The Tangled Web He Weaves
folder
Original - Misc › -Slash - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult +
Chapters:
4
Views:
2,409
Reviews:
23
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Category:
Original - Misc › -Slash - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult +
Chapters:
4
Views:
2,409
Reviews:
23
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance of characters to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The Author holds exclusive rights to this work. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited.
To Bend a Wayward Path
A/N: Oh man, uploading a new chapter is always so nerve-wracking, you're never sure if it's good enough. Anyways, the long awaited chapter 4 is up. Sorry smut lovers, not much in this one, but I can assure you that the story is about to get very interesting. Character developments and all :)
Please continue to rate and R/R, I want your feedback!
To those who did review thank you so much for taking the time to do so. It’s your feedback that really keeps me going.
Silent Readers, lol (that’s what I’ll call you guys who read and don’t review), feel free to keep reading silently, but I really want to hear what you guys think as well!
Now onto chapter 4!
Chapter 4: To Bend a Wayward Path
Ryo had long released Talon from his bonds, and Talon was free to treat himself to a frugal meal (left over mashed potatoes from the night before), before he would tend to the stains of blood that had spotted the sofa cushion earlier that day.
Water and suds rocked slowly in the plastic basin as Talon lugged the pail into the living room. Talon knelt down before the sofa, and dove his hand into the wash, seeking the sponge veiled by the thick froth of bubbles.
As he scrubbed, he tried to brush off the situation as simply being a good host. Though he hated to admit it, Ryo was right after all, the guest of the house had to be provided for. Such was the job of a host, a position Talon now felt he had been forced into in every which way.
Talon could recall the phone conversation he had had with Ryo the night prior, the one that had gotten him into this situation in the first place.
Talon dropped the sponge into the pail, and went to the washroom, now seeking the blow dryer. For some reason, he felt it was almost his duty to help the demon to steer his life in the right direction…or at least as close to the right direction as physically possible. The only problem being, he didn’t know where to begin.
Talon knelt before the sofa again and began the tedious task of drying the cushion. He wondered how he could provide for this house guest and at the same time maintain his regular routine, especially if he was constrained to Ryo’s demanding schedule. He had a life too, he had planned with Taïga and the rest of the varsity team to start up practices again for the upcoming Hockey season, there was a party coming up on Tuesday (which also seemed to have been planned on his birthday), he and Korin were going to dinner on Wednesday, and then he had to volunteer for the Peewee Kiddy Kup soccer tournament on Thursday, during which his cousin Colin would be playing.
"This isn’t going to work out.” He said turning off the blow dryer.
“What won’t work out?” Ryo said. He had emerged from the guest bedroom, and was striding into the living room.
He was clad in a fitted white dress shirt, with a skinny black tie, masterfully layered with an obnoxiously bright yellow button up cardigan, and contrasted with a dark sports jacket, with trim dark jeans and ankle boots. Talon opened his mouth.
“Oh, I’m going out.” Ryo said answering Talon’s question before it could escape his lips. “I got bored after you left to get groceries, so I walked around, and met up with some people from the sixth floor. They invited me to go clubbing. Everyone’s so nice here. D’you know they asked me if I was a model?”
Throughout the past year of living in the condominium, Talon had yet to be invited to go to an outing with these strangers from the sixth floor, not that he cared much. Typical Ryo, he could go anywhere knowing no one, yet somehow by the end of the night everyone would have at least heard of him.
“Wanna come?” Ryo offered.
“I’m tired. I think I’ll just chill here.” Talon declined, not exactly eager to go out looking like someone had punched him in the mouth.
“Suit yourself. If you want,” Ryo began deviously. “I can bring you back something…someone?”
“I don’t need help in that area, thanks. Besides, people aren’t things.”
“I know that… but they do make good prey.” The demon grinned, flashing fangs.
Prey, that’s how Ryo saw him. A fruit to be tasted. A subservient being to be dominated.
Some friend.
Talon frowned in a display of disapproval. The power Ryo seemed to dangle over him was frustrating; the fact that Talon’s frustration only brought Ryo amusement was even more frustrating. It made Talon want to hire an exorcist; then again, Ryo would probably end up fucking them.
“…Man, you’re being so dull, it’s torture.” Ryo was saying, as he crossed the room to the door. He lifted the spare keys from their place on the hook on the wall, and stowed them away in his pocket. Turning to Talon, he said, “So?”
“So, what?”
“You said something wouldn’t work out?”
“It’s your visit; it’s really messing up my schedule.”
“It doesn’t have to.” Ryo said simply, now absorbed in his own reflection in the full-body mirror that dually served as the closet door.
“I start training at the rink tomorrow; I have a party on Tuesday, a date with Korin on Wednesday, and my cousin’s soccer game on Thursday—
“Relax, overachiever, no big deal.”
Talon eyed the incubus, who only continued to observe himself, now from varied angles. “I can’t just excuse myself from every event I attend using ‘Oh sorry, I gotta go feed my houseguest’ as an out.”
“So, I like dates, and I like athletes.”
“You like anything and anyone. And the athletes at the soccer game range from seven to ten years old.”
“Oh…ew. We can skip that one then.”
“Who said you’d be going to any of them?”
“If you have any other options, I’d like to hear them.”
Talon had none. Ryo was persuasive, and Talon despised that about him. He would probably make a good politician.
“…Fine.” Talon said finally. He considered the proposal; perhaps having Ryo around wouldn’t be such a bad thing. Talon could force him to help with the soccer game; there was a demand for more volunteers after all.
“Just make sure you behave.” Talon said.
“When have I ever misbehaved?” Ryo opened the door. It was at that very moment that Talon knew things would go awry.
--
It was nearly dawn; Talon was huddled beneath his blankets on the summer night when his phone rang. Vibrations from his cell hummed through his slumber, slowly leaking through his consciousness. Roused from sleep, he reached out an arm still heavy from lethargy and felt around blindly for his phone. The arm was retracted back into the mess of blankets and Talon brought the phone to his ear.
“Hello?” He grumbled into the receiver, without opening his eyes.
“Talon!” The voice on the other end sounded thrilled. Talon flinched away from the phone.
“What--R-Ryo?”
“The one and only.” Talon could hear it, the smug smirk just echoed in his voice.
Talon jerked fully out of sleep and sat up, only he did so too quickly; his head hit the bedpost. He let out a yelp of pain.
“That excited to hear from me, huh? I didn’t know you missed me that much.” He sounded flattered and Talon didn’t bother to disillusion him.
Talon rubbed the back of his head. It had been almost a year since he had last heard from the incubus. He thought to ask a multitude of questions: Where have you been all this time? What have you been up to? Where are you now? Why are you calling now after all this time? What…do you need me to get you out of trouble again?
Of all of the questions swimming around his mind, Talon only voiced one: “Do you have any idea what time it is?!”
“Four fifty.” Ryo said at once. There was a short pause before he started up again, his tone serious. “…I took your advice. So, now what?”
“What?” Talon didn’t follow.
“I’ve decided that I want to leave my old lifestyle behind. But…what do I do now?”
Talon was at a loss for words. He had thought the demon hadn’t taken his words to heart, and was almost certain he would never hear from him again. Now Talon felt slightly responsible for the dilemma the demon had found himself in at the moment. Ryo knew no other way of life; it probably would have been easier to keep to the wayward path he had been following for the majority of his life.
“Talon?” Ryo’s voice came again, almost tentatively, wrenching Talon from his train of thought. Talon wondered if he was still speaking to the same person on the phone.
“…Yeah?”
Another pause. “I think I need…your help.”
Perhaps it was the lateness of the hour, or the bump to head, but that night, Talon had felt compelled to suggest Ryo stay with him, just for the week. At the time it seemed like the only humane thing to do. At the time it felt like his responsibility.
--
A/N: Thank you for reading. Hopefully it wasn't too confusing at the end there. Feel free to show your support and give me your opinions on the story thus far!! :)
Please continue to rate and R/R, I want your feedback!
To those who did review thank you so much for taking the time to do so. It’s your feedback that really keeps me going.
Silent Readers, lol (that’s what I’ll call you guys who read and don’t review), feel free to keep reading silently, but I really want to hear what you guys think as well!
Now onto chapter 4!
Chapter 4: To Bend a Wayward Path
Ryo had long released Talon from his bonds, and Talon was free to treat himself to a frugal meal (left over mashed potatoes from the night before), before he would tend to the stains of blood that had spotted the sofa cushion earlier that day.
Water and suds rocked slowly in the plastic basin as Talon lugged the pail into the living room. Talon knelt down before the sofa, and dove his hand into the wash, seeking the sponge veiled by the thick froth of bubbles.
As he scrubbed, he tried to brush off the situation as simply being a good host. Though he hated to admit it, Ryo was right after all, the guest of the house had to be provided for. Such was the job of a host, a position Talon now felt he had been forced into in every which way.
Talon could recall the phone conversation he had had with Ryo the night prior, the one that had gotten him into this situation in the first place.
Talon dropped the sponge into the pail, and went to the washroom, now seeking the blow dryer. For some reason, he felt it was almost his duty to help the demon to steer his life in the right direction…or at least as close to the right direction as physically possible. The only problem being, he didn’t know where to begin.
Talon knelt before the sofa again and began the tedious task of drying the cushion. He wondered how he could provide for this house guest and at the same time maintain his regular routine, especially if he was constrained to Ryo’s demanding schedule. He had a life too, he had planned with Taïga and the rest of the varsity team to start up practices again for the upcoming Hockey season, there was a party coming up on Tuesday (which also seemed to have been planned on his birthday), he and Korin were going to dinner on Wednesday, and then he had to volunteer for the Peewee Kiddy Kup soccer tournament on Thursday, during which his cousin Colin would be playing.
"This isn’t going to work out.” He said turning off the blow dryer.
“What won’t work out?” Ryo said. He had emerged from the guest bedroom, and was striding into the living room.
He was clad in a fitted white dress shirt, with a skinny black tie, masterfully layered with an obnoxiously bright yellow button up cardigan, and contrasted with a dark sports jacket, with trim dark jeans and ankle boots. Talon opened his mouth.
“Oh, I’m going out.” Ryo said answering Talon’s question before it could escape his lips. “I got bored after you left to get groceries, so I walked around, and met up with some people from the sixth floor. They invited me to go clubbing. Everyone’s so nice here. D’you know they asked me if I was a model?”
Throughout the past year of living in the condominium, Talon had yet to be invited to go to an outing with these strangers from the sixth floor, not that he cared much. Typical Ryo, he could go anywhere knowing no one, yet somehow by the end of the night everyone would have at least heard of him.
“Wanna come?” Ryo offered.
“I’m tired. I think I’ll just chill here.” Talon declined, not exactly eager to go out looking like someone had punched him in the mouth.
“Suit yourself. If you want,” Ryo began deviously. “I can bring you back something…someone?”
“I don’t need help in that area, thanks. Besides, people aren’t things.”
“I know that… but they do make good prey.” The demon grinned, flashing fangs.
Prey, that’s how Ryo saw him. A fruit to be tasted. A subservient being to be dominated.
Some friend.
Talon frowned in a display of disapproval. The power Ryo seemed to dangle over him was frustrating; the fact that Talon’s frustration only brought Ryo amusement was even more frustrating. It made Talon want to hire an exorcist; then again, Ryo would probably end up fucking them.
“…Man, you’re being so dull, it’s torture.” Ryo was saying, as he crossed the room to the door. He lifted the spare keys from their place on the hook on the wall, and stowed them away in his pocket. Turning to Talon, he said, “So?”
“So, what?”
“You said something wouldn’t work out?”
“It’s your visit; it’s really messing up my schedule.”
“It doesn’t have to.” Ryo said simply, now absorbed in his own reflection in the full-body mirror that dually served as the closet door.
“I start training at the rink tomorrow; I have a party on Tuesday, a date with Korin on Wednesday, and my cousin’s soccer game on Thursday—
“Relax, overachiever, no big deal.”
Talon eyed the incubus, who only continued to observe himself, now from varied angles. “I can’t just excuse myself from every event I attend using ‘Oh sorry, I gotta go feed my houseguest’ as an out.”
“So, I like dates, and I like athletes.”
“You like anything and anyone. And the athletes at the soccer game range from seven to ten years old.”
“Oh…ew. We can skip that one then.”
“Who said you’d be going to any of them?”
“If you have any other options, I’d like to hear them.”
Talon had none. Ryo was persuasive, and Talon despised that about him. He would probably make a good politician.
“…Fine.” Talon said finally. He considered the proposal; perhaps having Ryo around wouldn’t be such a bad thing. Talon could force him to help with the soccer game; there was a demand for more volunteers after all.
“Just make sure you behave.” Talon said.
“When have I ever misbehaved?” Ryo opened the door. It was at that very moment that Talon knew things would go awry.
--
It was nearly dawn; Talon was huddled beneath his blankets on the summer night when his phone rang. Vibrations from his cell hummed through his slumber, slowly leaking through his consciousness. Roused from sleep, he reached out an arm still heavy from lethargy and felt around blindly for his phone. The arm was retracted back into the mess of blankets and Talon brought the phone to his ear.
“Hello?” He grumbled into the receiver, without opening his eyes.
“Talon!” The voice on the other end sounded thrilled. Talon flinched away from the phone.
“What--R-Ryo?”
“The one and only.” Talon could hear it, the smug smirk just echoed in his voice.
Talon jerked fully out of sleep and sat up, only he did so too quickly; his head hit the bedpost. He let out a yelp of pain.
“That excited to hear from me, huh? I didn’t know you missed me that much.” He sounded flattered and Talon didn’t bother to disillusion him.
Talon rubbed the back of his head. It had been almost a year since he had last heard from the incubus. He thought to ask a multitude of questions: Where have you been all this time? What have you been up to? Where are you now? Why are you calling now after all this time? What…do you need me to get you out of trouble again?
Of all of the questions swimming around his mind, Talon only voiced one: “Do you have any idea what time it is?!”
“Four fifty.” Ryo said at once. There was a short pause before he started up again, his tone serious. “…I took your advice. So, now what?”
“What?” Talon didn’t follow.
“I’ve decided that I want to leave my old lifestyle behind. But…what do I do now?”
Talon was at a loss for words. He had thought the demon hadn’t taken his words to heart, and was almost certain he would never hear from him again. Now Talon felt slightly responsible for the dilemma the demon had found himself in at the moment. Ryo knew no other way of life; it probably would have been easier to keep to the wayward path he had been following for the majority of his life.
“Talon?” Ryo’s voice came again, almost tentatively, wrenching Talon from his train of thought. Talon wondered if he was still speaking to the same person on the phone.
“…Yeah?”
Another pause. “I think I need…your help.”
Perhaps it was the lateness of the hour, or the bump to head, but that night, Talon had felt compelled to suggest Ryo stay with him, just for the week. At the time it seemed like the only humane thing to do. At the time it felt like his responsibility.
--
A/N: Thank you for reading. Hopefully it wasn't too confusing at the end there. Feel free to show your support and give me your opinions on the story thus far!! :)