The blonde moved his lips slight although no sound emitted from them. He was given water and Cora retrieved a key so that the chain from his ankle could be removed. When the blonde was able to stand, the doctor helped him walk to the slave shed so that he could rest. “That's better,” announced Dr. Cain. “He should be fine soon.”

Yohji laid in his cot, drifting in and out of consciousness. Maybe he didn't need to escape anymore or wait for help to arrive by way of Ran. Maybe this was it, his final moments before passing away. He didn't want it to be true, but it seemed like such a real possibility now. Yohji looked at his foot, noting that the ball and chain had been replaced once they'd gotten him to the shed. How could any of this have happened?

“Time for some more water,” said Marie, one of the new servant girls. She had a pail of fresh, clean water with her. The curly haired brunette looked a lot like someone else that Yohji knew and it made him feel glad for a moment. “Sit up as far as you can.” Marie fed a ladle of water to the green eyed man. “What you keep staring at me for?”

“You…you look like a housemaid from…the palace.” Yohji said slowly, it was hard to speak.

The girl's face lit up. “Really?! Do the housemaids there where fancy clothes and things like every body says they do?”

“They wear make up too,” the blonde man grinned faintly.

“Bet you wish you stayed there, huh?”

“I'll be going back soon,” was the blonde's dreamy reply. “I wrote the Emperor a letter.”

“So,” the girl scoffed with her hands on her hips. She couldn't believe how serious the slave boy seemed to be. “Listen, unless the two of you were somehow madly in love with each other and desperate to be reunited, trust me, you aint goin' no where.”

“Then there's still a chance,” Yohji said after a moment. “He and I were…are very special to one another.” The blonde didn't feel he had to keep his relationship with Ran a secret at this moment and he really didn't want to. It felt good confessing their love for each other to someone else.

Marie just looked at him in a puzzling sort of way. “Of course he'll be coming for you,” she began. “I'll go get the tea and cakes ready, while you go put on something more suitable!” the girl teased. “Oh and I'll be sure to ask the Mistress to bring out her mother's fine China. Won't it just be grand?” Her sarcasm seemed to have no end.

The pleasant feeling that Yohji had when talking to Marie had instantly vanished. “You can leave now,” he said.

“Gladly.” The girl headed to the door before turning to face Yohji again. “Looks like dehydration isn't the only thing that's ailing you. It's seems like you've caught a case of the stupids as well. I should leave in case it's contagious.”

The green eyed man rested back on his cot, estimating how much time he had before he was forced to start working the fields again. He knew that once Master Bradley found out about all the attention he was getting due to his condition, the older man would take pride in making Yohji suffer in the fields. Just as the thought came to a close, two heavy black boots came into view.

“Hello, Yohji. Time to get back to work.”

+++

Just as Emperor Fujimiya left his home on horseback with General Morrison beside him, the mail came. The postman gave everything to a maid who delivered it to the emperor's desk, but no one was there to read it. Yohji's letter sat there with no hope of being opened anytime soon. But once Fujimiya and Morrison were far enough down the road, they changed direction and headed for the harbor instead of the edge of the woods. The fact that he hadn't received Yohji's letter was of little importance because he was on his way to the Sorano estate anyway. Something inside wouldn't let him rest until he saw the blonde man again. The psychic connection that loved ones share was telling him that something was wrong, although he didn't know it exactly. Something still just urged him to be by Yohji's side, and he knew the matter couldn't be put off. Somehow, he had to take this socially unacceptable risk and seek his lover in the countryside.

Once at the harbor, Ran dismounted from his horse and grabbed a traveling bag full of necessities. “Here is where I take my leave.”

“But, Sir, I still don't understand.”

“It's nothing that I can explain at the moment,” the redhead sighed. His amethyst eyes looked determined.

“Fine, but remember…if you aren't back within eight days I'll send out a search party!” the older man warned.

“As you should,” the emperor agreed. “It's time for me to board the ship now,” insisted Ran as he pulled on a simple looking cloak so that he would be recognized as the emperor and pestered by followers. Being formally escorted to his destination would be safer, but it would also expose his fondness for a former slave. Fujimiya's most trusted friend General Morrison couldn't even know the root of his secret mission.

+++

For two days, Yohji hung on by a thread, doing the same back breaking work each day. His productivity was slow and irregular due to the poor conditions he was forced to live under. It was so bad that even the other slaves began to notice, so they started to go easy on him. They left him extra food and didn't spoil his water anymore. But Crawford had really counted on them to keep alienating the blonde. So once he caught wind of the fact that they had began treating him slightly better, the man began creating special, more difficult jobs for Yohji to handle on his own. One night, Marie came out and sat on the back porch with the blonde. His general demeanor was in poor shape and it was her job to bandage all the areas on his body that had been carved into by a life of outdoor labor. For once, Yohji's hands really looked like that of a slave. Just a few more weeks and he would have the same numb, callused palms that everyone else did. His nails were full of grit and torn up at the ends and his knuckles were starting to turn a little raw.

The green eyed boy didn't say anything while Marie attempted to patch him up. There was no sense in wasting anymore of his words on her. All the girl would do is make fun. So he was surprised when she was the first to try to engage in conversation. “I'm supposed to tell you something important, you know.”

“Then tell me,” asked a tired voice.

“Well, not with that attitude,” the girl raised her eyebrows playfully, but Yohji was in no mood to play.

“Then don't tell me.”

Marie sighed while looking into Yohji's dull gaze. He could see her, but she could tell that his mind was too far gone to actually be looking and concentrating on her. “Master Crawford says that his offer for you to start going to culinary school is still open. All you have to do is start cooperating with him.” The blonde man made a snickering sound at the very proposal. “Oh that's right,” Marie began. Yohji could detect an attitude coming. “Your prince is coming for you on a white horse, isn't he?” The young man didn't answer back. “Well, I've got something else to tell you. You're a real brat for insulting Master Crawford by not taking his offer. All you have to do is start acting like a gentleman and you wouldn't have to be a regular slave anymore!”

“It's not nearly as simple or wonderful as you think. That man is treacherous, if you want to follow him around like hopeless fool, then be my guest. But one day Marie, I'm going to leave this place and it won't be through him! Now go tell your master that!”

The girl seemed very alarmed. She huffed for a moment thinking of a comeback, but nothing witty came to mind. “How rude!” she delivered instead. “Just rude!” She picked up the bandages and ointments that she'd brought out for Yohji and went back into the main house.

+++

When the redhead's ship came in and he reached Langdon Harbor, he felt immediately overwhelmed. In the past he'd gone on several trips without the luxury of a formal traveling team, but never had he been completely alone. No one was around to help him if he got into legal trouble. The first thing that came to mind was the case of mistaken identity that Yohji had faced before being sent to the palace.

After getting a better feel for his surroundings, Ran learned the name of the town he was in, Oddlesburg. He also began learning how to interact and behave the same way that everyone else around him did. The emperor bought a few things to eat, but upon tasting the food, nearly found himself in tears. When was the last time Yohji had cooked for him? He really missed his sweetheart.

Ran eventually found a business that specialized in driving people into the countryside. He was feeling very accomplished at this point, but his personal success was about to change dramatically. “I need to book a stage coach. I have an exact address to go to in the countryside,” the redhead informed a woman in charge of the carriage station. She kept looking at him a certain way. “What it is?” Ran asked. His patience with her was growing thin. “Do you inspect all of your clients with such scrutiny?”

“Please forgive me, Sir. It's just that I believe someone is here waiting for you. An older gentlemen who told me not to let you leave without him.”

“What? Who?!”

“That man, Sir,” pointed the woman. In the near distance was General Morrison.

“God dammit!” the red haired man exclaimed.

“Fujimiya!”

“Shhh! Don't give me away.”

“Sorry, sorry! I just…”

“What are you doing here? How have you been able to follow me?”

“I do apologize, but as one of your subjects, it's my duty to make sure that you are safe and well at all times. When I saw you get on that ship, I immediately found another to catch up with you. Do forgive me.”

Ran rubbed his eyes with one hand trying to think of a way to preserve his secret relationship with Yohji. Remembering safety procedures for a moment, he realized that Morssion knew all the details of his trip, which included his traveling path. “This makes things complicated.”

“I…I know what it is that you want to keep private. I've seen this sort of thing before. It's no news to me. And, if you're worried about me saying anything, you shouldn't be.”

“You know?” the redhead asked with wide eyes.

“Not if you don't want me to.”

Ran seemed puzzled. He'd been sure that everything he and Yohji shared had been kept very quiet. They'd taken many precautions to be discrete. And it wasn't the emperor's first secret affair. He'd done this sort of thing several times with maids, schoolmates, and even family friends in the past without ever being found out. But there was time to ponder this sort of thing later. Right now, the two of them had to get going.

A stir of excitement welled up in the emperor's stomach. Little butterflies floated around inside of him as the stage coach driver made him aware of the fact that they were almost at the ranch. What would it be like to see Yohji again? Would they politely shake hands and exchange in pleasant conversation before returning to their normal lives, or would they abandon the entrapment of civilized behavior by jumping into each other's arms and making love with their mouths for all the world to see? He hoped for the latter and prayed for even more.