This really wasn’t what he expected to wake up to.
Looking around Neal found himself on a king size bed surrounded by midnight blue curtains that he had to reach out to move aside to see the rest of the room.
As Neal reaches his arm out to do this he noticed a weight on his wrist. A cuff connected to a long chain attached to the bedpost.
“This….” He is quick to see the rest of his limbs cuffed as well. A bitter reminder of the night he had, the night that was no nightmare but reality.
A heavy feeling weighed deep in his chest making his stomach churn uncomfortably. His worries for the boy and the loneliness that came with the boys absence did not calm his heart.
“Just where am I?” Now he knows this is a different spot to where he has passed out. After all a bed, blankets and a gentle heat humming in the air it didn’t give off the same vibe as the other room at all.
Moving aside the curtain revealed a fair sized room. The walls and ceiling solid rock with candles long the bare walls. Two sections of the wall arched to form doors. One was open towards another room while the other was shut with a bright, round, red gem as the doorknob
Neal was quick to learn his limits as the chains pulled tight close to the closed door while remained slack as he headed through the other door to reveal what looked like a bathroom.
What seemed to be the sink or shower is like a fountain with the continuing flow of water from a hole in the wall that fell into the water below draining backwards on a tilt towards another hole at the bottom of the wall.
The toilet was pretty much a hole, but after getting so used to going anywhere due to traveling it really wasn’t that bad.
The situation on the other hand he had no idea how it was going to go. That asshat who took Azarias is impossible to do anything against. Never mind his weird fascination with touching him.
Looking down at himself he finally noticed the silk pajamas that had been placed on him in his sleep.
“This is…mixed signals….is he gonna kill me or not?” What was with the nice bed and clothes but cuffs???
Even if the front door was unlocked he wouldn’t be able to reach it while attached to the bed by the chains. It didn’t make much sense to Neal so he wasn’t sure how to prepare himself, he would need to learn more and find a chance to escape once he discovers what this guy did with Azarias
“Someone’s finally awake I see” Neal freezes upon hearing the voice and quickly goes to shut the door to the bathroom. The thick chain stops the door from fully closed and makes a sound in protest.
“Ah shit..right…” Instantly he wanted to run away from that guys groping but forgot he wasn’t exactly in a place where he had somewhere to go.
Taking a deep breath Neal makes his way out of the bathroom and instantly his eyes lay on the man sitting on the bed with the curtain pulled to the side. A smirk on his lips as he uncrossed his legs and leaned foreword.
He hasn’t bothered to follow Neal in the bathroom because he knew Neal had nowhere to go.
His relaxed manner did nothing to calm Neal, never mind the wag of a finger as he motioned him to come closer.
As soon as Neal was close enough he was grabbed and pulled onto the bed. His eyes widen unable to do anything as he was held tightly against the man. A cold chill quickly swallowing him whole as if heat never existed.
Neal shivers and barely registers a blanket being pulled over him. How quickly he felt in a daze from the chill, perhaps from shock of the sudden temperature change. Although it wasn’t nearly as bad as before when he couldn’t feel his limbs at all beyond pricks of pain from the cold.
“Your incredibly weak, so it’s beyond me how you hold so much power to you. No crystals or spells, yet an overwhelming charge of energy. Everything feels so refreshed each time I do it too but I notice you sleep like the dead when overexerted which was beyond annoying.” He begins to play with Neals hair, a smile in his voice.
” It seems I need to be rather gentle with you if I don’t want to suddenly lose you before I figure out what this is. Thus why you find yourself here instead of the usual place prisoners go…you would be dead in hours” He stated this calmly while running a hand along Neals Arm.
“Tell me, who are you? Where is it you come from?” The questions one the air finally brought Neal to speak, not enjoying the tightening on his arm when he remained quiet a bit to long.
“Neal…” he let this out quietly, not really sure how he was supposed to answer the other one. He would then need to explain how he got there and we’ll…that wasn’t possible.
The grip loosened but remained firm on Neals arm. Silence hanging in the room a moment.
” I need more details then that.”The voice was cold now, a chill going up Neals spine wanting just to roll away from this moody ass bitch. If he wanted information on Azarias, he needed to actually talk to this man.
“I..don’t know where I’m from exactly uh…where ever those big flowers grow.” Neal figured that would be better then saying oh I come from another world and it was after I fell off a building.
The grip tightened and Neals eyes glanced around nervously not sure how he could answer better. He knew nothing of the names of places in the world.
“Not that, your name” This kind of pissed off aura for a name? His last name meant nothing in this world it made no sense for why he would want it.
“Um..Neal Lixen?” Neal couldn’t understand why this was more important then his sad explanation of where he came from.
“That’s impossible…but I…” Mumbling could be heard from the man, not that it made much sense to Neal.
He was flipped over and pulled in tightly. A deep inhale and a nuzzle on the top of his head surprised Neal.
“No wonder you are so pleasant to touch. My one and only snuggle buddy.” The cold air grew warmer, only a slight pleasant coolness to the air.
” Snuggle buddy?” Was this guy sleep deprived?
A wetness falls onto Neals face and he looks up to see coal black eyes starring down back at him.
Watery and pouring a black liquid down his cheeks as his lip trembled.
“Neal…it’s me..Marshall. Well..Vidar now. Fuck I’ve missed you” he nuzzles his nose against a shocked looking Neals nose. A large grin on his face while a leg lifted to go over Neals legs and pull him in even closer to him.
“Yes…it’s me. We’re finally together again” A hand reaches out and cups Neals cheek, thumb gently wiping away a tear.
“You better not be fucking with me right now” Neal stated while shaking as if unable to contain the overflow of emotion hitting him.
The person he had let go was here, actually? This wasn’t a cruel prank right?
As he looked into his eyes he saw this was no joke and burst out crying. Completely forgetting about the situation the two friends cried and held each other in their reunion.Â
As that faded Neal looked to his chains and looks expectantly towards Vidar. Who looked to them with soft eyes.
“No worries, I won’t loose you again” With gentle care he takes off each cuff then gently rubs each area in an action to sooth it.
He then reaches into a tailcoat pocket and before Neal could blink he felt something soft and heavy on his wrist.
A cuff lined with black fur and a long thinner chain. The chain then vanished in a beam of light once a black stoned gem ring was placed on Vidars middle finger.
“Never ever again” the smile on Vidars face unsettled Neal.
“Marshall I…” Neal freezes as he sees Vidars smile change to a frown.
“Never call me that, I am Vidar now. Marshall is who I used to be, he is dead” He lifts Neals hand and plays with the cuff on his wrist.
“…Vidar… this cuff and chain thing can you take it off?” Now that he knew his friend was in there he couldn’t see why he would still lock him up like this.
“I told you. We will never be separated again, I’ll keep you safe right here by my side. Now no more on that let’s go”With that Neal gets pulled along out the door, not that he intended to get out of bed but the chain on his wrist pulled him along with Vidars movement.
Reluctantly Neal gets up so he can walk instead of being dragged out of here. To think all those years he followed Marshall around and he finds the need to chain him up.
How did this chain even work? Also why was it so much cooler and comfortable then those other ones. Ah is that the difference between prisoner and guest.
Well whatever it’s Marshall, surely theirs a reason and soon he can probably convince him to get this thing off. First though he needed to get information on Azarias whereabouts.
So he settled on just glaring at Vidars back, wondering just what his friend has gone through here to become this rather strange man. Otherwise he would have recognized his friend right away, well..at least in better circumstances.
“So Vidar I was wondering where the child you have is? He’s sort of my only companion here and I’m worried about him.” Perhaps he would have a change of heart now he know who Neal was and treat the boy better too.
Neal wasn’t the brightest here, trusting to much in his friendship with Marshall. The old Marshall.
Vidar stops walking.
“So you were close to that thing? Don’t worry about it, it’s far stronger then you are” with that he kept on walking, a cold breeze swept in and swallowed Neal whole. A heavy tension in the air.
“Marshall…..”
Crack!
A hole now sat in the spot Vidar had punched, broken pieces of stone laying on the floor around them.
” I said no calling me that name. I am really giving you chances here because you are my friend but… do you need punishment to learn?” Coal black eyes stare into Neals who’s breath hitches in his throat.
Just who…who was this? Marshall never gave him such a look even when he pushed him down the stairs Marshall looked regretful. But a mere mentioning of punishment and a strange unfamiliar look coming over those eyes warned Neal not to push further.
Neal debates on asking again, but it felt like whatever he did in that moment would piss him off even more.
What exactly was a punishment tho? His friend wouldn’t strap him up and stretch him out or some weird torturing crap like that? Curiosity swelled in Neal and with his own frustration and pettiness to being chained he spoke again.
“Marshall”
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