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Traitor	By : MyouTakara Category: Zelda > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 9770 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: I do not own the Legend of Zelda, nor am I making any money off this fic (I am being bribed with fanart. Does that count?)

Chapter List
- 7
- 8
- 9
Chapter Eight

Despite Shadow's foul curses and threats of slow, agonizing death ("If he dies I swear, I'll rip out your intestines and boil them in oil, and make youeat them before I fucking kill you!"), in the end there was really very little Vaati could do for the Hero, and even less that he wanted to do. Instead, he tried to convince Shadow he'd be better off getting someone else to do it. At first, he'd suggested that Shadow take Vio back to Hyrule for a blue, or even just a red, potion. That...hadn't gone over well.

"It'd heal him completely in a second, but the ingredients don't grow here and the potion is too unstable to make the trip." Vaati told Shadow, his voice mechanical and body tense.

"NO, no potions! He's not setting foot in Hyrule Ever Again!" Shadow hissed, grabbing Vaati by the throat and squeezing hard enough to cut off his air flow (not that he NEEDED to breathe, per se, but the intent was there).

He'd then suggested that Shadow fetch a Hylian healer and bring him to the Dark Realm to tend to Vio. He didn't go for that, either.

"You don't even have to keep whoever you bring if you don't want to-"

"What, let him go so he can go back and tell the Heroes where to find Vio? Or kill him and make the other Heroes suspicious so they come looking themselves? NO! What are you, stupid?" Shadow snarled, and Vaati ducked just in time. Something heavy and ceramic struck the wall near the place his head had been a moment earlier.

Giving up after that incident, Vaati had plopped down irritably in a chair by the bed and asked for a bowl, a pitcher of cool water, and a couple of cloths. He'd poured some of the water into the bowl and dipped a cloth in it, draping it carelessly over the still-twitching Hero's forehead and wild, fever-glazed eyes. He dipped the other cloth in the water and wrung it out, using it to wipe down Vio's sweaty face and neck, and down over his chest. Shadow growled and muttered under his breath, but his clenched fists were the only signs of his displeasure at the contact. After all, he'd ordered Vaati to help Vio, and he couldn't very well do that without touching him.

That was several hours ago. Several long, grueling hours filled by an intermittently hallucinating, screaming Hero, bound and gagged by shadows, a cursing, angry Shadow Link, and many bowls of cool water. Twice, Shadow made Vaati change the bedsheets like a common chamberlain, much to his displeasure. For some reason that Vaati was unaware of, Shadow seemed vehemently opposed to letting ANY Hinox in his room, although Vaati knew there had been no such restrictions before.

It was nearing dawn (or the Dark Realm's imitation of it), now. Shadow's head rested in his folded arms on a desk in the corner of the room. He was snoring lightly, with a small puddle of drool forming near the corner of his mouth. Disgusting.

The Hero (finally) lay still and relatively quiet, though his breathing remained labored and his body warmer to the touch than was normal. His skin appeared deceptively healthy and unmarked thanks to the Wizzrobes' hack magic, though they couldn't hide the red, fevered flush, or the obvious signs of maltreatment. The circles under his eyes looked dark, as though he hadn't slept well in some time. His face was gaunt, his cheekbones more prominent than Vaati remembered even from the dinner party those weeks ago. His body, hidden now under a thick black quilt, but visible earlier when Vaati changed the sheets, had the all-too familiar starved look of a prisoner, of one who had lost too much weight in too short a time. Somehow, it made the sheen of his blond hair and the glow of his skin against the dark silk look obscene. Over all this, tendrils of shadows ghosted along his still form, seemingly diaphanous, but ready to become hard as steel at any hint of unwanted movement from him.

Vaati removed the warmed cloth from the Hero's head, dipped it in the bowl, wrung it out, and replaced it again. He reached around the young man to fluff his pillow, simply for something to do. His fingers toyed with the edge of the black embroidered pillowcase, and he let his mind wander. So easy...

It would be so easy to slide that pillow out from under his head. The Hero would sleep through it. He probably wouldn't even notice.

It would be so easy to press it down over that thin face. . .

The Hero would try to breathe and be unable, try to bat him away with his meager, starved strength. . .

Except he wouldn't be able to, because the shadows would tighten to hold him down.

He'd be so weak, he wouldn't even be able to attempt to scream.

His body would twitch and squirm in those bonds for several minutes, five tops. Then his struggles would begin to slow, and his limbs would drop to the sheets, soft as butterfly wings. His heart would try to keep beating, but it too would succumb. . .

Then he'd lay still.

Vaati would pull the pillow away then, see that pale face turned blue for lack of life-giving air, frozen forever in an expression of horror and fear. The whites of his eyes would be blood-shot, those hateful cornflower blues dulled forever in death.

Oh, Shadow would kill him for it, there was no doubt about that. But Shadow was going to kill him eventually anyway, once he tired of him. And he'd rather take one of the Heroes with him than die by the bastard's whim. . .

He'd worked Vio's head halfway off the pillow when tired blue eyes blinked open. Vaati froze, expecting him to scream ("MURDERER!"), but he only smiled. It was weak, exhausted, but there. He didn't say anything, just reached up to touch Vaati's face so gently, to make sure he was real, and Shadow had kept his word.

Vaati's breath caught in surprise. He reached up, placing his hand over Vio's for a moment, before lowering both to the sheets. "...You need to drink something." He murmured, pouring water from the pitcher into a wooden cup. He helped Vio sit up, supporting his head with one arm, and gently tipped the cup against his lips. Vio took a few small sips, closing his eyes in pleasure. "Thank you." He whispered hoarsely.

". . . You're welcome." Vaati adjusted his pillows before lowering him onto them again and replacing the cool cloth. Vio made a small sound in the back of his throat, his eyes drifting shut again.

Dammit.

Shadow didn't wake for a couple more hours, jerking abruptly into consciousness and rubbing at his eyes. "Nn. . . someone's here. Feels like Twili." He wiped the drool from his face and looked about, blinking in momentary confusion when he spotted Vaati by his bed. Recognition dawned, followed by irritation and just as quickly chagrin. Vaati twitched. Shadow had never learned to hide his emotions at all, like the amateur he was.

"How. . . uh. . . how is he doing?" Shadow asked, making his way over to the bed.

"His fever's down, and he woke long enough to drink a little water." Vaati replied shortly.

"Oh...th-that's good. " Shadow murmured, reaching out to caress Vio's forehead. Vio still felt warm, but not as burning hot as he'd been the previous night. Shadow's expression softened, a tenderness Vaati never thought he'd see appearing on his face.

As he returned his hand to his side Vio stirred, shifting in the bed. He groaned softly before blinking up at Shadow- and he promptly froze, his lips parted in a quiet gasp. Shadow frowned with worry, reaching up to place his hand on Vio's cheek, to see if his fever had spiked- only for Vio visibly flinch, his heart pounding with fear. . .fear of him. Shadow's hand clenched into a fist and he dropped it to his side, staring down at the terrified, trembling Vio. After a moment Shadow bent forward, stiffly placing a kiss on Vio's forehead before turning swiftly on his heel to retreat to his bathroom.

So, Vaati thought, the Hero was afraid of his Shadow. Not that he could blame him, given what he knew about how Shadow treated his pets. Regardless, it seemed as though Shadow Link. . .disliked this fear. Interesting.

Shadow returned several minutes later, clean and dressed, and when his eyes met Vaati's they were cold and hard again. "I have business to take care of," he said. "I'm leaving Vio in your care. The Hinox cannot enter this room. You are solely responsible for him." His expression darkened, and danger laced his tone. "If you hurt him in any way I will know, and you will NOT like the consequences, understand me?"

"Yes." Vaati responded.

Shadow scowled.

"Yes, sir, Master Shadow." Vaati snapped through gritted teeth. Of all the pompous, insufferable-

Shadow left, leaving Vaati and Vio alone again. Vio slept not long after, and Vaati took a seat by the window, staring out over Shadow's domain. In the garden directly below, plants of the Dark Realm grew, twisted, misshapen, poisonous things that became edible only after very careful preparation to avoid accidental poisoning. Powerful beings like Shadow had ways of bringing food and seasonings from Hyrule, but not all creatures of this realm were so lucky. Weaker, lesser shadows tended to the plants, under the watchful eye of their Hinox overseers. More fields of the foul plants stretched to the west, over what had once been flat, barren land. To the north, there was a bustling market in the Hylian style, appropriate to this relative new seat of power. Past the rooftops and market stands, Vaati saw shadows and monsters of all types wandering to and fro, going about their business. To the west-

A knock at the door derailed his train of thought, and Vaati gave a long-suffering sigh, getting heavily to his feet to answer it. "Yes?"

A Hinox stood outside the door, holding a a tray in its hands. It shoved it towards him and held it out expectantly, obviously waiting for him to take it. "For Lord Shadow's pet." It grunted.

As he took the tray, Vaati noticed with some interest that the Hinox was careful not to let any part of its body cross the threshold of the door. If he focused, he could just see the outline of a repellant charm placed around the room to keep those Shadow didn't want there, out (and, presumably, those he wanted inside, in). The Hinox shut the door and lumbered off down the hall, and Vaati set the tray on the desk in the corner. There wasn't much, just a bowl of warm broth and a slice of bread, but it was nourishment, and from the look of the Hero he needed all he could get.

He didn't feel like waking the Hero just to feed him, so Vaati returned to his seat by the window, letting his mind wander once more.

So many ways to eliminate the Hero in his weakened state. They were high above the ground in this room, and the windows opened wide. He could use his powers, either his wind or demon tentacles, and lift the Hero from his bed without waking him. He could send him out the window and watch him drop like a rock, down down, down to land in a heap of limbs as twisted and broken as the plants his body would crush. . . he might even scream before he hit the ground, if he woke. Such a delicious sound! Oh, Shadow would be so furious! He hated it when people took his toys away before he was through playing with them.

Or- OH! The plants! Among them, he could see the crinkled black leaves and wilted gray petals of Dark Echinacea. If the leaves and petals were properly washed, steamed, and fermented, its liquids could be decanted into a strong wine favored by the Dark Realm's inhabitants. If used raw, however. . .

A motion of his hand and a gust of wind carried three of the petals and a single leaf up through the open window and into his waiting palm. Rolling the petals and leaf lightly between his fingers, Vaati crushed them, releasing the plant's poisonous oils. The scent was surprisingly pleasant, like rich honey. Its poison, Vaati, knew, was strong. Even the meager amount he held would kill a Hinox within hours, turn its stomach gray and make its body spasm and bend in ways none but a like-like were meant to, projectile vomiting its own insides before it expired. Many Dark Realm dwellers died each year as a result of improperly prepared Dark Echinacea wine. Granted, so long as their lights survived they would always come back, but the death was painful and unstoppable once it began, if entertaining for others to watch.

Perhaps that was part of the attraction? Vaati didn't know.

Making his way to the desk where he'd left the tray, Vaati stared contemplatively into the bowl of broth. It was a Keese broth, if he wasn't mistaken, seasoned with plants from the garden. Among them, he could just detect a hint of fermented Dark Echinacea, perhaps used to deglaze the stock pan. Mistakes did happen. . .

Vaati tore apart the petals and leaf, dropping them into the broth and stirring it with the spoon to disguise them as part of the broth. The Hero wouldn't have to drink much of it for the poison to be lethal. Judging by how skinny and sick he was, a couple of mouthfuls would probably do the deed.

Picking up the tray, Vaati carried it to the stand by the bed, setting it down with a clunk loud enough to rouse the Hero. Vio blinked up at him tiredly, licking his dry lips in an effort to speak. "What? . . ."

"Food." Vaati said shortly, before reminding himself that he mustn't rouse the Hero's suspicions. He smiled, though it was somewhat strained. "Are you hungry?"

Vio seemed to think about this for a moment before nodding. "Yeah." Vaati helped him sit up again, propping him up with pillows against the headboard. The chain attached to his collar rattled, and Vaati moved it out of the way so it didn't choke him. That done, Vaati placed the tray carefully over Vio's lap so its legs balanced on the bed.

"Can you feed yourself alright?" Vaati asked softly.

"I. . .I think so." Vio answered hoarsely. He reached for the spoon, his hand trembling with weakness. Vaati retreated to the end of the over-sized bed (really, Vaati knew Shadow liked his toys, but he hardly needed a bed big enough to hold ten of them plus him with room to spare) to watch.

First, he'd feel a little dizzy, like he'd stood up too fast or spun around in circles for a few minutes.

Vio managed to pick up the spoon with some difficulty, but dropped it again almost immediately.

Within an hour, he'd feel nauseous, as though there were worms crawling around in his stomach. At very low doses, the sickness would stop there, but. . .

He picked it up a second time, and this time managed to get it into the bowl, before he had to rest.

With enough of the poison, by the end of the second hour, he'd start to twitch uncontrollably.

Slowly, ever so slowly, he picked up the spoon, full of the lightly-sweetened poisoned broth, lifting it towards his lips.

The spasms would set in by the third hour, contorting and bending his frail form while his body tried desperately to expel the poison from his system.

Vio dropped the spoon, hissing in irritation when the broth spattered across the sheets. Spotting the bread, he dunked it into the bowl instead, letting it absorb some of the broth before reaching for it.-

By the end of the fourth hour, he'd be dead.

- "Wait!" A freak gust of wind blew through the open window, causing the sheets to blow wildly about the bed, and upset the tray. Vio gave a yelp, startled into dropping the poison-soaked bread. The tray and its contents went crashing to the floor, smashing the bowl and spattering the broth to soak into the thick black carpet.

Damn.

Damn damn DAMN.

He couldn't do it.

All during their meeting Shadow was restless and edgy, distracted by thoughts of the sickened toy currently sleeping in his bed. He blamed himself, of course. He should have known better than to trust a for-hire Poe with such an important task as his pet's safety. Some Poes were still bitter about his betrayal of Gufuu, and he knew that. Staying focused on his tasks was all but impossible now, with Vio out of his sight, but he dared not bring Vio with him, back among others where he could be harmed.

Shadow kept glancing towards the timepiece on the wall, and several times his gaze wandered in the direction of the stairs. His anxiousness to return to Vio built with every moment he spent away from him. His behavior did not go unnoticed by Midna, although her (slightly insane) cousin Zant and the Deku Scrub ambassador seemed perfectly oblivious, chatting away about inane things over their tea.

"Kargaroks aren't really that hard to keep you know, and they make wonderful songbirds." Zant tittered (with a stupid grin Midna knew he had hidden under his ridiculous helmet). He hadn't touched his tea.

"You're tone-deaf!" Squawked the Deku Scrub. "I'm not buying a Kargarok from you! Where would I put it, anyway?"

"Oh~, but we keep them in such lovely cages. Spacious enough that they won't get restless, but not so large you can't keep one inside." Zant crooned. Shadow's eyes darted towards Zant then, and Midna could see the spark of an idea forming there. She decided to. . . help it along.

"Of course, the cages could just as easily keep one out, if that's what you need it to do. Whatever being is kept inside remains perfectly safe." She said, grinning her devil grin. That caught Shadow's attention.

"Say, Zant, what do you want for a couple of those cages?"
- 7
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- 9
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Traitor