roneal | (no subject)

"I can cook," he spits out, a bit too fast. That sounds easy enough, with one job out of those Jade mentioned that he can already do well. He knows nothing about gardening, but that can't be too hard and working all day would definitely keep his mind off darker thoughts. "I'm not very entertaining, though. I think you already knew that."

It's the only part that makes him suspicious. How exactly is he supposed to entertain anyone? Maybe Jade's friends like to be glared at? No, that seems plenty unlikely. Any other ideas Shinjirou got about this entertainment he's supposed to provide send shivers down his spine and they're not of the pleasant kind. It doesn't help that there's too many pairs of eyes staring at him in the meantime.

With his hands restrained behind his back, he can't protect himself from their leery glances. Keeping his own eyes firmly set on Jade helps, thankfully. "So what am I supposed to do for your guests? Can't dance or sing, you know."

"What can you do?" Jade returns, having no intention of divulging his plans so soon. "Surely you don't spend all your time cooking."

They're at the outskirts of the market by now, joining the trickle of people who had finished their shopping. Many of them have a freshly-bought slave in tow, sometimes more than one, but unlike Shinjirou, those slaves walk with their heads low and their mouths sealed. Jade watches, expressionless, as one of the masters shoves his slave into a waiting car, climbing in right afterwards. Judging by the sounds emanating from the vehicle, it would seem like he's decided to enjoy his new purchase right then and there.

"I beat people up. Doubt your guests find that a lot of fun." It's not a very slave thing to do and those close enough to hear his suggestion make sure to distance themselves from Jade and him. Shinjirou, of course, hardly minds.

The breath of fresh air is nice and cool on his hot skin. Sitting pressed against a dozen other guys in a room full of people isn't a lot of fun if you need to breathe. Shinjirou closes his eyes for a short moment, but his nakedness prevents him from imagining he's going to be left alone now.

"And you damn well know what else I can do."

"Nothing else? How disappointing." But he's grateful for it. Simple, straightforward people are easy to deal with. He hasn't forgotten how painfully sincere Shinjirou had been on that first morning after - Jade doesn't fear waking up to a knife in the back, not from him.

He opens the door to his car, ushering Shinjirou inside. There's a light blanket waiting on the seat. Unless Shinjirou protests, Jade drapes it around his shoulders before buckling him in, leaving his hands cuffed. He's not about to risk any incidents while on the road.

"Nah, nothing else. There's a reason I was that cheap."

He doesn't even know how long he's been naked, with no clocks around to check the time. It's great that he's finally not completely bare to everyone's eyes any longer, even if the state of his body is still something out of his control. Looking out of the window as they drive away, he tries to find out where the hell they are -- but no, he's not familiar with the district.

"And you know, you can always throw me out. No hard feelings."

"I'm afraid not." Ever the responsible citizen, he keeps his eyes on the road. He doesn't bother concealing the route. Shinjirou wouldn't want to return to the market anyway, and he's already familiar with the area around Jade's house. It would be easy for him to disappear if he escapes; which makes it all the more important to secure him inside the house properly.

He considers explaining further, but rejects the idea. There would be plenty of time for that later. For now, he'd rather have some fun. "Surely you don't believe I'm that generous."

"No, not really." He catches himself grinning just in time and quickly puts on a less good-natured face. Chewing on the insides of his cheek, he sinks deeper into the seat, no longer caring about the roads outside the window once he's able to orient himself.

Just sitting around on his bare ass gets boring fast, unfortunately, and his mouth opens before he thinks his words through. "Didn't think you'd be lazy enough to rely on whips to get what you want. Doesn't that just take the fun out of things?"

His behaviour is almost endearing. Jade smirks, even as he wonders if he had made a mistake in choosing Shinjirou. Things are always so much difficult when emotions such as fondness come into play, particularly in his line of work. But he's confident in his ability to compartmentalise, to be manipulative and ruthless as necessary.

He'll have to teach Shinjirou to hold his tongue eventually, but for now, Jade indulged him. "There's no reason to turn down a free gift. Besides, I was hoping to use it as positive reinforcement instead."

It's a pity the blanket isn't wrapped around his head and therefore unable to muffle his gasp and hide the color rising to his cheeks. Maybe it's not an advantage at all that Jade knows him intimately already. Too late to undo that night -- and that damn morning, with him sober and still so easy to read. Easy to lead, with the right approach.

He fidgets and stays unnaturally quiet for a bit, staring at the buildings rushing past them. "If you like having things for free, why didn't you just pick someone up? Too exhausting or what?"

Edited 2014-09-23 15:15 (UTC)

He hadn't been entirely certain if Shinjirou would find the idea appealing, but his reaction tells him everything he needs to know. Jade smirks again, but refrains from saying anything, concentrating on the drive instead.

By the time Shinjirou speaks again, they've almost arrived. He parks and switches off the engine before he replies.

"I'd like to see where you can find a free housekeeper." Jade reaches out, running two gloved fingers along the edge of Shinjirou's collar. "Don't forget why you're here."

"Tch. Pretty sure you're going to remind me of that should I ever forget." His seller would shake his head at him staring right back with a dark grin on his lips, but that guy is far, far away now. Thank God. Jade isn't half as annoying. He's actually kind of--

With a snap he turns his head away, pulling his shoulders up in an attempt to shove Jade's hand away. "So let's get home, so I can start vacuuming the living room or whatever." And get out of the cuffs. They've been bothering him for a while now and hey, you can't clean with your hands bound behind your back.

Still smiling, Jade allows Shinjirou to have his space, at least for the moment. He unbuckles him from the seat and takes hold of the chain again, leading him into the house. The whip dangled casually from his other hand.

The garage is clean, but the interior the house is spotless. If Shinjirou bothers to glance out of a window, he'll see that the "garden" is little more than a flat lawn, already mowed and just as immaculate as the inside of the house.

Jade shuts the door and locks it.

"I'm going to release you now. I do hope you're not planning on making a break for it." He knows he can overpower Shinjirou, but having to fight is always such a bother, especially when it's against someone he'd rather maintain a cordial relationship with.

With quick, precise movements, he steps behind Shinjirou and unlocks the handcuffs, allowing them to clatter to the floor.

Even if he were interested in escaping already, he wouldn't try anything: running out onto the streets without clothing is always a dumb idea. Docile as he can be, he waits until he hears the cuffs meet the floor before he moves. Lifting his hands up to his face, he investigates them for any cuts or bruises the restraints might have left on him. Looks fine to him.

Rubbing his wrists, he turns to face Jade, one eyebrow raised. "Doesn't look like there's anything to do for me here. Uhm. Apart from making dinner? That gonna be my first task?"

Shinjirou taps his fingers against the collar, pushing one beneath the leather. It's not too tight and he doesn't have the key to unlock it anyway. He can deal with a bit of collar and leash, he guesses, and drops his hands down to his sides. In a way the leather clinging to his skin is reassuring, not that he'd admit to it.

Shinjirou might seem docile, but Jade doesn't relax yet. It would be foolish (or desperate) for him to make a break for it as soon as he was free. It's more likely that he'll wait until Jade's guard is down.

At the question, he raises an eyebrow in return. "What are you talking about? The floor hasn't been vacuumed today yet."

He bends down to pick up the handcuffs, placing them on a nearby shelf along with the whip. Then he slips off his shoes and pulls at the length of chain again, tugging Shinjirou deeper into the house.

"I assume you're familiar with the place. At least, I hope you are. You'll be cleaning all of it everyday, except for my study. I can take care of that myself."

He doesn't keep anything sensitive within easy reach, but he does have a meticulous organization system in place, and he'd rather not risk having that be disturbed.

"Are you a student?" He asks suddenly.

In his opinion, the floor is void of any dust. Everything looks like ... well, like Jade already has a housekeeper. If he doesn't and did all the cleaning up himself, then he can't be half as lazy as Shinjirou thought he was. He tries to find a spot that isn't clean as he stumbles into the house, books or clothes lying around, but there's nothing.

"Yes, I'm familiar with it." Actually, he's having some not so chaste flashbacks. Hugging himself, as if it could contain his thoughts, he shrugs. "Okay, no study. Got that."

He wonders if he's allowed to sit down. Or what the rules in this game, job, whatever, what they even are. Is he supposed to find out by trial and error? He's not very good at not making mistakes and he doesn't want to make the learning curve too steep for himself, just because he's a fuck-up.

Jade takes him out of his worries with a question Shinjirou really didn't expect. His eyes widen, but then he snorts. "I'm not going to school."

"Hmm." He supposes he'll have to find some other way for Shinjirou to spend his free time. But it's good that he isn't a student; this way, there's less chance that someone is searching for him. He plans to keep Shinjirou confined inside for the foreseeable future, but it's always good to have less things to worry about.

For now, though, he threads his fingers through Shinjirou's hair, tugging sharply. "Stand up straight, arms at your side." He instructs in a clipped staccato, devoid of his previous amusement. "I'll tell you when you can act naturally. Right now, we really need to work on your discipline."

The hand in his hair makes him drop his guard for a second, letting both uncertainty and excitement shine through. Before he can put his angry facade back on, Jade's voice cuts into the heavy silence.

Without thinking about it -- he's too surprised to snap at Jade and disobey -- he drops his hands to his side, jerking up straight. He does frown once the first shock at the sudden change in tone has passed. "Discipline? I, uh, thought I was supposed to vacuum?"

Jade briefly considers reprimanding him for talking back, but he doesn't truly wish for him to stop. If he wants someone utterly obedient, he would have purchased someone broken in properly.

"Don't you need discipline for that?" He counters. "It would be such a bother if you did a poor job of it. And besides, that's not going to be your only duty."

He takes a step closer, reaching out to toy with the collar again. With adept movements, he hooks two fingers under the warmed leather, brushing his knuckles right against Shinjirou's throat.

"I need your help," he said, voice low, hoping he hadn't misread Shinjirou entirely. "But you'll have to let me help you first."

He's been there before. He knows how intoxicating it is, how safe it feels to allow somebody else to take control entirely. But only if it's someone trusted. He very much doubts that a bond like that exists between him and Shinjirou.

No matter. He'll find a way.

No, he doesn't think you need discipline for that, but then he's been living on the streets. What does he know about housework and how much discipline is needed to do the job properly, or rather the right, Jade way. He barely manages not to say it out loud, chewing on his bottom lip and the tip of his tongue.

Jade's knuckle pushing into his skin, he swallows hard, his throat shoving back. "Help me?" With what, asshole, he wants to spit out, but then again ... there's plenty of things he could need help with. What if, Shinjirou thinks, what if he became more disciplined, learned to control himself? What if it saved someone's life. He can't resurrect Ken's mother, but Jade might just help him prevent a thing like that from ever happening again.

"Okay." It's worth a try. He feels an odd, calming heaviness in his chest that he doesn't want to explore any further. Letting it settle, he curls and uncurls his fingers. It's surprisingly hard, just standing there doing nothing. "So, uh, are you going to tell me more about those duties yet or how's this going to work?"

He feels a distinct sense of pleasure as he watches the way Shinjirou's expression changes, from apprehension to anger to slow acceptance. As much as Jade wants to deny his darker impulses, he doesn't lie to himself; holding this much power over someone is thrilling. He can use Shinjirou however he pleases, mould him into something useful, a perfect tool to be used -

Having so much power in his hands makes him uneasy. It's for the mission, Jade reminds himself harshly, burying his concerns behind a lazy, satisfied smile.

"We'll discuss that later." He eases his fingers away, then nods in the direction of a little door that leads to the storeroom. "Focus on cleaning up. All the supplies you need should be in there. If you need me, I'll be in the study."

"Yeah, alright." Jade's secrecy makes him both curious and a bit uncomfortable. Might be that these duties are entirely harmless, if obnoxious tasks that Jade simply doesn't want to do himself and Shinjirou's worrying for no reason at all. Maybe he's just being tricked into thinking there's an unpleasant surprise up ahead waiting for him. That weird smile Jade's giving him could mean either.

He throws the chain over one shoulder to get it out of the way, then walks off towards the storeroom. "Just, uh, is there a reason I gotta be naked for this?" Seems kind of pointless, especially when no one's around to watch. He's not familiar with this slave thing, so he figures it may be part of that, but that hardly means he understands the reasoning behind it.

He raises an eyebrow.

"I would have thought that was obvious." Tucking his hands into his pockets, he grins, red eyes bright with a hint of mischief. "You'll hardly be inconspicuous if you do decide to escape. Besides," he adds, almost as an afterthought, "I enjoy looking at you."

"Now that you put it that way, yeah, it's pretty obvious." Grimacing, he turns away. Asking less questions is what he's planning to do, most importantly. The answers are just never much to his liking and when they are, he doesn't want to slip and show it.

It's a mystery to him why anyone would enjoy looking at a street rat like him, but maybe that's some weird fetish.

He doesn't wait for Jade to leave before he starts working, hopefully proving himself worthy of vacuuming when he makes sure to get into every corner and below the furniture. The noise numbs his mind; that's a plus in his book.

He checks on Shinjirou a few times, giving his work a quick glance and an approving nod, but for the most part he leaves him alone. It's not until he's almost finished that Jade exits the study for good, sitting down at the couch to watch the news while he waits for Shinjirou to be done. By then, the clouds outside are streaked with the yellows and deep crimsons of sunset.

"Brew me some tea," he orders, once the vacuum cleaner is packed away. "Then get started with dinner. I'd prefer something light tonight."

And, as an extra incentive: "After that, I'll tell you how tomorrow will go."

Most of the time, Shinjirou isn't aware of Jade's presence when the man decides to take a quick look at how he's doing. Which is bad, because it means that Jade can see how at ease he is while not being watched. He takes the task seriously, though, and the floor is even more spotless than before his arrival once he's done.

Putting the vacuum back into the storeroom, he keeps one eye on Jade. Not that he expects Jade to jump him any second, it's just that he's not used to any sort of domesticity, even if it's only between slave and master.

"Tea and dinner. That's easy." He shrugs and stops in front of Jade.

"Uhm, you got a hair tie?" Jade deserves a hair or two in his soup, but cooking is one of the few things Shinjirou regards important enough to do right. Especially if doing it right now also means getting to know what to expect the next day. "It's not sanitary if I do it like this."