Twenty-Seven
Riki was personally escorted by Iason into a room when the Blondie had noticed the Pet was feeling faint, and indeed, he had fallen asleep short of an half hour since he entered the suite, waking up to see Katron now come in and accompanied him, likewise asleep on the couch nearby, a doll in the quiet, could be easily mistaken for one of Lanaya Hugo's forbidden sex creations now that he was observing him closely.
For some reason Riki was feeling better, as if the sickness had completely left him, though he was yet to remember that this was one of the things Raoul had pointed to him during his examinations, that his body was capable of fast healing and that no illness, be they existing or yet to be created in the future (at least in Raoul's theories), would affect him.
The Pet rose to his feet, finding the strength had returned to his legs as if he'd never been sick to begin with.
' That was fast, ' he smiled, stretching some more to clear the sleep out of his system, arms reaching upward.
As he extended his arms, he noticed that the silk he'd worn around his wrists was gone, finding that the Furniture had already removed the accessory and dutifully folded it on top the side table, placing it alongside the rest of the other jewelries he was decorated with, carefully laid in the boxes they were brought out of back in the Palace.
Upon careful inspection, the door had been locked from the inside, whether it was Katron's conscious decision or by Iason's order, the Pet did not know. He was thankful however to have been afforded some peace and quiet despite the earlier rush and bustle...
When they had descended the balconies after the last of the Pet breeds were sold and carted off, the other attendees had flocked to them, as led by Iason with Riki in hand, the other petless Blondie elites surrounding them congregated with the rest of the crowd for the after-party. Everyone seemed utterly interested to congratulate Neu-Jupiter that Gideon immediately called for security to keep these well-wishers - never mind who they were or what position they held - at bay.
Of course everyone noticed the possessive arm Iason had extended, taking Riki carefully under his wing, mindful to caution the Pet who'd lifted his splendid feathers up as slowly but safely they and the Council were led to the separate venue of the ball.
It was a high-class affair, and Riki was a standout, not only because he was the only Pet in all the venue, not to mention the only one to be seated in the table with the Tanagura Blondies, but because he was most beautiful in his garb, wings and defiant eyes only serving to enhance his astonishingly enchanting features. He was a black mass in a sea of colours, of citizens.
People had stopped to ask exactly what Jupiter had done to refine him to such an extent, but Iason, a master who would not kiss and tell, merely smiled at the attention lavished upon them…
A Seraphim most definitely not, Riki was described by the crowd in a myriad of deviant adjectives such as 'the Dark One' (which reminded the Pet of his old moniker as 'Riki the Dark' in the Black Markets), 'Jupiter's Beloved', 'the Blessed' and 'the Exalted' which was a spin off his Exclusive title, now gaining popularity amongst the other guests as they seemed to deem this latter pseudonym of better esteem.
There were others, but the Pet had complained of an ache in his head as he sat there beside his Master, an alerted Iason immediately leading him away from the noisy gaieties to a room he had the organizers prepare, leaving Riki with a kiss to feeling better.
The Blondie would be surprised. Riki is feeling better now…
The Furniture stirred when he felt the Pet was up, "Master? How are you feeling?" and Katron could only be so worried.
Riki immediately stopped him from standing.
"Go back to sleep Katron," he said. "You've been taking care of me since late yesterday. You must be very tired."
"But Master…"
The Pet assured him, a clear expression in those obsidian eyes that told how he was already feeling well. The Furniture was relieved somehow, though the look on his own face spoke of his intentions to fuss over Riki's well-being again. The Pet stopped him once more.
"I'm okay Katron, please, you don't need to bother."
It took some time to convince the Furniture to let him out unaccompanied, but finally, Riki was now walking the short stretch of corridor that connected the room to the ball where he knew all of Midas had gathered, although Katron had insisted to get him into a second change of clothes and accessories before letting him march out...
The Pet now wore a different top made entirely of black lace which covered only the front of his chest all the way to his navel, clasped in two places - one by the nape and the other just above the base of his spine, above the Jupiter Mark which pretty much still left his lower midriff exposed. Then Katron had an idea to wrap the silk from his wrists around his pelvic area instead to make a loose skirt which fell behind him like a grand cape, but was way too long so he decided to taper its ends the last minute, turning the trailing portions into a silk rose which easily slipped into an arm bracelet to make another one of those lengthy scarves, swept to one side, keeping it out of the way while still effecting a beautiful little drama to the costume…
' Katron... ' Riki could only smile at his ingenuity, really.
A final check to see if his appearance was all right and the Pet once again unfurled his hidden wings, like a mantle of pride, the gossamer still strong as they weaved elegantly through every feather, purposeful ornaments that garnered as much curiosity. He stepped through the doors which already slid open for him.
Eyes immediately turned as the Exclusive came out of his hold, folding his obedient wings like a gallant fan behind him and letting the pair tail again like a thick, black cloak on the carpeted floor.
Such magnificence, was what they'd whispered, strangers parting to give the Exclusive way as the Pet looked around for any signs of his lover…
The Pet had about him that air of non-conformity, uninterested and not stopping in his stride, snubbing even the aristocrats and rich-heads and politicians, though in plain truth, he was too unfamiliar to bother with all these titles, the formalities and also the faces that entailed them. Not that he needed to trouble himself. The only designation Riki should fully know about was Neu-Jupiter, his Master, and the Exclusive which was his own. Now if he could only find the table. He had not noticed that the ballroom was ridiculously large…
' Damn, where'd Iason go? '
"Pet."
The casual sobriquet wafted, the voice speaking sounding very much like his Iason although as he turned, the face which broke through the crowd was the smiling face of a different Blondie, Gideon Lagat's, to the Exclusive's disappointment.
"Are we lost?" asked the Man, engaging the Pet in short chatter as he made his way to his side. "Feeling better?"
But beggars can't be choosers. It was a familiar presence nonetheless in the sea of luxuriously-clad yet superficially shallow strangers, and Riki was quietly relieved.
"I'm looking for Iason," the Pet replied, eyeing him with a bit of apprehension, his typical reaction to basically anyone in Iason's class.
He just didn't trust any of his Master's brethren, not a single one had the decency built for it, and if he recalled correctly, this one in front of him now was the one whose wicked sense of humour ticked him off since the beginning. He'd only talked to him once after his waking and that too had been an irksome incident altogether.
"It's wrong for Neu-Jupiter's beautiful Exclusive to be alone without his Master. Come," but Gideon only offered him his hand this time. "I'll take you to him."
The Exclusive glowered at that extended hand before he accepted, but not without the slightest of visible hesitations and a flicker of annoyance, cementing the fact that he would be the only Pet who could actually refuse a Blondie when he wanted to, maybe even rebut Iason Mink though it was a known fact he couldn't resist the other for too long once his touches landed.
Gideon guided him through the crowd like a knight the rest of the guests swooned over, head up and proud to be escorting such a fine Pet. All the Blondies looked specially dashing tonight, enough to prompt most to wonder if this was so they could match the Neu-Jupiter couple, Riki and Gideon in his company easily complementing.
"You've done me such great honour. But you seem to despise me, I can tell," remarked the Blondie.
"Only because I remember you to be such an asshole," Riki spoke without stopping the words, true to his feelings and the memories that made him reach the conclusion.
His eyes drifted about, noting how the generous windows opened the outside in, could recall that once before he had been standing out there looking in, with Luke, Sid, Norris, Guy and, yes, even Kirie. He remembered Bison all of the sudden. How would it have been like if they saw him now? He was the very opposite of what he'd fought then. The only difference now was that he was besotted, enslaved to Iason's love.
"Ah, I see the old god has not tinkered with your blooming personality. But that's understandable: imagine how bored Iason would be if you no longer scuffed and fought."
"And what does that mean?"
When they reached someplace in the inner halls, under the vaulted cathedralesque ceilings, Gideon gestured towards the direction of a convivial crowd, where Iason had been socializing with other elites, but immediately noticing his Pet through the multitude, and gestured for Riki to come to him. The other Blondie obliged, again guiding the gorgeous Exclusive to his beloved, still by the hand.
Riki's wings swished and shuffled gracefully as they walked past the astonished visitors, the threads still glinting with the stellar of its design.
Gideon could very much appreciate the effort put into clothing the Pet with such affluence: for Riki continued to shine as a diamond without flaw or imperfection, his original background as a petty slum mongrel no longer the attribute that defined his being. The Blondie still wanted to test that however, and Gideon stopped halfway to where Iason was waiting.
"Such wings. And you can fold them as a moth's…" he inspected. "I wonder if there be a flame that would entice you to burn them?"
Riki didn't like the tone of those words.
He frowned, though the other continued, "They make you quite beautiful yet…" he trailed off and bent in to whisper to Riki's ear the rest of the statement. "A pet will always be a pet. Ever thought what would happen if Iason got fed up with you?"
Riki did not fully understand what the other had meant by those words, but he tasted the malice in them that it instantly made him recoil. He let go of the hand. He scowled further at Gideon who all but smiled in a Blondie's characteristic calm.
"Ah, Iason," the superficial greeting when his Master sauntered over out of impatience, also noting the clear annoyance marking his beloved's face even before he'd noticed the change of accoutrements. He eyed Gideon who merely laughed, "Don't leave your dearest alone; others may not be able to help themselves, Iason."
And with the innuendo thick in the air, he left to be greeted by the other guests, sharing his humour and enchantment elsewhere, leaving the couple to each other. The Pet still kept on glaring after the other Blondie even as he'd disappeared through the congregation, a bitter hate of sorts rising to the back of his mouth.
If this had been at home, he'd punch his lights out. That was something he knew he could do now quite easily, his newfound graces including a change in strength to match these other monsters…
Iason on the other couldn't help but notice the visible aversion as he moved to corner his Exclusive in his arms, lifting Riki's chin so his eyes met with his eyes.
"You seem to have recovered," said the Blondie. "What's the matter? Did Gideon say anything to displease you?" then came the inevitable kiss, the dancers and busy-bodies stopping to note or ogle at the display.
Iason had been kissing Riki all night and unblushingly at that, open with his affections and displaying them rather fondly.
Riki did not mention any more, instead just asked, "Can we get out of here? I'm getting tired of these things."
"A beautiful proposition coming from someone so enticing," indeed, the Blondie could imagine where this would all end up once they got home, but Iason was not in the mood to go just yet, no matter how he's been aching to have Riki all to himself again and, again, to make him cry out in blind pleasure.
He still had a matter to attend to before this night was done. Iason smiled at him.
Before Riki could protest or decline, before he gave him another witty remark about the unimportance of all this, he took his Pet by the hand as he wrapped his other arm around his waist and commanded them both to the floor.
"Oblige me? With a dance?" said the Master as the music of a familiar waltz wafted, the crowd gathering in pairs around what's easily the couple of the evening, murmurs extending to the farthest reaches of the gathering, even to those unable to get in due to the sheer staggering number of other more important attendees. The Blondies themselves were waiting to see what was to happen, seeing as the two had not joined their ranks after Gideon left them there.
"But I don't know how to dance. I don't dance," Riki frowned, whispering, fearing he'll make a mockery of himself. Nevertheless, Iason simply held him in place.
"Oh but you do my love," declared Neu-Jupiter. "You'd be surprised at just what you've learnt in the year that we were asleep."
Booking no further arguments, Iason directed his Pet to the very centre of the dancers and to Riki's surprise, as soon as they'd started, he found that he knew just how to proceed, following the Master's lead with no effort, as if he had done this before in a dream, dancing with Iason.
They made such a graceful couple, the Pet able to manoeuvre even his train of wings as they swayed to the song of violins and other stringed instruments of old, the Exclusive discovering that he actually loved the sound of these boring things as much as he enjoyed the music made by the more popular synthesizers of the age.
And the superior Blondie kept drawing him near, whispering sweet nonsenses into his ear, the other hand making little caressing movements down his back, making him shiver. When he tipped Riki over, he followed his arch, running just the tip of his nose down his Pet's neck and making the other sigh delightfully...
Sometimes, the Blondie actually sung the lyrics to a few of the love songs the grand orchestra played, making his Exclusive chuckle, surprised that the other actually had the gentler voice for this, drunk on the divine love they shared which the other elites, let alone the selected few of the Blondies, could not grasp.
Then Iason surprised his beloved, requesting for a particular number, an ancient Earth song to be played by the flock of romantic instruments, the Master to privately croon the missing words into his Pet's hearing as the latter wondered how in the world the Blondie knew of this. 214 was amongst his favourites from that lost civilization…
"I asked Katron," Neu-Jupiter winked before beginning the verses:
'Am I real?
Do the words I speak before you make feel
That the love I've got for you will see no ending?
Well if you look into my eyes then you should know
That you have nothing here to doubt, nothing to fear
And you can lay your questions down cause if you'll hold me
We can fade into the night and you'll know'
…the Blondies grimaced as the two stayed dancing and flirting, courting it seemed in the midst of all the other elegant dancers, the trace of their calculative brother still there with his composure intact throughout but alight with this unusual glow...the glow of his affections for the Pet he held so closely…
'The world would die and everything may lie
Still you shan't cry
'Cause time may pass
But longer than it'll last
I'll be by your side'
…was this love? they all wondered, seeing that Iason had never been so truly contented in the world but when it was like this, with his Riki. They also wondered if this was the very same face Jupiter saw that day, enough that in his dwindling moments, the old god finally gave his blessings to the two?...
'Take my hand
And gently close your eyes so you could understand
That there's no greater love tonight than what I've for you
Well if you feel the same way for me then let go
We can journey to a garden no one knows
Life is short my darling tell me that you love me
So we can fade into the night and you'll know'
"I truly cannot understand this," Raoul spoke more to himself, something the overhearing Gideon secretly agreed upon…
Yes. It was truly confounding. In fact, he had not realized it yet but he had been staring in complete and utter misery, may deny this as much as he liked if he was confronted with it, at the couple who swirled so gracefully around the ballroom. As if the night was made for them and in an odd way, it was…
He turned away. He looked down upon the glass of wine before him but could still see the couple's form in the wine reflecting, not only his brother, but that of the Pet's. Who would have thought Riki had such a startling smile?
Aisha noted Gideon's reactions but without a tinge of worry from where he sat opposite him. Trouble brewing. He's seen this look before years ago, in Iason…
'The world could die and everything may lie
Still you shan't cry
'Cause time may pass
But longer than it'll last
I'll be by your side
Forever by your side'
For Riki it was a celebration of the truth, of the love they both felt, and of being 'reborn' into this happiness. As if nothing could stop them now. He ran his fingers through Iason's celestial hair as the latter let the song finish itself in their minds, in their hearts…and the kiss they shared had never been sweeter…
'I want you to know
The world could lie
And everything may die
Still you shan't cry
'Cause time may pass
And everything won't last
I'll be by your side
Forever by your side
Forever by your side
So you won't cry'
--
A gentler love song began to sweep through in the background and it looked like there would be no end to it, no end to the romance as Iason now had his Pet's head laid to his chest, hand-in-hand and fingers twined as they continued to dance, Riki listening to the Blondie's heart beat as he hummed with a smile the lower rhythm of the theme. The lights had been dimmed to further the effect of the holographic fairytale of falling stars, so utterly lovely, as lovely as the moment they were sharing now.
But little did they know that the night wouldn't last quite as long as they would have wanted…
Elsewhere, Katron had just stepped out of the suite after packing everything off, to an empty balcony overlooking the ballroom, but immediately sensing that something was wrong, eyes fading to a shade of cat-like red, the signature of Karinese empathy at work, scanning over the mass. Only one thing came to his mind and his body instantly reacted, a tide of genetically-enhanced hormones and programming rushing and he could not prevent it.
His head spun, threatening to topple him over.
// Danger. //
The Furniture's head snapped up and, as he raised his hands to his face, he could see them shaking, entirely out of his control. He caught sight of his Masters below and he heard himself growl lowly in a voice that was not his own! He was transforming even before he could stop it! He grasped at the rails and they crumbled under his fingertips!
// …danger… //
"Danger…masters…
// "DANGER!" //