104 | plea; tip of a drink

The two men walked with a prominent distance between them as if trying to avoid catching an illness. Neither looked at each other. Then, in the midst of the stifling silence, Noah sneezed.

Kaden's steps faltered, and he undid the knot holding his cloak. Noah was dressed lightly, but it was also the dragon who wasn't fond of the cold.

He threw it over wordlessly and the fabric soared in the air, slapping Noah in the face. The dragon paused. "....." He took the cloth, stared at it, and looked sideways impassively. "Is this clean?"

"It's drowning in the blood of my enemies," retorted Kaden, offended at the question. "That way, if you're injured, the blood won't make much of a difference."

"Is that how it works?"

"It is."

"Hm." The dragon hummed and fastened the cloak around his neck, feeling the residue heat engulf his body. It suffused him with warmth, penetrating his lonely bones. The dark eyes flickered briefly before he continued walking forward.

Noah turned left, and Kaden stopped in his step. "I think we should walk right," he said, more so out of the sheer mood to argue. He felt a little frustrated at Noah's frustrations.

It was for the better, that they were distant, that they didn't recall their past. Three years was both long and short, and the closeness of that one year had already become a memory. It was only one year. And yet it was an entire year.

Noah's black gaze swept sideways. "Why should I trust you?"

A bitterness coated his voice, deep and biting. Unforgiving. The temperature was dropping, and the coldness grew more eminent.

A sarcastic smile made its way onto Kaden's face, his hand flipping the gold coin in his pocket. "I don't know. Is my murdering of dozens not convincing enough?"

The dragon seethed. "No."

"It's a joke." Seeing the genuine irritation, Kaden shoved his hands deeper into his pocket, striding a step ahead. If he kept walking, he would disappear into the sweeping fog and they would never have to cross paths again.

He slowed down, slightly. Enough to hear Noah's quiet breathing behind him, following steadily.

"A joke made in poor taste," growled the dragon.

"A defining joke that quotes my personality actually, darling dragon."

Noah's eye twitched at the name, spoken with pure, drawling sarcasm. There was a time it had been endearing, the way Kaden delighted in his silly names. Noah's shoes stiffly grounded against the marble floors. "Then your personality is in poor taste."

Kaden's smile flattened. "Your taste, supposedly."

"Unfortunately," replied Noah.

"I think I like you better when you shut up, dragon."

Noah stopped in his steps, eyes rounding slightly in memory, a softness of a distant past. Within seconds, they hardened once again. Quietly, he drew the words to the tip of his tongue. "It seems we have something in common, then."

Familiarity rushed through Kaden and the words inching up his throat were hastily swallowed. He changed the response he was about to reply with instinctively. "Are you implying I'm beautiful when silent, as the saying goes?"

Noah turned, walking in the direction he'd originally been meaning to. "You're beautiful," he said in a dead voice. "When you're not thinking."

Kaden spun around and followed behind, the clatter of his boots echoing in the strange space. "So you'd prefer me mindless?"

"With foolish thoughts like yours? Perhaps."

"That's quite some interesting tastes you have, dearest Bellamy."

He caught up to Noah and found a flicker of irritation in the dragon's glare. Kaden smiled, pleased with himself, even though they hadn't gone in the direction he'd wanted to.

Noah continued walking ahead, not waiting for Kaden to catch up. The dragon's hand hung at his side, fingers slightly curled as if holding the ghost of another's hand.

Kaden followed quietly, and then he stopped.

The fog slowly spilled around him, ready to consume and engulf his figure. Noah's back grew further, and Kaden wondered if this would be it; he stopped, and Noah continued walking. Into the future, into freedom.

And here Kaden would remain, amid ghosts and regrets.

He closed his eyes, feeling the cold of the spirits around him, the hatred of those dead gazes that bounced off his back. And then, the undeniably loud, angry footsteps storming up to him.

"You are a fool," growled Noah irritably as he snatched Kaden's hand and dragged him behind without warning. "Follow behind me obediently, or must I hold your hand and walk you out?"

Kaden stumbled, his green gaze falling to their intertwined hands. He loosened his fingers slightly, but it wasn't him holding on—it was Noah.

"Aren't you already holding my hand?"

"......" Noah refused to answer.

A real smile, not sarcastic or eerie, but teasing, tilted Kaden's lips as his eyes curved ever so slightly. "You can let go. I'll follow you like a silent, thoughtless, and beautiful doll, as you wish Bellamy."

But the gloved hand—still gloved even in his resentment—only held onto Kaden more tightly, as if frightened to release.

Kaden bent his head and laughed.

Noah scowled and sighed in exasperation.

The sinner, who had been standing alone in the midst of death and repentance, had once been left there to drown in the weight of his crimes. Alone in the cold fog, with only his delusions and ghosts to keep him company.

Suddenly, it was as if sunlight had streamed over that fog, almost too bright to look at. It cleared away the mists and ghosts, ushering an impossible warmth.

Kaden stared at Noah's side profile and felt overwhelmed by the man's sheer existence. So bright, Kaden could barely look.

He squinted, making a funny face, and Noah looked over at him, unamused.

"What's wrong with your face?"

"Be polite. This is the beautiful face that you covet." Kaden looked at him solemnly. "And if you must know, I was blinded by your beautiful face."

Noah was made speechless at the words spoken with such seriousness. "...what sort of nonsense are you saying?" Then, to match Kaden's ridiculous energy, he stated calmly, "If it's so blinding, I'll cut it up for you."

"What?" Kaden's eyes widened. "No."

Noah raised his eyebrows. "Don't you value my freedom? Isn't that why you keep acting foolishly?" He wondered bluntly. "Isn't it my freedom to change my face?"

"It is," frowned Kaden. "But you can't."

"It's my freedom."

"It's sacrilegious."

Noah huffed in amusement, shaking his head. He loosened his hand finally, letting go of Kaden who was momentarily disorientated by the lack of warmth in his hands.

His eyes darted to the side, and within the fog, he saw glimpses of other people he had killed—all of them except that little girl.

Uneasiness crowded his chest.

A loud noise came clattering towards them, multiple steps like running hooves. The fog kicked up and both men turned back in bewilderment as a large, swaying shadow approached them at a somewhat slow pace—odd considering it sounded like they were running.

They couldn't make out the shape, a distorted and odd shadow, and glanced at each other briefly. In the next second, they abruptly broke out into a run.

They ran until their legs burned, a red glow of lights far ahead. Kaden glanced back and almost paused.

The odd shape had lumbered behind, losing distance. And—was he mistaken, or did he hear a wheeze?

As if noticing his stare, the distorted shape suddenly picked up its pace again and Noah grabbed the staring sinner, pulling him through an opening in the fog, onto the misted streets with glowing red lights.

They tumbled onto the streets, outside of the house, chests heaving.

Kaden rolled onto his back, and Noah bent at his knees, catching their breaths. The door had slammed them, returning it into an old, empty house. Their gazes met briefly, and Kaden laughed out loud at the sheer ridicule of what happened, and Noah let out an amused breath.

Noah held out a hand to help Kaden up, and the latter hesitated, before taking it. He was pulled into a standing position easily. But when he moved to step back, the dragon's grip didn't loosen.

"One drink," pleaded the man quietly. "Have a drink with me, Chauvet. And convince me of your foolish plans. I'll trust you one more time."

The dragon resented himself for asking, for begging for a cycle of rejection. But what could he do? After losing Kaden Chauvet once, Noah already knew that he could not live in a world without that man.

Kaden stared, and there were no lies in the fathomless black pools. No lies and Kaden was tired, both mentally and physically, and his mind was confused. It would be unwise to let his target go; and even less wise to accept the dragon's hands.

For Noah wasn't a fool or a person easily tricked.

"Okay," he said, knowing it was a mistake.

Then Kaden was dragged, by his open hand, to a nearby bar in the strange town. He was seated at the bar, and Noah took a seat beside him. They were close; legs brushing.

Kaden cursed that he was aware and quickly ordered a drink.

Whispers and quiet conversations continue around them, isolated and private despite being in public. The mysterious atmosphere of outside spilled across the creaking floors.

The drink arrived. It was served with a cloud of smoke, a little bubble perched at the top, and Kaden looked at it with curiosity.

"It's my new experiment," said the mixer with a light smile. "Give it a try." Then, he moved to the next person.

Kaden leaned closer, mouth slightly parted in curious fascination. He brought it to his lips and the bubble burst, more smoke spilling and moistening his lips.

He took a tentative sip, and then another, and his eyes widened a fraction in surprise and delight.

"Bellamy, isn't this interesting—" He turned, his thrilled gaze meeting the somber black that observed him. His voice choked, words dying in his throat.

"Good?" mused the dragon, ordering the same for himself.

Kaden nursed his drink tensely, wanting to tip it back and wait for the burn in his throat to reach his mind, diminishing the awkwardness.

Noah made no effort to speak.

He received his drink, curiously observing it for a moment, and took a light sip of the alcohol, the edges of his sharp eyes softening.

His throat bobbed as he swallowed, and the dark eyes swept sideways to meet Kaden's watching stare. Kaden looked away uncomfortably, failing to resist his need and tipping the alcohol back.

He ordered another.

"Do you remember the groundskeeper for the dorms?" wondered Noah suddenly.

Kaden tugged his new drink towards him, nodding. "Noya. I do. I didn't have a chance to speak to her much."

"You were busy sneaking around."

"...is there a point to this question, Bellamy? Or," he smiled with a tilt of his lips. "Are you feeling awkward in this silence?"

Noah revealed nothing, regarding him coolly. "The one feeling awkward—is it me or is it you?"

"It's you."

"If you insist," remarked the dragon, as if indulging in Kaden and it made the latter frown. "She retired. Her grandchildren were investigating the case of Richard Halls. They nearly died, but he died first."

Kaden's grip tightened around his glass. "They're alive?"

"They are. She told me once, that she didn't care if it made her a horrible person, but she was thankful for his death. She was thankful to fate," Noah lifted the glass to his lips as lights reflected off his somber gaze. "Or to whoever killed that man."

A simmering relief settled over Kaden. He remembered her, Noya, who had crossed his life a few times. In this life, they'd barely spoken—perhaps that was for the better.

At least... the woman did not grieve over her grandchildren. She was not entangled in the madness of Richard Hall's sins.

Something changed. No, many things had already changed. His past and his present—were they finally walking on parallel paths? Kaden scoffed at his thinking.

No, ruin would still come. Disaster, conflict, and far too much loss.

It would all occur so long as Reed Chauvet remained.

"A killer? You've been reading too much. It's published news that the rising noble had died in an accident."

"Your death is published news."

"And it did happen," said Kaden with a drawl, smiling mockingly. "Somebody died that day, and the kingdom cheered."

"You're right." Sorrow tinged his voice, grieving for a person no longer there. For a past they could not return to. "Ghosts do not return."

"They don't," agreed Kaden softly, watching the ripples across the surface of his drink.

The two men returned to their respective drinks, quiet in the simmering noise around them. Kaden polished off his drink, ordering another as his head buzzed. It pounded with tangled thoughts, and he longed for the alcohol to rewrite every rational knowing.

The dragon ran his fingers over the emptied glass, deep in his thoughts. Then he wondered, "What defines a hero to you, Chauvet?"

Kaden flinched at the sudden question, Noah's quiet voice, and a scorching heat that pressed closer against his leg with the dragon's movements. He wanted to narrow in his shoulders and disappear. Instead, he straightened his back.

"A hero? I'd say it's somebody destined for greatness, to bring some sort of salvation to the world. A person you look at and can't help but respect."

Noah swirled the glass in his hands. "Is that all?"

Kaden became distinctly aware of their resting hands, inches apart. "Is there something else?"

The dragon hummed, tapping his finger in slow rhythms of three. Kaden found himself staring at them, the long finger that moved in a familiar pattern. One, two, three. Again, and again.

"I believe," murmured the dragon. "A hero is somebody who would sacrifice what is necessary to save others. Even themselves."

Kaden frowned, considering his words. "You're not wrong."

"And a villain, by classic stereotypes, what would they be?"

"Based on your definition, it would be the opposite. They would sacrifice others to achieve their goals."

A musical hymn from outside crept into the space, slow and skilled instruments crowding the air in an elegant and dangerous drifting.

"Would they let the world burn to save one person?"

"For the sake of saving somebody?" Kaden furrowed his eyebrows. "That's unrealistic. Morally, a person might hesitate to sacrifice, say, their most beloved. But if the world was at stake? I don't know. But they would hesitate."

Noah breathed softly, and Kaden felt fear creep up his arms instinctively, a reflexive warning thrumming in his head.

"I wouldn't," said the dragon as he tipped the remaining liquid back, his exposed throat rolling.

"You would." Kaden's response was automatic as he swung his head around, forehead creasing. "You would, because there are many in this world that hold your affection. Your companions. Those you know, those you want to."

Desperation weighed his voice, a need to believe in all the good that Noah was. The dragon didn't shift his penetrating gaze, a stamp of anger burning behind black pupils.

"Is that the truth you want to believe?"

Dragons, from birth, were selfish and greedy creatures that hoarded their treasures. The definition of a treasure differed, but in essence, it was the same.

They protected their treasures without regard for anything else in the world, satisfied in their own isolated space that contained all they cared for. They were taught, from the beginning, to live without affection or care.

Restraint and control, two lessons hammered into their scaled skins. To want nothing in life, and therefore, when there was something worth wanting, to never let it go.

Noah liked the towering trees that stood tall in the forest, and the streets that bustled with life and conversations of various tales.

He liked the birds that flew over the skies and the animals that crowded the land. He liked them the same way he liked Niklas' intelligence and humour, or Nicola's elegance and kindness.

He found Holly amusing and silly, Arlo small and loyal.

But none of them were his treasures.

And Noah knew, no matter how he walked on human streets and wore a human skin that wasn't his, that defining indifference isolated him.

His nature was a hideous thing, a basis for others to fear and despise his kind. That was a fact Noah knew and could not deny, for all that he hated himself, his indifference to life was rooted in his existence.

He could pretend to care all he wanted; that did not change the fact that between his rare treasures and life itself, he would choose the former. When his love became more than a longing want, when it unraveled into a crippling need—could he remain the kind person in Kaden's eyes?

He lowered his head and wondered quietly, "What is it that you want from me, Chauvet? Agreeing to following me here."

Kaden licked his dry lips, feeling chilled underneath his clothes. He regretted sacrificing his cloak to Noah. The man felt in his pockets, holding up a small vial.

"If you drink this," he said honestly. "You'll fall asleep."

The bluntness made Noah choke on his drink. The dragon coughed several times, furrowing his eyebrows.

"...for how long?"

"Long enough for me to transport you."

Noah sighed. "If you'd slipped it into my drink without telling me, I would've drunk it."

Kaden glanced between the vial and Noah's drink, considering. "Would you?"

The dragon nursed his glass, leaning forward an inch, a graze closer, a veil of intoxication over his dark eyes. The sliver of space between them became nothing. His lips seemed to curve faintly, teasing. "Guess?"

Kaden wanted to move away but remained still, keeping his gaze settled on the other as if in competition. He tipped his drink back, his third, and ordered another.

"You would," he knew, unrealistic as it seemed. "But I don't want that."

"Then what do you want? If I told you'd I'd give you anything—except for my absence or obedience."

Kaden stared and stared, and he was memorizing every inch that made Noah's existence, a scribble of lines intertwined to define his handsome face.

The alcohol was rushing in his blood, and it reached his mind too, finally. With the fault of intoxication, Kaden could do things that he couldn't normally. Something realistic; something unwise.

He tipped his new drink back again, and Noah's frown deepened, deepening further when the fool ordered yet another drink.

The wise thing to do would be to ask for Noah's willing cooperation; or to capture the dragon on the spot and remain antagonistic. When the boundaries were crossed, Kaden's rational thinking blurred.

But it was already blurring, and the words that left his lips were: "Give me one night."

Wasn't there a way to bind the dragon to him, to force obedience? Kaden frowned at that thinking, feeling as if his thoughts weren't coherent, and nothing made sense—but did anything ever?

"What?"

But Kaden wasn't joking; there was clarity under the green haze.

Kaden swirled his drink, looking down absentmindedly. He felt destructive, wanted to turn into ruins, or ruin something in turn. For the first time he in three years, he wanted to feel whole.

"Your name helps ease my delusions," he confessed, and although that wasn't the point, it was true. "If I spend a night with you, I think I'll clear my head. I'm floating. All the time. Everyday. I haven't slept... in so, so long."

There was a dreaminess to Kaden's voice as if lulled by the sweet promise of sleep, a true night's sleep.

"You want to use me," stated Noah.

"Yes," admitted Kaden.

"After thinking for so long, that's your answer. Still a fool who can't speak honestly." Noah clicked his tongue softly. "You just want to sleep?"

Kaden stared, blinking slowly. "I want to know you."

"....."

The chair scrapped loudly on the ground, and Noah snatched the drink from Kaden's head, the liquid burning down his throat. Then he placed it firmly on the table, and stared at the man calmly.

"My room's upstairs." He paused. "No more running away Chauvet." He leaned in, narrowing his eyes. "I'll have none of it if you follow me tonight."

Kaden's head buzzed and buzzed, and he blinked at his empty glass and the menacing gaze. He thought he should feel scared; that he should rethink his words and what they implied.

Instead of doing all the things he should, he nodded.

———xxx———

Lukiyo says,

I'M HERE I'M HERE. I'm sorry, I'm in crippling suffering of my once a month deep, painful sorrows where I have a need to eat everything that crosses my eyes and my memory is awful then. If you know, you know lol. Regardless, I hope you are having the most pleasant of days.

My house is looking super red with all the decorations and many many fruits, I hope your (if you celebrate it) Lunar New Year celebrations are wonderful and joyous.

All the appreciation, all day, every day, to you.