roneal | (no subject)

"Yes." He turns back towards the wall, though his attention is entirely on Jade anyway. Being unable to see what's happening isn't so bad. The sensations are still there and when he closes his eyes, he can imagine with some ease what is going on.

Relaxing as it is to be taken care of in this manner, he nearly dozes off. It doesn't happen mostly because his own appreciative moans startle him awake whenever he's about to take a nap standing up; and he isn't really tired. Worn out, yes, and yet as if a new source of energy had been unlocked.

Back done, Jade sinks to his knees, running the cloth down Shinjirou's thighs. In any other situation, he might have found it unusual - he doesn't recall ever having knelt to anyone before. But this is strictly business. Brow furrowed with concentration, he works quickly, wiping up the last of the blood.

Which leaves disinfecting the wounds. Jade moves to the first aid kit, retrieving an alcohol wipe from a packet. "This will sting a little," he warns. He's not out to cause any further distress, so he gives Shinjirou a moment to brace himself before he begins, running the wipe over the shortest cuts and nicks he can find.

When Jade is on the floor, Shinjirou flicks his head to the side. His cheeks don't quite match the intense burn around the wounds, but he'd rather not show that it's affecting him this particular way. After Jade's risen to his feet again, he has no idea how he managed to hold his breath the entire time. The ones he releases afterwards are shallow and quick.

Thankfully, the next part distracts him from any awkward arousal. Hissing and clenching his teeth, he takes it with as much dignity as he can muster -- it's not much. At least he doesn't flinch and prolong the procedure unnecessarily. He's had enough fist fights in his life to know this is important and that the less he moves around, the faster the job will be done.

The sudden increase in the rate of Shinjirou's breathing makes Jade pause, curious. After everything he had managed to endure, surely Shinjirou wouldn't be afraid of the sting of alcohol? It takes a few seconds for the real reason to occur to him, and he smiles to himself, amused - and thoughtful.

The wipe comes away stained with a few drops of blood. Jade tears open a new packet, beginning to work on one of the longer cuts. Shinjirou is being very cooperative; it makes everything all the easier. Jade finds himself feeling...content, though it takes awhile for the realization to come. It's rare for him to tend to someone like this. He's not a healer - the furthest thing from it, in fact, with no aptitude at all for healing artes but plenty of skill in destructive spells. The fact that he's able to care for someone like this is a revelation to him.

It doesn't take him long to finish. When he does, it takes him a second to draw himself out of the calm that had settled over him and assume the role of Shinjirou's master once again.

"Good boy." His own voice sounds distant in his ears. "You can go rest. I'll bring you some water."

The words he's been desperate to hear, the confirmation that he did well. Slowly, he turns around. While the pain is subdued now, it isn't gone. If he's lucky, there will be scars to mark this day. For a brief moment he watches Jade through half-lidded eyes, still a bit breathless.

"Yes. Thank you."

He doesn't pick his own bed, but Jade's. After all, the futon is his safe haven and that's not where he wants to be at the moment. Out of Jade's reach. Not really, naturally, though the meaning is more important to him than the facts. He'd felt like hiding before any of this. Now? No. He's ready to receive orders, to follow them.

Lying down on his stomach, he makes sure the sheets won't get dirty. The cuts seem to sink deeper into him, as if gravity could pull them into his bones. Just his imagination, he knows. Maybe he's gotten a little high on the pain after all.

Jade draws in a breath of air as he steps out of the room, then exhales again, just as slowly. It takes some time to pack away his supplies and fetch water. Not much, admittedly, but it's enough to give him an opportunity to shunt his emotions to the back of his mind for later analysis. By the time he's done with his self-assigned tasks, he had returned to his usual alert, detached state.

When he steps back into the room, his first instinct is to look for Shinjirou on the futon. He raises an eyebrow when he finds the futon empty and Shinjirou lying on the bed instead. The implications are hard to miss, although he has to wonder at them. Hasn't Shinjirou had enough for one day?

Jade rests his fingers against the curve of Shinjirou's neck to rouse him. The skin is still feverishly hot to the touch; he hopes he isn't coming down with something.

"Can you sit up?"

To Shinjirou, it seems like Jade hasn't ever really left the room. Time is flowing at an odd rate for him. His eyes follow Jade lazily as he comes closer; otherwise he doesn't move an inch until prompted.

"Of course." He pushes himself up, head dropping into the palm of Jade's hand for a second. Nuzzling, he sits on his knees and glances at the water. His mouth opens and closes like that of a fish as he reaches for the glass. He doesn't simply take it out of Jade's hands, though, and waits instead.

For a second, he contemplates helping Shinjirou drink, but that would be a messy business and unnecessary besides. Carefully, he places the glass into Shinjirou's hand, ready to catch it if his fingers are too shaky to hold it properly.

"As I said earlier, you're free for the rest of the night, but I'd prefer it if you don't do anything strenuous." It would be a bother if Shinjirou re-opened his cuts. The thought of cleaning them again isn't particularly appealing, not because it's bothersome, but because it felt entirely too intimate. "Don't worry, I'll take care of dinner."

Holding the glass with both hands enables him to drink without spilling the water all over himself. He keeps close to Jade anyway as he gulps it down. "Oh. Uhm. Okay. I'm sorry." It's probably for the best if Jade makes dinner. It doesn't seem too unlikely that Shinjirou's mind is playing tricks on him and that he's not half as energetic as he'd claim to be if asked.

"There's still things I won't be allowed to do, right?" Shuffling, he turns himself towards Jade. "I, uh. Would like to read something, maybe? That okay?"

It's a harmless request, but then entering Jade's study is forbidden ... just picking something up to read doesn't sound like Jade would appreciate it. On the other hand, he's not sure Jade even possesses books he'd be interested in reading. Still, he figures that there will be more days from now on where he'll be left alone.

Lips almost touching Jade's neck, he takes a one last sip of water before putting the empty glass in Jade's hands again. "I've never been whipped before. I guess you at least had a virgin in that way."

"I'll find you something." Picking out something suitable for Shinjirou would be a challenge, but surely he has some old books or magazines lying around... Even if he can't think of any off-hand.

Then the topic suddenly changes, and he frowns slightly, more startled than he'd like to admit. His fingers curl around the glass. With a comment like that, Shinjirou must have enjoyed the experience. That's good, Jade supposes, it's what he had been aiming for after all. And it's even better that Shinjirou can't compare him to anyone; that might dilute the impact of the lesson.

At the same time, Jade finds himself wondering if he had gone too far. He has no control group to measure himself against, nothing to tell him how people usually went about things or how his technique could be improved.

...And he should probably be feeling guilty for taking so much from Shinjirou, but he doesn't, and that disturbs him more than anything else.

"I thought your seller would have whipped you," he comments, opting for a more neutral approach. "Or did he not want to damage his merchandise?"

Scratching the back of his head, he glances down at his bruised thighs. "Eh, for all that he complained about me being 'impure,' he didn't mind so much when I sucked him off. Apparently wasn't good enough to let me go, but good enough that he didn't do anything like that." He shrugs. At least he had tried a non-violent approach first, even if it didn't work out as planned. It just turned out that convincing a trafficker to let his goods go was a bit more difficult than offering a slack jaw.

"I don't feel damaged now." The opposite, somehow. And it's not just that the undercurrent of pain distracts him from his own thoughts. He's calm, but his head isn't foggy like after coming down from a mind-numbing orgasm. Rather like a foul tooth finally being gone, taking the ache with it as well. Though hesitant, he leans onto Jade eventually. If he's free for the rest of the night, then this must be fine, too?

Seeing Shinjirou lean towards him, Jade keeps himself relaxed, his muscles loose. Shinjirou seems more coherent than he had yesterday. Good, he doesn't want him to be high off hormones all the time.

It takes a little adjustment, but Jade slides a hand between them, pressing his thumb against one of the welts left by the whip. "I'm surprised. Aren't you in pain?"

Not just from the wounds on his back; Shinjirou had been screaming quite loudly too. With all the abuse he's put his throat through these past two days, it's a wonder he can still speak.

"I am." Forcing his face deeper into the crook of Jade's neck, he arches first away from the touch, then pushes back into it. There's pain, yes, and putting pressure on the sensitive, irritated skin sends electric shocks through his nerves and no, it isn't pleasant, but. "It's ... good. It clears my mind. Just a perversion on legs, huh."

"I don't care." His voice is quiet, but no less raspy. "You make me useful. So I'm not damaged, not with you."

If Shinjirou is a perversion, what does that make him?

Jade pushes the thought away from his mind, locking it away and sealing it tightly. It's not as if this is news. At least, this time, the person he's using enjoys it. That didn't make this situation right by any stretch of the imagination, but at least he isn't doing as much harm as he could be.

"You'll stay with me then." It isn't phrased as a question.

"Looks like it, yeah." One chance to bail and he didn't take it. Perhaps one day he won't need a beating to accept the decisions he makes without his mind going off-kilter. Jade may just be able to teach him how. "Yes, I will."

Snuggling up hurts; he does it anyway, toying with a strand of silky-smooth hair. It's pretty, unlike his messy mop. "Tomorrow, I'll make up for today." He's not sure how, but drinking lots of tea with honey seems like a good place to start -- preparing himself for whatever Jade might require him to do. And if it ends up cleaning the entire house twice, he'll do it.

His words sound disturbingly like a promise. Jade ignores it by continuing to toy with Shinjirou's back, focusing on the bumps of rough texture that line his otherwise smooth skin.

"I'd like to give you a little more freedom," he says, doing his best to mask his caution. It's easier when he can hide behind humour. "Well, mostly, I want you to do the grocery shopping and walk Irvin."

He can't keep still; he may appreciate the pain for what it does to him, but it is pain and his body's first instinct is to get away. The second is to lean back and shudder, breath catching in his throat. More water would be nice. On the other hand, this would have to stop and he doesn't want that just yet.

"Naked?" He frowns against Jade's neck, squirming when his fingers roll over a particularly tender spot. "Uh. And what about this?"

Tapping the collar, he takes the chain and lifts it up. The latter would look strange, the former ... some people wear it as a fashion accessory. And he likes the way it clings to his neck, it's not that he wants to get rid of it. But walking a dog while wearing a leash himself sounds not so fun.

"Clothed," he corrects. "I'm not going to pay your bail if you get arrested for public indecency." Now that he knows Shinjirou is staying, he'll have to get some clothes for him. Outfits too; he knows some people who are fond of that sort of thing. In the meantime, some of his own clothing should do. They aren't too dissimilar in size.

"You'll be wearing the collar and chain though, but you can hide it under your clothes if you prefer." Jade knows all about the importance of keeping up appearances. "I trust that's alright with you?"

"Ah. Yes, that's fine." Though he'll have to figure out how to hide a chain. At least he's always preferred to hide his body beneath long coats. Hiding more of himself won't be too big of a change. The only problem is that he doesn't have his favorite coat anymore, nor his beanie. He misses both.

Glancing at Jade's attire, he's not confident that he'll like what Jade picks for him all that much. He's going to wear it anyway, of course. "What if the police wants to know why a known streetrat is suddenly buying groceries? Should I just tell them that I have a ... sugar daddy?"

Then he freezes. The police isn't too bad. They don't really care as long as there's no trouble. They aren't a problem at all. What if he meets Mitsuru. What if he meets Aki. Wearing new clothes, walking a dog, with a collar around his neck.

There shouldn't be any trouble. 'Jade' is hardly an uncommon first name, and he doesn't think Shinjirou knows his last name. Even if he did, Jade trusts him to have the good sense to keep it to himself.

"I'll leave it to your discretion." He frowns slightly. "Though I wasn't aware you were that well-known."

The way Shinjirou tenses in his arms tells him there's more to this story. Jade presses his thumb down, rubbing slightly, in what would have been the beginnings of a massage had it not been right on top of another weal. "You aren't keeping anything from me, are you?"

"Eh, I'm a bit of a troublemaker."

Cringing, he bites down hard enough to draw a drop of blood from his lips. He can't talk about Aki. He can't lie either. Hell, he doesn't want to lie anymore. It's against the rules and if he starts breaking them right after coming to terms with wanting to follow them, then he's only making himself worthless again.

"I am," he spits out before he can convince himself to keep his mouth shut. "I don't know what to do when I meet, mh, people from my past." That could mean teachers as well as other kids living on the streets, or men he's slept with before. And Aki, but Jade mustn't know about him.

"Some of them don't know that I'm like this."

"I didn't think you were the type to care about what other people thought." And he doesn't think he's wrong either. Shinjirou speaks his mind; it's one of the things Jade enjoys about him.

Which means there's more to this. Someone he doesn't want to find out, perhaps? Of course, he could be wrong, so he doesn't push the point.

"Still, if it's such a big concern, I suppose I could continue keeping you locked up in here."

Normally, he isn't. With Aki it's different. Aki wouldn't approve. Aki would try his best to put an end to his self-destructive behavior. What's infinitely worse, Aki would be disappointed -- and besides, Aki is his brother, bloodlines be damned. Brothers don't need to know this kind of stuff about each other.

It worries Shinjirou enough that he considers taking Jade up on his offer to stay locked away. He really wants to play outside with Irvin, though. Do the grocery shopping so he can come up with new dishes. Pretend to be normal for an hour or two. He keeps shifting against Jade's chest as he thinks it through and eventually makes his decision.

"As long as I may leave in the morning and not the afternoon or evening ... if that's alright."

The long silence, accompanied by Shinjirou's constant shifting, only solidifies his suspicion that there's something more to this. Jade doesn't interrupt, however. He gives Shinjirou his time, curious as to what he'll wind up deciding on.

When Shinjirou lists out his conditions, Jade's lips twitch up into a smile despite his best efforts to suppress it. Shinjirou is being so obvious; he now basically has confirmation that he's trying to avoid someone. Someone with a short day job, which rules out his teachers and most likely the other streetrats. A student, then? Perhaps that boy he grew up in the orphanage with? He had thought they were close, but he hadn't known for sure.

Interesting. Very interesting.

He'll need more confirmation before he can act, so he simply files it away into his mind for now, nodding in response to Shinjirou's request. "I don't see why not."

He smiles playfully. "Any other demands?"

"It's not a demand!" His voice breaks away at the end, a coughing fit swallowing half of his words. That hurts. Rubbing his throat, he buries his face in Jade's hair. When he speaks again, it's only a faint whisper. "It was just a question."

Forehead touching Jade's neck, he worries for a moment: He might have made a mistake. Jade's been urging him to say more and now he seems almost ... content? He may be in pain, but he's sober and this isn't about being kinder to Jade's guests or anything. There's no reason for him to react like this.

On the other hand, Jade doesn't like it when he asks why. He can't do that. Instead, he pouts and hopes for the best. Maybe he's imagining things after all.

"Thank you."