Chapter Text
“Go fetch,” Riko teased, throwing the apple across the room. It split into two upon impact, and Neil saw that it was bruised to all hell, but he couldn’t care less.
They were starving him out, and he felt all semblance of control seep out of him with every day he was alive. He crawled across the floor, bloodied fingers finding the apple and bringing it to his mouth. He ate slowly. He couldn’t afford to rush.
It’d been two days since his escape attempt, and he hadn’t been allowed out of his new cell. Prior to that they’d kept him in Kevin’s old room, an odd shrine to a man long gone. By day, Neil paced with boredom. By night, Riko tortured him and Ichirou crooned in his ear.
So when Laila and Alvarez had burst into his room and told him they were getting him out of there, Neil hadn’t hesitated. They’d gotten as far as the outside walls, having met the Gorilla and Marissa on the way, when the girls had been shot down. The others fought valiantly beside him, but they were no match for the dozens of guards that bared down on them. Neil had begged to make sure they were okay, he’d consented to anything if they were alright, and Ichirou had promised him they would all be fine.
“You’ll never want to leave again,” Ichirou whispered, before jabbing Neil on the side of his neck.
Neil had woken where he was now, chained to the floor, chewing on an old apple in a pool of his own blood, sweat and piss. It was humiliating, but he’d done worse to survive.
The worst thing about this place was the light. Bright LED lights everywhere, illuminating every cranny of the small room. They were too weak for Neil to use: Neil was too weak.
He wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but Andrew surely had to be growing suspicious with his lack of notes. Neil wasn’t even sure why he bothered. Andrew hated him. He’d said—and meant—as much.
“Excited, Nathaniel?” Riko grinned. “You’ll truly be a part of us soon. Our own little Voidling.”
Neil struggled against his restraints. “You’re insane.”
“Out of the two of us, I don’t think you’re exactly in the position to be calling me insane, Wesninski Jnr.”
Neil flinched, pressing himself against the wall.
The door opened. Ichirou was flanked by two men: A scientist and a guard. The muscle stayed by the door as the brains knelt by Neil’s frail body. Ichirou stood beside Riko, looking calm. Neil was terrified.
“What are you doing?” Neil struggled against his restraints again, trying to get away from the scientist. He prepped the needle, and Neil tried to conjure some form of shadow, some semblance of control, something to ward the man away—
“I told you that you’d never want to leave us again, Nathaniel.” Ichirou murmured. “I don’t take my promises lightly.”
The sharp pain caused a cramp in his neck. Neil’s eyes rolled into his skull, and he collapsed in a weak heap.
When he woke, he was disoriented. He was in his room. No, it was Kevin’s room. That traitorous coward. Fucking bastard. Why the hell had Riko put him in here, if he was just to be constantly reminded of someone who’d fucked the Moriyamas over again and again?
“How are you feeling, Nathaniel.”
Speak of the Devil. Nathaniel rolled his head around and smiled slowly, a smile rivalling his father’s. “Like death. What the fuck did you put in me?”
“Well, you were out for a while. We’ve been treating you the best we could, but you’ll still be a little weak.”
Nathaniel sat up slowly. “Fuck, I hate this room. It’s disgusting. Why do you still keep his shit?”
“Remember,” Riko warned. “Kevin was turned against us by that Minyard mutt.”
Foul hatred rose in Nathaniel’s throat. Even the mere mention of that man’s name brought tremors to his tightly wound fists. Anger shook him to the very core. He wanted to bring him to his knees and watch him beg for mercy. Nathaniel wanted to break through that stoic facade and see him lose control.
“When will you let me at him?” Nathaniel growled.
Riko’s smile was victorious. “Don’t worry, Nathaniel. They’ll bring themselves to us in little over a week.”
Nathaniel smiled his wicked smile.
*
He gasped awake, confused by his surroundings. Warm curtains hung over white-painted windows and his body was swathed by blankets. The lights were off, but moonlight cast from through the glass was enough for Neil—Nathaniel—Neil—Nathaniel?—to orient himself.
He turned: The moonlight caressed over a head of blonde hair, who was no longer sleeping, but lay curled up in the bed beside him. He gazed upon Nathaniel with carefully measured apathy, almost bordering on concern.
Nathaniel was terrified. He was furious. He remembered vowing to cut this man’s skin from his muscle and muscle from his bone, and here he was in his bed?
Scrambling, Nathaniel got to his feet and plastered himself against a wall. Weapon. Where was a weapon? Ichirou and Riko wouldn’t let him use the Voidling powers unless it was for escape, so he needed a weapon—
“Neil,” Minyard was standing. Was he Neil? Or Nathaniel. Was there a difference? He couldn’t remember. “Neil, remember where you are. Ichirou and Riko are dead. You’re free. We’re at home, in our bedroom. We moved in a month ago. Neil,” Andrew tried, moving closer. “Calm down the shadows. You’ll scare the cats.”
Cats?
Neil looked at the bed to see two small furballs, disturbed by his sporadic movements.
Wait, Ichirou was dead? Riko too? Nathaniel let out a wail and slipped down the wall into a crumpled heap. Images flashed before him, Riko’s sharp-edged impatience, the rapping of Ichirou’s cane across his back, Alvarez and Laila hand in hand, skipping towards the outer walls, as they fell, as they fell from the ceiling with noose marks around their necks and death eating their bodies from the inside out oh my god Andrew Andrew where are you im sorry—
“Shh,” Andrew insisted, pulling Neil into his lap. He held Neil by the back of his neck until his breathing slowed. Neil rubbed his eyes, exhaustion and panicked tremors shaking his hands.
“I hate this.” He whispered, angrily. “I hate waking up like this. I thought Abby had removed all their poison from me. Why is this happening?”
“Maybe it’s your mind.” Andrew murmured against his hair. “Maybe you should talk to Bee about it.”
“I hate you.” Neil grumbled, before conceding. “I’ll think about it.”
“Good.” Andrew brushed soft lips over the scars at his cheek. “It’s fucking freezing. Let’s get back to bed.”
“You didn’t have to get up.” Neil grumbled.
Andrew just served him a flat look. “Yes, I did.”
Slowly, Neil nodded. He let himself be pulled to his feet, guided back to bed. It was early morning, and neither were likely to truly fall back asleep, but if Andrew was content to simply gaze at him, then so was Neil.
Maybe Nathaniel and whatever Riko and Ichirou had done to inverse his emotions towards others would never truly let him leave the nightmare behind. So long as Andrew was here, it didn’t matter.
Neil barely had to reground himself to avoid being consumed by the Between. Andrew was enough of a tether that Neil almost always felt centred and in control.
He took Andrew’s hand where it laid between them and kissed his knuckles gently, intertwining their fingers. And if Andrew let him hold on till morning, neither said anything about it.