[Arashi] [Sakumiya] Flavour of Love

[radhaj]

Rating: NC-17
Disclaimer: Those people are not mine. I only wish they were
Warnings: slavery, kinks all around yadda yadda
Summary: In a world where slavery is flourishing, two people are living their lives by exploiting the system. But are they truly as removed from its effects themselves as it seems at first glance?
Notes: Sooo.... this is an early Christmas present from me in case someone was still waiting for a continuation of this? Hello? Is anyone around? Anyone? Hellooooo? *listens to her voice echoing in the emptiness around her*

For anyone curious, yes, I am still writing. Quite a bit. But it's always just tidbits and pieces in unconnected works that I never finish and thus can't publish and I really am frustrated at myself because of it, believe me. But I WILL finish this fic. At some point.

In the meantime, if someone IS still reading this, it would be great to hear some comments from you for encouragement :) This hasn't been proof-read as well as it should be though, you've been warned.

Chapter 4

Sho knew that he would never be able to look back to that night without a certain amount of shame.

Once he came back to their hotel room, his emotions burst out of him in a rather explosive form as he violently kicked the bed and threw everything breakable that he could find (a lamp and two empty glasses from the table) against a wall. It was just the distant realization that he would need his full, clear mind to get through the already-starting day that stopped him from raiding the mini-bar in the room and getting completely drunk on overpriced alcohol.

But the explosion had been short and barely a couple of minutes later he was already sitting on the un-made bed, his face buried in his palms, feeling mentally and physically exhausted to the point where he couldn’t even cry. Fortunately, no neighbours came over to ask about the commotion or he wouldn’t have even been able to form some sort of explanation. He was in shock.

But time didn’t stop just because he would have really liked it to so he could deal with all the horrifyingly intense emotions that were assaulting him now that he started to truly realize he had just pretty much lost Nino. It had already been almost morning when he had gone out to try and “rescue” his slave, so by the time he got back and recovered at least slightly from his daze, he already had to rush to be out of the room in time for check-out.

There was no way he could afford a hotel room (without wasting most of their hard-earned savings) for as long as it might take for him to convince Nino to return to him. Sho was realistic enough to realize that much by now, since the problems that drove the slave into “betraying” his master in such a way were deep-rooted and old, which meant he won’t be able to make amends for them in just a couple of days. He had to find an apartment or something similar to rent, and he had to figure out how to do it without leaving his true name as a foot-print that the police would be able to follow once they (hopefully) left this town.

After shamefully apologizing to the receptionist of the hotel for the havoc he had wrecked in his room and paying for it all, the issue of finding an apartment was something Sho asked the young woman about. She seemed truly surprised and a little lost before giving him instructions of how to get to the Town Hall, showing just how unusual it was for guests to try and find a more permanent living in this town without previous notice. Sho smiled at her gratefully even as he cursed inside his head. The unusual request would likely cause her to remember him more clearly. Not something a person that lived on the run would want to happen. Still, he lingered one more minute to ask where exactly he would be able to buy some food and received directions to both the local general store and a supermarket before he finally left the hotel behind.

It was a bit of a shock to see the sun shining and people going about their day as normal when he got outside. As if the whole world hadn’t turned upside down just a few hours ago.

Urging himself to stop thinking about it for now so he could better concentrate on the things that had to be done, Sho set out towards the general store, which, according to the receptionist’s directions, was supposedly much closer than the supermarket from the hotel. He knew his mind would work better after he got some food into his stomach, even if it was still churning a bit and was (uncharacteristically) not at all excited at the idea.

Even on foot, it didn’t take long for him to reach the store. It wasn’t a big building, but it was clearly often visited by the town’s inhabitants, considering it was the only store in the small town that sold not only food and other necessities, but also stocked up on different items that were on demand in the small town filled with artists and scientists and other people with sometimes very specific needs. As such, it was more of a social centre of the town than the comparatively-unnecessary Town Hall could ever become, something that was proven by the official-looking announcement board placed right next to its entrance.

Sho figured he’d glance at it just to make sure nothing on it concerned him as a hopefully soon-to-be (temporary) member of the town community, and it was fortunate that he did so. There, half-buried under newer announcements, yellowed and with faded from the sun letters, hung an offer that seemed perfect for him but obviously hadn’t interested anyone else for a long period of time. A little taken aback by his luck, Sho unpinned the paper and took it with himself when he stepped into the shop.

“Welcome!” he heard the usual greeting as soon as he got inside and he saw a male slave looking at him from near some of the shelves that he was obviously restocking once he looked around. The young man had a slight frown on his face, seemingly unfitting as he was facing a customer, and Sho found himself feeling chastised for no reason. He nodded in the slave’s general direction and started walking around the store, looking for something he could eat out of the package, but he could sense a suspicious gaze following him around the entire time, even as the young man appeared to continue with his work.

Spurred on by the seemingly bordering-on-disapproving gaze, Sho was rather quick to find everything he wanted and to approach the so far empty cashier stand. But he instinctively flinched back a little when a new figure emerged walking backwards from what was probably a storage room behind it, all while carrying a huge cardboard box.

“Jun, we got all the special orders just now so when you have time can you- Oh! We have a customer, I’m sorry I didn’t notice you there,” the man blinked once he finally turned around and caught sight of Sho just standing there. He didn’t take long to get over his surprise, however, and his face soon morphed into a smile as he put the box down on the counter and stepped up to the cash-register, “Let me count that up for you,” he said invitingly and Sho crossed the remaining three steps, handing his purchases over to the man who immediately started scanning them with a practised ease, “Did you come here for the market?” he asked curiously, “It’s the only time of the year when we get visi- No, Jun, leave this one, it’s for me. Just deal with the ones in the back,” he suddenly interrupted himself, pausing what he was doing when the slave from earlier made to take the box from the counter with himself. At the comment, however, the young man froze.

“It says “Ikuta” on the box,” he pointed out dryly, and the man’s at the register eyes widened comically.

“Oh… Oh! I took the wrong one? Oh… well then…” he gestured emptily for the slave to go ahead and take it after all, “What would I ever do without you, Jun?” he asked rhetorically while the slave, not bothering to answer, took the package finally and disappeared into the back. But not before throwing Sho, who stayed a mute observer through the whole thing, yet another strange look.

“Don’t mind him,” Sho was startled when he realized the remaining man was now facing him and smiling at him knowingly, obviously having caught him staring after the slave awkwardly, “It’s just his eyebrows that make him look angry at everyone all the time. He’s not actually glaring at you,” the man continued his explanation.

“It can’t be good for the business to have someone in the shop who scares the customers away,” Sho commented, half out of a polite duty to respond to the initiated conversation, half out of genuine curiosity. But the presumed owner of the store waved his concern off and resumed scanning his purchases.

“Everyone from this town knows him better than to be intimidated. It’s pretty much only during the market weeks that we get visitors and… well, I guess he does get extra cautious around strangers, at such times more than ever, which is probably why his eyebrows seemed especially furrowed around you,” the man added a magnificent failure of a wink to that. Sho took that as an opportunity and, after he handed over the money, he also raised up the paper he had taken from the notice board and put it on the counter.

“Maybe that will change soon then. I came here hoping to try and settle down for a bit so I couldn’t help noticing this offer,” he lied slightly, indicating the note again by nodding towards it. The shopkeeper put down the money without counting it and grabbed the paper with a surprised look on his face, his eyes scanning the contents of it rapidly.

“I totally forgot we even had this up. No one was interested in this for years…” he trailed off and looked up at Sho once more, now seemingly looking at him with even more interest, “What’s your craft then, if you want to live here?”

Sho, who had expected to be asked this since he was trying to get a living at a town pretty much reserved for artisans, was happy he could provide a truthful answer.

“Spells,” he said casually, “I’m not sure about living here yet, though, just considering it. Want to try it out before I commit so that’s why I thought of renting a place first,” he wove a hopefully believable story. The shopkeeper seemed fooled enough.

“Spells!? Oh that is so useful,” the shopkeeper reacted very enthusiastically at the information, “Let me just finish this up so I can show you the rooms,” he gestured at Sho’s purchases and hurriedly dealt with the money before leading Sho into the backroom, “Jun, keep an eye on the store while we’re upstairs!” he called out just before starting to climb up to another floor.

“The rooms for rent are on the third floor. There’s a back entrance though, so you don’t need to worry about passing the store all the time,” the man spoke as they climbed up, “We used to have a spell-crafter in town before, but he passed away not so long ago… What’s your class qualification, if you don’t mind me asking?” the shopkeeper suddenly inquired, but it wasn’t an unexpected question either and one that Sho could answer with no small amount of pride in his voice.

“Sans-limits, level five,” he said and the man climbing the stairs in front of him actually stopped in shock, turning around to stare at him with wide eyes and causing Sho to almost run into him.

“Are you serious?” he asked and, realizing that this was a silly question, immediately backed off, “Wow… I mean I’ve never met anyone limitless before… You’d definitely be needed here if you chose to stay. You could even… it would depend of whether you’re interested or not, of course, but I could even let you live here rent-free if you agree to help me provide our customers with the spells they need. We’ve been depending on orders from other cities, but it’s often a real pain to find someone who delivers very specific spells…”

“I’m sure we could come to an arrangement about that,” Sho answered, obviously not disliking the idea of being helpful to people and also welcoming the opportunity to come in contact with the other people living here. It used to be his dream, after all. And perhaps Ohno Satoshi would need some spells too and Sho would get to meet with Nino then…

The rooms on the third floor were pretty much perfect for what Sho figured he would need for an extended stay. Slightly dusty from disuse and not too vertically-spacious as it was the attic floor, but it had a bathroom and a kitchen and rooms for sleeping and working both. Besides, Aiba (as the shopkeeper finally introduced himself) assured him that his slave would have it cleaned up in no time if Sho decided to move in.

“Normally you’d need recommendations from at least three permanent residents of the city or a special permit issued by the government in acknowledgement of your skills to live here,” Aiba told him with a slight frown on his face after Sho had time to look around and make a decision about wanting to rent the space, “If you start helping people out with their spells, you’d probably have people willing to give their recommendations in no time, but for now… I don’t suppose you’d be okay with keeping this arrangement off the books for the first couple of months or so?”

Sho almost choked at the proposition, unable to believe his luck. He had been trying to figure out what to say to his future-landlord to keep his name off any official documents the entire time he had been looking around and couldn’t come up with anything that wouldn’t have sounded very suspicious. But now he didn’t even have to think of anything because Aiba just gave him a way out himself.

“I don’t mind at all, considering I’m just trying things out anyway,” he shrugged, trying not to show just how relieved he actually felt, “Is it really fine for you though? Letting me live here without any assurances?”

Aiba just grinned carelessly.

“I feel like I can trust you. And if it means the town might get a spell specialist out of it… Let’s just say we really needed one.”

They quickly shook on it then, sealing the deal, and went back to the store so Sho could go and get his car closer and carry some of his stuff inside already before going out to buy any other things he’d need if he was really going live here for a while. They just got down and Sho grabbed his food from the counter intending to finally eat while Aiba called out Jun to tell him that he should start cleaning up the third floor when a small chime rang through store, signifying that the door was opened. As Sho ignored it in favour of struggling to open his first onigiri package, Aiba replaced his slave behind the counter again and greeted the new customer cheerfully. It was only as Sho finally took a huge bite out of his breakfast hungrily that he finally looked up… and almost choked on the rice. Equally as wide and surprised brown, familiar eyes were staring back at him.

It was Nino.

Sho’s (ex?) slave was the first to recover, barely half a second later, slightly shakily approaching the cash register and the man behind it before anyone noticed the brief exchange of shocked gazes. This made Sho catch himself as well, as he realized he shouldn’t be staring at someone he was not supposed to know or care about, so he forced himself to resume eating although his heart was beating like crazy in his chest, his blood rushing so fast that there was a loud hushing sound in his ears which made it hard for him to concentrate and listen in on the exchange between Nino and Aiba.

“I came to pick up an order of supplies for Ohno Satoshi,” he could still hear his slave tell the shop-keeper timidly and Sho grit his teeth a bit at the sound of the artist’s name, since he couldn’t help but hate the man for his current predicament. Even though he logically knew it was completely unfair.

“Ah, you must be Oh-chan’s new purchase, right?” Aiba exclaimed enthusiastically after hearing the words, “I heard he finally got someone. About time too. I kept telling him his house was too big for only him... I’m Aiba, by the way, and this is my Jun,” the man introduced himself and his still slightly gloomy slave cheerfully, “Jun, could you get Satoshi’s package for this cute boy here?”

“I’m… Nino,” said cute boy in question supplied carefully and Sho could swear he saw the slave’s eyes flicker towards him a little, but not completely.

“For Nino, then,” Aiba beamed, and Jun slipped away into the back-room to fetch the order, leaving the rest to wait in slightly awkward silence. Trying to look unbothered, Sho finished his first onigiri and started on the second one.

It was rather fortunate for Nino’s plan, Sho supposed, that this had been one of the few times he hadn’t changed Nino’s name in the faked sale documents. He did that sometimes, simply because he knew the slave number was the only thing most people would later pay attention to, thinking it to be the key in finding them since owners sometimes changed the names of their slaves if they wanted to.

But it was probably easier for Nino now, not having to answer to an unfamiliar name for a prolonged period of time.

It truly wasn’t an issue even now. Sho had actually told his true name to Aiba as well – he realized, by this point, that after staying in this place for as long as they probably would, people would memorize them too well and the only way they would be able to leave without later getting caught was if Sho somehow managed to fake re-buy Nino from Ohno. That way, noone from this town would later try to search for them and cause trouble. As long as their names were off real official documents (and that, too, would only be bad because it would get back to his parents, not because it would incriminate them), Sho could relax. Probably.

Sho also hoped that if he managed to prove he needed Nino so much that the slave’s new owner would actually be convinced to sell him so soon after getting him, it would be enough for him to prove his sincerity to Nino himself as well. To pass the test and get Nino back truly, not just on paper. If not then… Well, he had no other ideas. He just had to hope this was it.

Jun finally returned, carrying another huge cardboard box with him, and only then did Sho realize that he had been staring at Nino again. He quickly averted his eyes and concentrated on finishing the rest of his food while Aiba checked if everything on the order form was actually in the box.

“Yup, all of his art supplies are here,” the shopkeeper soon said with pride, and for some reason, Sho’s heart gave an unpleasant lurch in his chest, waking up a bad feeling inside him although he couldn’t quite put a name on it yet. The shopkeeper’s smile also suddenly dropped off and he frowned at the box for some reason, “It’s quite big for you to carry it yourself all the way back… Oh, but,” here he suddenly turned to Sho, “Now that we have a magic specialist handy… Could you maybe just use some shrinking charms on it, Sho-san? As our fir-“

“No!” Nino’s forceful refusal took everyone present by surprise, causing them to stare and him to redden, “I think it’s better if… I mean, this is pretty much my first task for my new Master,” he said, obviously trying to come up with an excuse for his reaction, “I don’t want him to think I’ll need help with everything I do…” he trailed off. Perhaps it wasn’t that obvious it was just an excuse for people who didn’t know it after all – Aiba’s eyes filled with understanding and even Jun’s gaze seemed to mellow out a bit as the taller slave raised his hand to touch the dark-green collar around his neck. It was a reasonable explanation, after all, and Sho was the only one who knew, as much as it pained him, that Nino simply didn’t want to deal with him at all now.

To prove his point that he was more than capable of completing the task without help, Nino picked up the box, trying to hide how he swerved slightly under the bulk of it. Sho clenched his fists and bit on his tongue to stop himself from dashing forward to help him. He knew Nino was capable of doing it, it was just the protectiveness he felt towards the younger man that made it hard to watch. He simply glared at the box instead. He didn’t know why it bothered him. It just held some art supplies…

“Thank you for the trouble,” the tiny slave somehow managed a low bow even with his burden in his arms and turned to leave. Aiba cheerily bid him goodbye as well.

“And tell Oh-chan that we have a new spell-caster in town, would you?” he added when Nino was half out the door already, “He might actually provide Oh-chan with what I couldn’t get him last month!”

The door closed behind the small servant before he could promise he would pass on the message. Sho sighed and wondered if Aiba would be interested in having a small celebration in honor of their new arrangement this evening. He had resisted the alcohol in the morning, but he really needed to have a drink over this mess.

~-*-~

The paint was barely coming off, no matter how much strength Nino put into scrubbing the floor. But this was expected and this was welcome. The motions were monotonous and calming - it was a task that was almost pleasant with its familiarity. It helped Nino keep control over his emotions more than anyone who wasn’t a slave could ever understand.

His new owner was in the same room as him, doing something with the supplies that Nino had brought back from the shop. The tiny man shivered as he remembered what had happened when he had gone to get them.

The first thing he had decided to do (after cooking and eating breakfast) was his new owner’s laundry and he found the receipt for the order while he was checking the pockets of some pants before dumping them into the machine. Ohno had apparently forgotten about it completely, but the date on the slip of paper was of today and thus Nino naturally offered to go get it, without thinking twice about it.

He hadn’t been ready to see Sho so soon, even if he should have been, considering how small the town was and the fact that his old master was bound to try and find a way to get back in contact as soon as possible. How else would he be able to earn back Nino’s trust and win him back? And true enough, Sho had apparently already found himself a place in this town which would also allow him to at least do business with Ohno, if the weird shopkeeper’s words were to be trusted. A tiny flame of pride flickered inside Nino. Sho had always been so amazing at spells. Perhaps he would finally get some recognition for that.

But that was beside the pont. The shock he had felt at seeing his old master worried Nino. He was obviously unable to act naturally around the other man and that could prove to be a problem if he didn’t deal with it soon. But the moment he set his eyes on the other man, all of the complicated emotions rushed back at him. The need, the disappointment, the remorse, the love… And somehow, more than anything else, the memory of the thing that had been the last straw jumped to the forefront of his mind. The feeling of something left unfinished, his misdemeanor and Sho’s inability to deal with it as he should have. Something that left Nino feeling so utterly lost and confused…

If he were only able to leave this one thing behind him, he would be able to deal with seeing Sho again better. But as long as his mind couldn’t let this issue go, he wouldn’t be able to move forward at all. No matter what Sho did to win him back, no matter what Ohno did to make him feel grounded, Nino would simply be stuck. But what could he even do about it? Obviously, Sho would not step up and give him what he needed. If he hadn’t before, then certainly not in this situation. So what could possibly be done?...

Nino sighed as even the monotone movement of scrubbing the floor no longer worked in keeping his mind pleasantly blank. He was hurting and he was desperate and if he could only…

The abruptly slave stood up, deciding he needed a small break, and leaned on a nearby table when his eyes suddenly caught on something on it. Various creations from clay were laid out, from pottery to statuettes - creations of his new master. Beautiful and fragile.

If Nino could only put the past behind him… Get his punishment and just be done with it. Just…

Without even truly realizing he was doing it, Nino extended his hand towards the clay art, watching as if in slow motion as his hand neared an intricately patterned vase.

If he could only get punishment… Any punishment… Maybe he could trick his mind…

He moved forward one more step, bumping into the table on purpose, pretending to stumble and clumsily sending the vase shattering onto the floor.

After the earlier silence, the sound of it hitting the ground was simply piercing. Nino started and immediately woke up from the almost-trance that he had been lost in before, his eyes widening and a gasp escaping him as he realized with horror what he had done. Ohno was already looking over, predictably, and Nino was shaking.

“Shit,” he swore, the shards of the shattered vase on the floor swimming in his vision as he started feeling panicky, “Oh gods… I’m sorry I… I didn’t…”

He struggled to say that he hadn’t meant to do it, because he realized that he had. He had been so focused on just getting the punishment “owed” to him that he had done the only thing he could think that would earn him one. Even if it was the wrong one, he had just needed something so badly.

“I’m so so sorry, I’ll clean it up, I…”

To his further horror, he realized he was almost about to cry. But he forcefully pushed the tears back, refusing to let them fall, and crouched down to take care of the remnants of the vase. As he took a few prolonged, calming breaths, his frantic mind tried to come up with what exactly he should say or do now, but before he could gather more than a few of the biggest shards, he heard his new Master’s approaching footsteps and tensed up.

He needn’t have worried. Ohno’s touch was gentle as he pulled Nino back up to his feet by the elbow and then made him look up into his face that betrayed no anger whatsoever. His words, however, made Nino temporarily stop breathing.

“You did that on purpose,” the artist stated with a calm expression on his face.

“No! I-“

“Don’t lie,” Ohno rebuked, but despite his words, the serene smile stayed on his face, “I know you are not that clumsy. I have been observing you, you know. And it is fine, I just want to understand. Of course, for doing something like this, you will be punished. But first, I need to know why, Nino.”

But the slave could only shamefully return his eyes to the floor, refusing to say another word. He couldn’t talk about Sho, he just couldn’t…

“Is this about your previous owner?” his Master probed more, and Nino was startled as Ohno managed to strike the bullseye immediately, “I know you can’t really talk about him, but the way he got brought up yesterday… There are obviously some unresolved issues for you there. Nino, I don’t blame you for that, but we need to figure it out. You are mine now, not his, and I don’t need my slave to be constantly haunted by something from his past. So. Why did you break the vase?”

Nino continued to bite his lip for another tensely silent minute before breaking down. He would not reveal specifics, he really couldn’t. But maybe… maybe he could trust Ohno to give him what he needed if he was told just enough. After all, the man was acting so understandingly right now… Most other owners Nino had come in contact so far would have never had the patience to deal with remnants of a slave’s previous owner’s failures…

“It’s just…” Nino swallowed, took a few more deep breaths to keep panic at bay, and tried to continue, “There was something… I did. Just before… before I was sold. I was disrespectful, and he… he didn’t punish me. I am sorry, but it just keeps weighing on my mind because I know I shouldn’t have been allowed to get away with it. And just now, I was overwhelmed by the memory of it and I…”

“…and you tried to provoke me into doing what he had not,” Ohno finished for him and Nino crumbled in on himself further, only staying on his feet instead of slipping to his knees in apology because his Master’s hand stayed on his elbow, “I see,” Ohno’s voice was unreadable now and Nino still couldn’t bring himself to look at his face to gauge his reaction that way, “Is there anything else like this that might come up in the future?”

Nino mutely shook his head without even needing to think. Sho had made some mistakes over the years, yes, but none affected him like this one did. And now he felt nauseated both because he had spoken up “against” Sho and because he feared Ohno’s reaction to the confession.

“So you broke my vase on purpose,” Ohno stated then and unexpectedly waved his other hand in a certain way, which caused the shards of the vase to rise up and mold effortlessly back together right in front of the slave’s eyes. Then, the now-whole vase settled back onto the table it had earlier stood on, and Ohno resumed, “Then you tried to manipulate me. And you also require punishment for something you did to your previous Master. Those are three offenses that I should now punish you for. Does that sum it all up correctly?”

All tension immediately flowed out of Nino’s body and he felt almost dizzy in relief. His eyes filled with tears of happiness. He had been right to trust Ohno. The artist would deal with it all in one swoop, and Nino would finally be able to move on.

“Yes, Sir. Thank you, Sir,” he answered as soon as he could get all of his emotions under control, finally managing to lift his eyes again, “I would be most grateful to get the punishment that I have earned.”

Ohno actually smiled at this and nodded.

“Okay. Now go, strip down and brace yourself against that desk,” he pointed at the same desk on which he had taken Nino for the first time early that morning. Already feeling shivers of excitement run through him, Nino did as told and was soon naked, gripping at the edges of the desk with baited breath. There was very little doubt in his mind about what kind of punishment, exactly, Ohno would deem suitable for this situation. And he was proven right when his current owner stepped up towards him with his belt in his hand.

“One stroke for what you did to my poor vase. Five for attempting to manipulate me. Ten, for your past transgressions so they would get settled in your mind,” he stated evenly and Nino closed his eyes, braced himself properly and allowed his mind slip into the appropriate state, where atoning for his mistakes was all he craved for. Where pain that he deserved equaled pleasure. A state which he hadn’t entered in far too long. It felt so right, “This once, you don’t need to count out loud. And you don’t need to hold back any reactions. I know it might be quite… intense for you.”

The permission almost made the tiny slave smile. Ohno did understand. He didn’t need any explanations for why Nino was visibly getting aroused as he waited to get lashed with a belt. And he probably knew, when he put just the right amount of strength in the first hit that landed right across Nino’s butt-cheeks, that every sliver of pain that he gave would go straight to Nino’s groin. And that’s why he gave the permission. So Nino could allow himself to come from the liberating pain, if he got there.

That was one. Nino didn’t do it out loud, but he kept the count in his head. Two and three. Four. Five. Six. Small grunts slowly turned into moans of pain as Ohno steadily proceeded with the punishment, and although tears sprung into his eyes as his backside burned more and more, his cock also got hard as well.

Nino had received physical punishments before. Plenty, from his trainer. And even quite a few from Sho, back in the beginning. He was aware that for a slave like him, receiving punishment from an adored Master, suffering for the gift of forgiveness equaled pleasure. But this was even more than just that. This was also him finally earning freedom from the misery that had weighed on him for weeks.

Seven. Eight. Nine. Ten. Eleven. The pain was far from trivial. Ohno didn’t take pity on his ass, or his thighs or even his back. And he was skilled at delivering the belt. Not to damage, but to hurt. The pain seared into Nino’s body, melted his brain, left him crying and screaming by the time the count reached a dozen and barely aware of where he was or what he was doing. It hurt so bad, and it felt so good, making his cock throb and leak.

Thirteen. Fourteen. Fifteen. And then it suddenly stopped, with no explanation. Nino sobbed. He was so close, so close, in so many ways. Trembling with his entire body, he managed to open his eyes, but by the time he had gathered enough strength to look back, he didn’t need to anymore. Ohno returned behind him and suddenly was fastening something around his neck, the pressure of which was so familiar and so welcome that Nino momentarily forgot to breathe and stared ahead of himself with wide eyes.

“Your mine now,” Ohno whispered, having leaned in close to his ear from behind, “With this, your past doesn’t matter anymore. Because you belong to me.”

After those words, he swung the belt one last time.

Sixteen.

Everything just overwhelmed Nino in that single moment. The collar. The pain. He had a collar again. It hurt so bad. Sixteen. Ohno put his collar on him. He was free.

He howled louder than he ever had before in his life and he released. His legs buckled under him, his fingers became lax and he slid down to the ground ever as cum drops continued to spurt from his cock and his body was shaken by the force of the orgasm.

He was free.

“Thank you. Thank you. Thank you,” he realized he mumbling non-stop once he recovered enough to be aware of the surroundings again. His fingers were touching the leather around his neck, tears still streaming down his face and he suddenly realized, with a distant sort of appreciation, that this was what Ohno had worked on that whole evening since Nino got him his supplies. The leather collar around his neck right now. It was hand-crafted by his owner.

“Thank you,” he repeated one last time. His mind was a mess, but this was the one thing he was sure of. He wanted to thank Ohno, for so many things. The artist himself was crouching down nearby, patiently waiting for him to recover.

“Better?” he asked, and Nino nodded. A few more deep breaths and he was more or less settled again, and able to perceive his owner’s condition better. He smiled, because he had a duty to perform. Slowly and tremblingly he rose until he could bend back over the desk, and then spread his legs.

~~-*-~~

Normally, it would have been nothing short of a miracle if Sho managed to infiltrate a house in the state that he was in – drunk and far from steady on his feet. But the Ohno residency really was very forgiving to wannabe-intruders in that sense, and Sho had a clear goal in his mind that kept him on track. While he and his new landlord had been celebrating their new un-official arrangement, with Aiba explaining about how he was an inventor as well as shop-keeper and telling him what inventions he was most famous for, Sho had finally realized why it had subconsciously bothered him so much to see those art supplies for Ohno Satoshi in Nino’s arms. And it was an important enough realization that Sho couldn’t possibly wait for another accidental meeting with his slave to occur, like it did this morning, before he spoke to him about it.

But once he clumsily climbed through the same window as yesterday and looked around the room, the clear, guiding mission he had had in his mind until then pretty much disappeared without a trace because of what he saw.

It wasn’t the collar on his slave’s neck that made him react in such a way. A beautiful indigo color, so dark it was almost black, and crafted artfully from leather… It did feel like a nail through Sho’s heart to see another’s claim on someone he thought would belong to him forever, on someone who was more precious and beloved than anything else in the world. But the object was an expected, if unwelcome, addition. In fact, Sho had even wondered about its absence during their meeting in the morning already.

No, it wasn’t the collar. It was the fact that Nino was sleeping on top of the covers, turned onto his stomach and this way Sho could see marks all over his slave’s backside.

His blood boiled at the sight. How dare he? How dare that man put his hands, harm someone as precious, as fragile as Nino?

Before he even realized what he was doing, Sho drunkenly stumbled closer to the bed and dropped to his knees beside it, immediately reaching out to gently shake the tiny man into wakefulness. Nino sleepily opened his eyes and probably didn’t even have a chance to properly wake up before Sho was already talking.

“Did he hurt you? Oh gods, Nino, did Ohno do this to you?” he asked, his fingers gingerly hovering over some of the marks he could reach, craving to soothe them somehow but afraid to touch them and cause Nino more pain at the same time, “How could he do this? Nino, please… You need to return to me. Can’t you see that you can’t stay with someone who treats you like this? He’s horrible for you…” Sho babbled, finally just settling for reaching out for Nino’s hand. But as soon as their skins touched, the slave jerked away from it, suddenly looking wide-awake and very wary of Sho.

“Don’t touch me,” he said. His voice sounded pained by what he was saying, but unmovable at the same time. Sho stared, once again shaken to the core by his slave acting against him, “You can’t touch me anymore. Ohno Satoshi is my Master now, and only he can do that or allow it to someone else. He is my Master, and he knows how to be a good one – something that you have obviously forgotten if you think that me getting the punishment I deserve is horrible. He gave me what you had neglected to, Sho. He made up for your mistakes. He is the opposite of horrible, and you better not repeat those accusations in front of me again.”

Sho shivered, every word stabbing him in the heart. Was it true? Was Ohno really that much better for Nino than he was? What if Nino decided he didn’t want to return to him no matter what anymore? No… No, that couldn’t be possible. Sho started shaking his head in denial.

“He hurt you.”

“He grounded me,” the answer was instantaneous and steely.

“You belong to me.”

“No. Not until the understanding of why I do need this comes naturally to you again,” Nino’s words were unforgiving, but they cut into Sho’s heart exactly the way he intended them to. Sho couldn’t help but start doubting and questioning himself, and his arms dropped, helplessly, back to his sides.

“Leave, Sho,” Nino continued, his voice just as unyielding, but at the same time somehow more gentle now, “Don’t come here like this again. If you want me back, you’ll have to do it the right way. Through the person that you have sold me to. After all, you already have a way in, don’t you? And… I’ll be waiting for you.”

Well, at least Nino did still intend to let Sho fight to get him back, then. And the older man knew it was true - they couldn’t keep meeting this way, and he did have a way to come closer to Ohno Satoshi now if he really went through with becoming the spell specialist of the town.

Sho hauled himself back onto his unsteady feet and made his way back to the window. Nino didn’t want him here. The younger man seemed far more sure in his decision than yesterday or even this morning too. He wouldn’t have been able to talk this was to Sho, who technically did still own him, this way otherwise. But just as Sho was about to bolt over the windowsill, he suddenly remembered why he had come in the first place and paused for a few more moments.

“My father owns one work of Ohno Satoshi, you know. The sort of… abstract forest painting over the stairs in the entrance hall, do you remember?” he asked, looking back at Nino over his own shoulder, but didn’t wait for an answer, “Even back then he was already so famous…” he fell silent again for a couple of seconds. Nino was obviously waiting for him to get to his point, and so Sho looked his slave directly in the eyes before he finished, “You said he painted you, right? What do you think will happen if the famous Ohno Satoshi decided to sell a painting of you?”

Then, with the rhetorical question hanging in the air, he climbed out the window and left a stunned Nino behind.

The return trip shouldn’t be as challenging. Sho felt quite sobered up.