Forever Caged [Complete]

Chapter 20: Discovery


The night was crystal clear and it was pleasantly breezy. There was no hint of the storm that had frightened Arna so badly the night before, and he was all too thankful for it. Arna was standing in front of the open window, basking in the light the stars offered, thinking about tomorrow. He knew the demon would be after them, but they were safe here. It was the trip from here to home he was concerned about. He tested the bandages and found his stab wounds hurt a lot less. He was waiting for Reyvn to finish up whatever he was doing, and enjoying the peace while it lasted. The customers today had worn his nerves some.

Reyvn stepped into the room silently and shut the door behind him. His short wings sagged with the rest of his body, and he went to sit on the bed. Who knew cleaning utensils could be so tiring? Gods it had been a long day. He smiled softly at the redhead gazing out the window, then gently broke the silence. "What are you looking at?"

Arna was startled when Reyvn spoke, then turned to the boy and smiled. "Oh, nothing. It's just pretty outside. I hope it's this pretty when we get home."

The faint light the stars and moons cast down made Reyvn glow faintly, and Arna couldn't help but admire the way it accentuated his features. To Arna, Reyvn looked like some beautiful, mystical creature that beckoned you away from your world to spend eternity with it, like in the stories from his youth. He shook his head, smiling at the idea.

"So, how was your end of work today?" he asked. "The people are all butt-heads when they're sick. I hope nicer people come in tomorrow."

Reyvn nodded. "Mine was easier than yours, I imagine." He let out a breath, carefully laying down after removing the shirt he'd slipped on after breakfast that morning. His back tensed for a moment, then relaxed when he settled. "I wish these cuts would heal faster. How are yours doing?"

Arna shrugged. "They're alright I guess. Still hurts like hell though, but if I don't move too much, I'll be fine." A good breeze came through the window and Arna stretched out his arms. "Mmm, that feels amazing. If you're not in too much pain, you should come feel this." He looked back out the window, smiling as he got lost in a daydream.

"I can feel it from here," Reyvn said softly. His body still felt weak, and drained, and tired. He hadn't realized how much he'd been drained the other day, but now he was feeling the full effect of it. The gentle breeze flowing through the room relaxed him further, and he could feel himself start to lightly doze. He made his wings shrink and disappear, and sighed in relief.

Arna nodded and put his daydream on hold. He went to lay next to Reyvn, and asked, "Mind if I stay here again?" He seriously doubted he would, but he guessed it didn't matter. Once they got back home, he was probably going to only see Reyvn at suppertime anyway. But he wanted to make the best of it while he could.

Reyvn turned his head to look at Arna. "Sure. I like...sharing the bed with you." He gave a small smile, eyes closing again as his body demanded sleep.

Arna was overjoyed, but he tried to keep it contained. He held Reyvn close to him as the boy fell asleep, enjoying his warmth. He examined Reyvn's face again, and traced a fingertip along the gentle curve of his cheek. Those round, soft lips taunted Arna, but he couldn't muster up the strength to bend down and put his own to them. He was still somewhat embarrassed at his own callused roughness. He thought that someone as soft and delicate as Reyvn would never have an interest in him. He felt his own eyelids droop in need of sleep.

Reyvn turned his face into the soft touches, making a small sound. He shifted closer to Arna, enjoying the warmth as he nuzzled against his chest. He didn't understand why Arna seemed to care about him so much, or some of the odd reactions he got, or even why he felt safe and comfortable. He decided not to question, however, and simply enjoyed it while he could.

The small noise startled Arna some. He thought Reyvn had been asleep. Maybe he did that in his sleep? Arna gave it a moment's thought, and figured it was safe. Reyvn had to be asleep, he said he was worn out. He bent his head and gently pressed his lips against Reyvn's, sighing softly. He loved how soft the boy's lips were.

Reyvn's eyes snapped open, and he turned his face to look up at the other boy. Something warm tugged at his insides and he could feel his face grow hot, but his hands became cold. He didn't understand what it meant, and he didn't know whether he liked it. His pulse sped a little as he asked quietly, "Arna?"

Arna gasped in surprise and quickly pulled away. His cheeks were hot and his eyes were wide as he stammered, "I-I thought you w-were a-sleep." He sat up and looked away, trying to conceal his face. "I'm sorry. I'll leave."

Reyvn pushed himself partway off the bed, sliding his hand over Arna's before he thought about it. "No...Stay, please." He bit his bottom lip, thinking a moment. "Tell me why?"

Arna turned to face him, the surprise clear on his face. It then gave way to intense blushing. "I... I don't know really. I don't understand myself." The right words to express how he felt were playing games with him, just staying out of reach. "I don't understand," he repeated. He looked at Reyvn, hoping the boy would be able to fill in the blanks for him.

Reyvn made a confused face, and slowly slid his hand away. He looked down at the rumpled sheets, thinking. He'd never felt like this. His stomach tingled, and his hands were losing their cold feeling. "I don't understand either...But...I feel comfortable around you. Safe. Even though I know we're not."

Arna looked at Reyvn. "What do you mean? Of course we're safe. Ravis'd never let anyone in to hurt us." He decided the damage was done, and pulled Reyvn closer. "We'll be alright here." He didn't want to voice his concerns on the trip home. He was already confused enough, and he didn't want to make the air more tense than it already was. He knew that he couldn't protect Reyvn if he really wanted. The only thing he was good at was running.

"Don't think it's me you feel safe around... I haven't seen you enough for you to be sure of that... Before now, I only ever saw you at mealtimes or in the bath." Shoot, what was he saying? He wanted there to be qualities to make up for his roughness, his horrible sense of manners, his awkward clumsiness.

Reyvn let himself be pulled into the hug, and gingerly wrapped his arms around Arna. "But none of that matters," he whispered. "We'll be able to leave tomorrow, right?" A shiver ran through him, and his hold on Arna tightened. "I know he's hurt, but I can't help but fear Rendell will come after us."

Arna had to fight not to suck in a breath. Did his mind just get read? "Well... it's possible, but if we stay low and move fast, we won't be seen. I'll even carry you if you need it." He looked down at Reyvn. "Don't be too afraid. I mean, Rendell's tore up pretty bad. Even if he did catch us, I bet even I could knock him out." He flexed a wiry arm that didn't give much as far as muscle bulge.

Reyvn rested his head back on Arna's chest. "I guess so." A thought struck him then, and his body tensed. "But...He has shadow magick, and who knows what else. What if he's healed?" Fear washed anew over him, his skin growing cold. He clung to Arna, his body starting to shake. "I...I don't know if I could face him again."

Arna wrapped his arms around Reyvn a little more firmly and kissed him. "Hush, nobody could heal from anything that fast." He gently stroked Reyvn's cheek and smiled warmly. "Like I said, just stay low and move fast. We should be fine."

Reyvn blushed again, this time kissing back without thinking. He leaned his face into Arna's hand, and forced his body to still as he let out a breath. "Yeah, you're right." He gazed up at Arna for a moment, then moved forward to place a gentle kiss on his lips.

Arna was caught off guard when Reyvn kissed back, and even more surprised when he instigated the next kiss. His face was on fire, and his whole body tingled. How could such a soft, lithe, delicate thing have the power to make him feel something this strongly? He'd never felt this way before, and wanted more before it ended. He returned the kiss with a gentle passion.

Reyvn slid his hand up to Arna's face as he continued to kiss him, slipping his tongue between their lips quickly before pulling back a little. He repositioned himself so he wasn't leaning so awkwardly, then let his eyes close as he leaned forward to continue. He loved the way Arna kissed and touched him, kind and uninvading. So different from the pain everyone else inflicted on him. He wanted to hold onto it.

Arna held Reyvn close and let his tongue dance a little with the requiem's. His head was swimming with this feeling, and it was starting to slowly seep into the rest of his body. His hands slid down Reyvn's sides slowly, and stopped above his hips before pulling him onto his lap. "Uh... I... think... we... better... stop," he said between kisses.

Reyvn moaned softly into Arna's mouth as hands slid down his sides. He enjoyed the light, firm touches, and let his body be pulled into Arna's lap. He was letting the sensations get the better of him before Arna spoke. He forced himself to pull his face back, then licked his lips. He realized his body had heated up a few degrees, then blushed and nodded. "Y-yeah," he said quietly as he slid away from the other boy. He didn't want to, but he knew both of them were too injured to go further, and he didn't want to worsen their conditions. He slid under the covers, and started to carefully lay down. He held the sheets up while he turned a soft smile to Arna.

Arna was all too happy to slide under with him. He put an arm around Reyvn and chuckled. "I've never seen you smile like that before. It's really cute," he said.

Reyvn's face went blank with sudden confusion. "Cute? Wait, smile like what?"

Arna chuckled and kissed Reyvn lightly. "Like that. You smile like that and it looks really cute." He was overjoyed that Reyvn had received his feelings, whatever they were. He had never been this happy being near anyone like this.

Reyvn scrunched his face. "All right," he muttered. He snuggled close to Arna, burying his head in the other boy's chest. He still didn't get what Arna meant, but he decided to stop prodding in favor of sleeping. They had another long day awaiting them.

---

The sun shone through the window with a fiery rage, and Arna thought it was hell-bent on not letting him sleep through whatever time he had left for sleeping. He knew in about an hour or so, Ravis would come and wake them. It was the slow day in the week, so they were allowed to sleep in for a bit. He turned his head to face Reyvn, and his heart went aflutter. He still didn't get why he felt this way, but it felt right, and seeing Reyvn lying in his arms with a halo of sunlight made him certain of it.

Reyvn snuggled further into Arna's arms to hide from the light blazing through the window. He made a soft noise before his eyes cracked open. He saw bandaged pale skin and freckles before him, and quickly turned his head up. His eyes met with Arna's, and he couldn't help but smile as he remembered the night before. "Morning," he said softly.

"Morning," Arna smiled. He kissed Reyvn's forehead and said, "Last day. Want to stay one more night to heal up or do we want to leave as soon as possible?"

Reyvn blushed, then thought about it for a minute. He knew the smart thing would be to stay an extra day to recover more, but he still didn't completely trust Ravis, or Arna's words that Rendell couldn't get them here. "I think we should leave before sundown."

Arna nodded in agreement. "Yeah, the sooner the better." He kicked the covers back, and stretched a little. "Man it's hot in the morning." He didn't really want to get up because Reyvn was there, but he was burning up. Perhaps, he thought, a cold bath is in order. They had a while yet, didn't they? "Hey, wanna go take a bath? I'm burning up and I'm sure your bandages could use changing."

Reyvn sat up, stretching. "Sure. These things are starting to stick again anyway." He yawned, and held a hand over his mouth to cover it.

A little while later, Arna was behind the receptionist desk, taking in customers merrily. The bath had gone well, and breakfast was delicious, and soon they would be going home. Things seemed to be going so well that his only real concern was how Cherry would take to losing her toy to Reyvn. It wasn't any real mystery. Reyvn was prettier, smarter, more well mannered than her, and he had something that drew Arna to him that Cherry would never have, let alone understand. He wanted to go home and spend time with Reyvn without worrying about prying eyes and ears, and it made the day drag on.

---

Meanwhile, Rendell was wrapping up his own bandages. He was doing much better, albeit stiff. His wounds were considerably smaller now, and he was quite impressed. The old veran did know what he was doing.

"Hey, Koumori. When do you suppose we should start the hunt?" He figured that like himself, Koumori was a night person.

Koumori had pulled a book from Rendell's library, and was sitting in a nearby chair as he skimmed through it. His liquid-fire hair was pulled back into a plain ponytail, and he was dressed in soft tans and greens. Without looking up at Rendell, he said, "About sundown. Now that you and I have an active blood link, and what with that partially effective bind spell on Reyvn, finding him will be easy." He turned the page in the book, made a face, then looked up at the demon. "You have all this information on alchemy and yet you don't seem to use any of it. Why?"

Rendell shrugged. "I intend to get to those books eventually. I'm frivolous like that." He turned and strode to Koumori, then began reading over his shoulder. "I buy books that look pretty, and then they sit on my shelf for ages. Hmm... That does look useful."

"Because it is." A complex circular symbol was displayed on the page, with many runes and star shapes written inside it. "It's a bind spell. You draw it on the ground and whatever's inside can't escape. Works on everything but the Ysai. It also requires a few rare compounds, but it's unbreakable once you have it set. Only the maker can open the seal." He smiled, glancing behind him at Rendell. "It'd work very nicely on Reyvn. Except, you have to get it very precise. One little mistake and it won't be hard for someone else to open it." He went back to the book, skimming the next several pages. "The lovely thing though is that you can keep going back to change it."

Rendell nodded. He thought about it for a minute, and then he remembered the potion Koumori mentioned the night before. "By the way, you said you had something that would make the boy beg for me. My skills with delicate magicks are... well hell, I'm a clumsy barbarian by comparison. Do you think that'd be easier for one such as myself to use things like that?"

"Potions you mean? Probably. Though with as good as you are with your shadows, as long as you have the symbols memorized you could probably have them lay it all down for you and it'd be accurate. I saw that harness you made." Koumori shut the book, content with the information he got from it. "Though honestly once you have that boy broken to your will, there'll hardly be any need to lock him up. Speaking of which, do you want the spell I used to seal his wings, or would you rather leave them free so you can have your twisted fun?"

Rendell laughed. "You've learned me well already." A tendril snaked from between the books, and he caressed and petted it lovingly, as though it were a cat. "It is not my own skill with the darkness, though. It is simply the fact that we agree with each other." The shadowy wisp circled Rendell's lips, and he slipped his tongue out so it could have something to play with. He let it tease for a moment before saying, "It has a mind all its own. Right now, we both agree that the boy is quite a bit of fun. Your actions last night made the shadows hunger for something more... what's the word... exotic?"

Koumori slid the book back into the slot he pulled it from, then turned to face Rendell. "I thought that darkness was your aura? It certainly seems to echo your own emotions closely enough, and I can even battle it with my own aura."

Rendell nodded. "Yes people assume that all too often. You see, I communicate to the darkness through my aura. If I let it directly into me, the darkness would consume me. Think of my aura as a condom." He continued petting the shadowy wisp, and said, "I could fight with my own aura, but I'm far stronger and have a wider variety of abilities with this." Rendell let himself disappear into the wisp, and then reappeared standing on the ceiling in a darker corner of the library. "For instance, it allows me to travel quickly."

Koumori raised a brow as the demon faded, and quickly turned to face him as he rematerialized on the ceiling. He chuckled. "Very nifty. I suppose I should also mention that with our link, our powers are also shared." He held a hand out, coaxing a shadow to him. It played through his fingers, then slithered up his arm and stopped. It spun away suddenly, then the tip sharpened and aimed at Rendell. "I could make it attack you right now, though I think it favors you over me." He grinned, and the shadow receded. "Try borrowing my fire."

Rendell concentrated, and made sparks appear around his hands. "Very cool. What all else could I do now?" He dropped and landed on his feet. "This could be very useful, like there are two of us."

Koumori laughed. He turned his palm up, and fire swirled out of it. He held out his other hand, and the fire turned into a rope between them. He released one end, then lashed it at Rendell. It dissipated in a mass of heat before it touched the demon. "Things like that. You also gain my increased strength and jumping abilities. I think we'll need to go outside to truly test the limitations of what we can do."

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Enamoril: I like abuse in my breakfast too. x3 You got me and Ember laughing our asses off at your review. Thanks a lot! And there's more abuse to come.

Also, thanks everyone for all the ratings! Even if you don't review it's really nice to see that so many people like this story. Although, I do prefer a review, because I like to know what my readers think.
Actually, what do you all think of Arna? Just for curiosity's sake.