Kinz kept his eyes open just enough to see through his lashes, watching Valhiro stalk back and forth across the camp, turning sharply at the end of each pass. Dark eyes glancing his way every time he passed a foot in front of where Kinz lay.

They both knew he was awake, but his Master wasn't going to challenge the pretense of sleep. Kinz could feel Valhiro's fear radiating off of him in waves. And he couldn't blame the man, he was beyond scared himself, and for once it had very little to do with the man pacing before him.

What had him terrified now was the throbbing press of thoughts and emotions battering at him from all sides. A constant barrage that hadn't lessened from the time it had begun, when his mind had invaded Valhiro's in the pens. His head ached with it; feeling like it was splitting in two so convincingly that Kinz was tempted to try to hold his head together with his hands.

Worst of all was the fact that only a trickle of that flood of emotion and thought belonged to his Master. Most of it wasn't even human. He didn't recognize some of the feelings being inflicted on him at all they were so alien.

He was trying hard not to panic, his sanity was being eaten away at, and the only thing anchoring him was the precision of Valhiro's pacing. Four steps, glance, four steps, turn and begin again. The lethal body moving with the grace of a caged predator, pale face cast into inked shadows on a crème canvas in the flickering firelight.

This wasn't supposed to happen to him. These gifts belonged only to the shamans who were trained from birth for the time their powers would emerge. And of all the shamans he had met or heard of, all were women. He had never been trained, he didn't know what he was doing, how to control it, he wasn't even the right gender for it. He was far too old to be set on this path now. Why would the Goddess do this on top of everything else? Didn't he have enough to endure?

Kinz bit his lip until the by now familiar taste of copper filled his mouth. The pain helped to beat back the cacophony in his mind. He wanted to sleep, his body ached, and his thoughts were disjointed and muddled even without the outside mental roar of his new gifts. But he couldn't even try, every time he closed his eyes hoping for the comfort of unconsciousness he was met with visions of how the blood had looked pooling on the floor around Valhiro's boots as the man held the jailor in a deadly intimate embrace.

He closed his eyes anyway desperate for some sort of peace and for a split second he once again saw a red so dark it was almost black, clotted here and there with bits of flesh, the slick pool creeping ever wider. Then it was gone, all of it was gone. The pain, the images playing on an endless loop in his mind, the constant bombardment of foreign minds. He was at peace.

With a shaky breath he opened his eyes, but the expected almost soothing sight of his Master's pacing wasn't there. Neither was the fire or the horse tethered just outside the ring of light. Instead he saw the waist high yellow-green grasses of home stretching in every direction as far as the eye could see.

With a sharp cry he stood, taking it in with the hungry eyes of a starving man, the sight of it, the feel of the grass brushing his arms, bending beneath his feet, the feel of the wind on his skin, sound of rustling grass, the _smell_ of it. Of rytin grass roasting under the summer sun and ripe buolberries.

He knew it wasn't real, but he soaked it in anyway, taking a hesitant step forward. Then with an ecstatic whoop he ran, grass whipping his legs as he mowed through it, the huge open sky spreading before him, bringing with it the delicious taste of freedom. Of life.

Kinz ran until his lungs burned and his body was limp and rubbery, then he threw himself down in the grass, staring up at the sky, fingers digging into sun warmed soil as he tried to brand all of it into his memory. He knew it wouldn't last, but for now it was enough. He was grateful for even this much, because it helped him remember what he was striving for. He had forgotten so much. The longer he was here the better he felt, his spirit reviving from its slow decay.

Time passed, and he noticed a scent that hadn't been there before. A delicate smell, like cinnamon but darker, earthier, sweeter. Uin. The goddess flower.

He turned his head and there it was, small blue gray flowers with a fiery red center. The flowering vine twined its way through the wall of grass all around him, growing in seconds to a size that should have taken months, heavy flowers stretching towards the sun as they reached open air. Every breath he took was heavy with their scent.

Something brushed his arm. His eyes slowly drifted down to look, movement an unbelievable effort. Beside him lay a snake, head posed on the fat coils of its resting body, unblinking black eyes trained on him. Its body was the color of the sun's glare on water, pure blinding white, with a complex pattern of dots and diamonds, circles and lines, all the near-black red of fresh spilt blood.

Halandas, the Great Snake, the Goddess' familiar.

The elegant tapered head rose til it was on a level with his eyes; amusement seemed to gleam in those dark liquid depths. "You are her chosen. The last of her chosen."

Kinz blinked, stunned that the Great One would deign to speak to him, as if it weren't overwhelming enough that Halandas himself had appeared in his dreams. And then to be told he was the last shaman. He spoke softly, reverently, unsure how one was supposed to go about talking to a Goddess' familiar, "I.I am no shaman."

The snake seemed even more amused, and slowly began to move, slithering slowly up Kinz's side. He held his breath, trying not to react to the soft tickle of scales sliding over his skin. Halandas didn't speak again until he was curled comfortably on Kinz's stomach.

"Warm." The voice was drowsy, pleased, "You are shaman now young one. You have always had potential but it was not needed before. Now it is."

Kinz's eyes turned to the sky again, the perfect blue expanse spreading into forever, "I don't know how.."

"You will learn. You will be brought to a teacher, and when you have learned all that is possible, we will speak again young one." The snake slid up his chest, warm body brushing against Kinz's cheek as it made its way into the grass, its voice came to him, soft and fading as its tail flicked against his hair, "A choice will be shown to you, what you decide will change this world." Then it was gone.

He lay for a long time, until his eyes grew heavy, reluctantly closing even though he wanted nothing more than to keep staring up at the sky, soaking in the memory of his long lost home. When they opened again the sun was just rising, and Valhiro was asleep on the other side of the fire, hair falling in silken waves over his eyes.

Kinz lay still for a moment, trying to figure out what was different, but he couldn't pinpoint it beyond the overwhelming sense of peace and quiet in his own mind. For now the thoughts of others were silent, and the dream was fuzzy and hard to remember.

*** Valhiro awoke to the smell of breakfast and the sight of his boy sitting by the fire a serene sort of calm reflected in his sunken blue eyes as he stirred whatever was in the cast iron pot. It wasn't as reassuring as it might have been considering the state he was in. The clothes Val had given him to wear had been the same clothes Kinz had worn before all of this had happened more than five days ago. Then they had fit perfectly, tailored to show off the lean muscled lines of Kinz's body without being too tight as to be completely uncomfortable.

Now was an entirely different story. The clothes hung off of Kinz's body, the neckline of the shirt gaped open revealing the stark thrust of collarbones through delicate skin. His hair was matted and dirty even after the rushed bath Val had forced them both to take in the stream near their camp. At least the blood was gone.

Calm steady blue eyes were dull with exhaustion and more. The hand gripping the wooden handle of the spoon shook slightly, and the wrist looked thin and far to easy to break for Val's comfort.

For all of that, the slight improvement that peaceful expression heralded was reassuring. Almost anything was better than the lost sort of agony his boy had been in the night before. Now he could worry about things other than whether Kinzon was broken beyond repair.

Things such as the fact that his slave was powerful enough to take control of him. Powers like Kinz was showing were rare but not unheard of. By law he should kill the boy now, before Kinz learned control of his skills and used them. But the thought of losing the boy after all of that had happened, and by his own hand, was unbearable. It wasn't going to happen. He wanted to see the boy controlled, yes, but not hurt, not scared, not half starved and scarred on the inside by others, and certainly not dead.

Now he had to figure out how he was going to get that control. His boy was new to it, he could tell, after all if Kinz were used to those powers he never would have known in the Pens that his boy was in his head at all. The only thing that came to mind was the dynians.

His dynian had mentioned empaths a few times so casually that Val had always assumed dealing with them wasn't a problem. Not like it was for Humans, who had suffered a widespread panic when the first gifted slave had turned up. It had led to the slaughter of nearly every slave in the country that had been born wild and a few that weren't. If there were any chance the dynians knew how to destroy this new ability of Kinzon's, or at least a way for Valhiro to keep the upper hand, then he had to go.

So. Forget the cottage. He'd take him to the dynian city Telorios, and see what his dynian would make of the boy.

A slow smile crept onto his face. Telorios. It had been years since he had been in the city, he hadn't even realized until that very moment how much he missed it. It wouldn't be so bad to give up the relative solitude of the cottage for the people that felt closer to him than his own blood, the exception being Harvy of course.

With a silent sigh he sat up, drawing his knees to his chest, resting his chin on them, watching Kinz stare at the pot with unwavering intensity. His boy felt his eyes and glanced up, obviously expecting him to still be asleep. When their eyes met Kinz quickly looked down, the steady stirring went erratic, a faint blush, barely visible, crept over dusky cheeks. It was that, more than anything that reassured Val that Kinz for all his strength and ability was nothing to worry about. Yet.

Val smiled slowly, "Morning."

His boy nodded slightly, almost whispering, "Morning, Master."

With a groan he stretched and got to his feet, "Let me handle that, you sit."

Kinz let go when Val stood and retreated to his blankets, he could feel those ice blue eyes on him as he stirred what looked like a stew. If he looked hard enough he could pick out the dried meat and greens he had found that evening. It was better than meeting that strangely calm, distant gaze, looking at that half-hidden skeletal body.

They were both quiet while the food cooked and while they both ate. Kinz' polished off everything Val set in front of him, which amounted to all of the stew except for one small bowlful that he ate himself, the bare minimum needed to keep himself functioning. He would have given that up as well, but sacrificing his own strength wouldn't help either of them.

Val waited until the dishes were cleaned and packed away once more before settling behind Kinz on the blanket, watching the shoulders tense beneath the smothering fabric. He kept his voice even, soothing as he could make it, "Stay calm, I'm just going to do something about your hair. Then we'll pack up and go."

Kinz' didn't relax but nodded slightly, "Yes master."

"Val." He ran his hand over the knots and snarls, filth turning delicate silver to a mucky gray, "Call me Val from now on."

Kinz didn't say anything just stayed tense under his hands; he ignored it, drawing his dagger to reluctantly cut the hopeless tangles free. Clumps of knotted hair that felt like straw showered down to cover the blanket around them, gradually the long line of his boy's neck came into view. Unable to resist he brushed his thumb back and forth over smooth skin while running the comb through the remaining tangles. After what seemed like hours he could run the comb through freshly cut hair with no problem. It was now a few inches above the strong stubborn chin, beginning to curl with the sudden reduction in weight.

His boy had relaxed slowly as he worked, and now leaned back into his touch imperceptibly. Val knew if he brought it to Kinz's attention those shoulders would go stiff again, so he just kept going, the slow drag of the comb through short hair soothing them both in some way.

Time was growing thin, the gap between them and the pursuers they would eventually have, shrinking. But he couldn't stop, couldn't pull himself away from this quiet moment outside of reality, with his boy relaxed, his fingers following the path of the comb, clinging strands of hair winding around his knuckles. It was a surreal moment of calm after the storm of the night before.

And though he knew it was a mistake that would end this moment, he couldn't resist pressing one whisper soft kiss to the gracefully solid neck. Predictably, Kinz tensed, leaning away from him, head turning so that he could peer at him over the line of his shoulder. Darkening the wary blue eye were the shadows of everything that lay between them. The collar, the party, the pens.

With a frustrated sigh Val stood brushing away the tangled strands of hair that clung to his pants, "Clean this mess up and help me pack."

"Yes, Master." The words held the same shadows.

They both got to work without another word, and when Val dragged Kinz up to sit in front of him on the horse the boy wouldn't meet his eyes.

***

The days dragged on forever, filled with nothing but travel, the routine unchanged. Slowly Kinz found himself relaxing more and more in Val's company. Losing some of his fears, though he wasn't stupid enough to lose them all. Interaction between them gradually became peaceful.

Neither of them spoke much, making camp each evening and breaking it each morning with no more than a handful of words spoken between the two of them. Throughout every day they rode, forced to stay pressed close to one another until Kinz stopped trying to hold himself stiffly away from his tormentor. Until Val's arm around his waist seemed almost.a comfort.

It had been a long time since he'd been touched casually, and now he found himself needing it. Enjoying the way Val's fingers rubbed soothing circles against his stomach, the other man seemingly unaware of what he was doing. Something had changed, something fundamental, but Kinz couldn't put his finger on it.

Duties were either shared now, or more often than not his Master would shoulder the bulk of the load. Like with their food, occasionally he cooked their meal from whatever Val brought when he hunted. More often than not his Master would nudge him towards his pallet while he took over the cooking as well as clearing away the mess afterwards, leaving Kinz to sleep that extra couple hours he always seemed desperate for.

He was constantly tired, no not just tired, exhausted. Valhiro obviously blamed it on his ordeal in the pens, but Kinz knew that wasn't the reason. It had been more than enough time for him to recover from the pens, but he was still sleeping like the dead through the night and part of the morning. On top of that, almost every day he fell asleep as they traveled, waking to Val's arms tight around him, his chin resting gently against his hair. Or, as was becoming more common lately, Val's fingers brushing over his cheeks wiping away tears.

It was the dreams. Every time he closed his eyes they would come; so vivid he still couldn't be sure they were dreams or visions of the future. And that frightened him; as some were as horrifying as others were beautiful.

The last time he had fallen asleep he had dreamed of being tortured. That was why he was trying his best not to fall asleep now. Usually he managed to stay awake til midday then slowly nodded off, but today even midday was proving impossible to reach. The steady rocking of the horse beneath him, the warmth of Valhiro against his back warding off the faint morning chill in the air, the soft peaceful tune the other man hummed under his breath combined with the fingers stroking lightly up and down his forearm were all making him drowsy.

With a resigned sigh he let his eyes slide shut, and for a few moments he drifted in darkness. Then the dream took hold and he opened his eyes. He knew what to expect, so he wasn't surprised to find himself standing on bare ground, the horse and the dry field gone, replaced by a muddy city street.

In front of him was a wooden sign held up by a lone chain, the other had long ago broken and now dangled useless, clacking against the wood as the sign swayed in the breeze. The sign was embossed with a white and red snake, coiled at rest. The dark liquid eyes seemed to watch him.

With a faint smile, acknowledging Halandas' presence he stepped forward, looking around curiously though carefully, it would never do to be caught looking anywhere but at his feet. The street was fairly empty, though a few people here and there lingered. All had that soft look to them that marked them as Val's people. They ignored him.

The buildings that lined the street were old but in good condition, though the streets could use some work, in places the mud rose up to his ankles. Thankfully he was wearing thigh high boots and didn't have to worry about it soaking his feet.

Pausing in front of one of the buildings he gazed at his reflection in the plate glass while pretending to admire the goods on display. He was older but not old, face faintly lined with age; smile line more prominent than anything else. His hair was longer, all of it gathered into one thick braid that fell to mid thigh. Beneath the thin obviously good quality linen tunic he wore he could tell that he had gained weight though it all looked to be muscle. A sword weighed down one side of a belt around his hips and as he touched the worn leather wrapped hilt he could tell that he knew how to use it. A flash of memory that wasn't his own told him it was Valhiro that had taught him.

Possibly the most shocking thing about his appearance was his bare throat, the collar nowhere to be found. With a bemused look he touched his throat, rubbing the skin that had once been hidden beneath the symbol of his enslavement.

Briefly, Kinz wondered if the collar had been present in the previous visions, but he couldn't remember more than vague impressions from them.

Still rubbing his throat he turned walking farther along the street, for once unafraid to look his fill, almost drunk with newfound freedom. At first he didn't notice the person that fell into step with him, not until he glanced that way, eyes drawn to the flash of red out of the corner of his eye.

Valhiro. He blinked, unsure what to say.

The redhead smiled easily at him, "Expect trouble, they weren't all that happy with what I had to say." He looked away, eyes combing the street warily, "I don't know why you had to be so stubborn about this, if we had done it my way it would have been so much easier."

Kinz opened his mouth, not sure what he was going to say, but then it came to him, like someone else was speaking for him, "Not fast enough."

Val nodded slightly, "I know, I've heard you say it enough to get sick of it. It still would have gone smoother my way." He glanced at him, their eyes meeting, and Kinz was stunned to see warmth in the depths of those murky eyes, "Be glad you're worth it, freeing your people isn't as easy as you seem to think it is."

"I'll never be happy here, I'll never be happy as long as I know they're going through what I went through. _Worse_ than what I went through."

He felt Val's fingers lightly brush his hand, twining through his own fingers for a quick squeeze before the touch was gone, all done so smooth that no one near them would have noticed a thing if they hadn't known what to look for, "I know. That's why I'm doing this." The redhead's tone made it clear that he had no doubts; it really was as simple as that.

Inside he was stunned, completely and utterly stunned at the thought that this man would help him do _anything_ let alone free his people. Not to mention the fact that his Master appeared to be trying to offer him comfort. But he had to believe, maybe not that this _would_ happen, but at least that it _could_. This was something sent to him by the Goddess. It had to be true.

He blinked and when his eyes opened the city was gone. Replaced by the flowing grasses of home. Under his bare feet he could feel sun warmed soil, grass tickling the soles of his feet. Something inside of him relaxed at the sight. He was in a camp, the familiar rough huts that his people lived in surrounding him in a rough circle. In his hand was a bucket of water and his feet were carrying him towards the hut in the very center, the shaman's hut.

His hut.

And as he walked, his people nodded to him, called out greetings that he answered automatically, stepped out of his way all with a respect and _love_ in their attitudes. He was their leader.

It was beyond bizarre, like waking up to find the sky was now green and the grass was pink and everything else twisted out of shape.

His feet carried him inside, the flap of animal skin that served as a door settled back into place blocking out the light. He paused to let his eyes adjust and once they had, he moved farther inside, setting the bucket down near the door.

The space inside the hut was divided into living space and sleeping space by a blanket stretched across a portion of the room. The living space was sparse, a small table, a few oil lamps, cushions for sitting that included one huge one in a particularly atrocious eye catching shade of lavender.

Kinz had to pause and stare at it for a moment in horrified wonder trying to figure out why it would be somewhere he lived. It was one of the few times the memories that weren't really his didn't offer an explanation.

Shaking his head he moved on, perusing the room. Here and there were odd objects, masks and strange carvings, all manner of things really, decorating the thin walls that he thought looked like what he might have picked up over the years. And then there were the blades, swords and daggers and a few things he normally couldn't name all set neatly on a rack, obviously well cared for.

Kinz knew they weren't his. His lay in the corner on a similar rack, the familiar leather covered hilt that he remembered from the last vision coated in a thin layer of dust.

He moved through the rest of the room, reaching out to pull the curtain out of the way, peering into the sleeping space nervously. And there he was. Val. Lean frame stretched out across the wide bed taking up enough space to fit three rather large people.

He wasn't wearing any clothes, even his hair, which looked as if it would fall to mid back now, lay spread out across the pillows leaving the long neck bare. One hand was extended as if reaching for something, the other clenched tight in a pillow. Val's face was half-buried in the pillow; in sleep he almost looked innocent. Almost.

Kinz felt himself move forward and settle on the edge of the bed, even though it was the last thing he would do in reality. Here in the vision he felt himself reaching out to lightly draw one finger down the center of the smooth back, over the faint ridges of old scars.

The second he touched that soft skin Val's eye slitted open, gazing at him, immediately awake. Once the other man realized who it was touching him, the normally wary shuttered eye shone with a daunting spectrum of emotion that Kinz had always doubted his Master capable of. Possessive need, desire, tenderness.

Love.

Kinz realized that he felt more at peace than he could ever remember feeling. He doubted even regaining his home and his people had made him feel as good as coming home to find his long time lover asleep in bed. It was it was Valhiro that had managed it, here, in this vision.

His finger slowly made its return trip, up over the slight bumps marking his spine until he could slide his finger beneath a single rough leather cord that marred the naked clean line of the redhead's neck. He tugged gently, using it to drag Val up from where he lay lest the cord break under the pressure, until they were nose-to-nose, luminous red hazel eyes gazing into his own with a lazy seductive glint.

Kinz glanced down and if he had been in control of the body he was in, his jaw would have dropped for two reasons. On the cord around Val's neck was a single rough blue stone. Suddenly Kinz knew he had the exact same stone around his own neck. Marking the two of them , as was tradition in his clan.

And securely fastened around his arm was a band of woven cloth, red with a black design seemingly slashed across it. His people rarely took slaves, though it wasn't unheard of in time of war, and it was nothing like what was accepted among Val's people. That simple band of cloth was what marked a slave among his own people.

He owned Val. And had taken him as his mate.

It was a shock beyond all of the others he had been struggling with throughout the visions. Once again he wondered if this were true or simply a wild false dream. He didn't know which he'd rather it was. He couldn't imagine a world in which he'd willingly bind himself to this man. Where he'd willingly force slavery on another living being, even if it was a former Master.

His eyes drifted up to meet Val's again, finger sliding down to touch the small stone before using it to pull Val that last inch needed to close the gap between them. The redhead eagerly sealed their mouths together for a deep, wet, mind-numbing kiss that made every inch of his body tingle with anticipation.

His eyes drifted shut, to better savor the experience, and when they opened all he knew was pain. Pain beyond anything he had ever experienced. Kinz gasped, staring without seeing, only able to concentrate on the white fire burning its way into his skin, sinking deep, the heat of sizzling blood spilling over his side, drying to his skin.

Torture. By masters of the art, so well versed in it they made what Annabelle and her bunch had done to him at the party look like schoolchildren poking a turtle with a stick. This was in his future too. As much pain as there could be joy. The road to free his people wouldn't be easy.

Whatever it was that was searing his insides, _twisted_, delving deeper. He couldn't breathe, liquid filling his throat until he had to cough and keep coughing. Something inside him was horribly broken. Blood ran down his chin. And he passed out.

***

Kinz was asleep again. It seemed like all he ever did anymore. At first it hadn't worried him, after all his boy had been through sleep was probably best for him, but now after more than a solid week of it, when Kinz's body was almost completely recovered, it wasn't normal.

Val kept checking for other signs of illness, but there were none. No fever, no cough, nothing. Just this endless sleep.

He shifted his hold on Kinz, preventing him from slipping to the side as he urged the horse to go a bit faster, impatient. Telorios was only a day away; once he was there he could have the dynian healers look the boy over. It wouldn't be as good as a human healer. Dynians were similar but not similar enough for their healers to catch everything that could ail a human. But it was the best he could do.

Kinz shifted in his sleep, breathing going rough then turning into soft whimpers. Val held him closer as his eyes scanned the horizon, absently caressing his boy's cheek, enjoying all the little things Kinz would never allow him to do without that silent sort of protest if he were awake.

The soft whimpers started to become louder, harsher, the body cradled against his own twitching almost imperceptibly. But he was too distracted by the dark shape that had suddenly appeared in the distance racing towards them faster than should be possible.

Val held Kinz tighter, reining the horse to a stop. He could never outrun it, not on a horse; he doubted he'd be able to fight it either. But he would try if it came to that. Mouth set in a grim line he shook Kinz roughly, and kept shaking til blue eyes opened, disoriented and terrified. There wasn't time to bring him out of it gently.

"Wake up Kinz! Now." The sharp command in his voice thankfully was enough to bring sanity back to Kinz's eyes, terror fading but not all the way. "Get down. I need you to hold the horse."

"Mas-Val?" Kinz looked confused, but he slid down to the ground easily enough.

Val jumped down after him, looking up to see how far it had gotten, too close for comfort. He could make out its features now. They had maybe ten minutes before it would be on top of them. He drew his sword from its sheath on the saddle hoping he wouldn't have to use it, and thrust the reins into Kinz's hands.

"Hold the horse Kinz, he's going to spook in a few minutes, but hold him tight." Kinz had noticed it now, blue eyes were wide, the terror back twofold, his hands were white where they now gripped the reins. The horse was beginning to fidget, snorting and stepping back.

He grabbed his boy's chin, forcing Kinz to look at him and not the possible death bearing down on them, "Listen to me, this is important. No matter what happens. _Don't_ run. If the horse gets loose let it go, but you stay right where you are. Don't move. Don't act like prey and you'll have a chance. _Got_ it?"

Kinz nodded shakily.

Val hoped it had gotten through; he didn't have time to make sure. He whirled to face the approaching danger, and walked towards it sword at the ready, hoping the distance he would put between himself and the boy would be enough.

He could make out its face now, could tell now that the dynian was male though he didn't recognize him. Could see the fluid bunch and release of muscles beneath rich chocolate colored fur as it raced towards him. Could see the glint of saliva on bared fangs, the clods of dirt ripped from the ground by the wicked claws that graced each hand, each foot.

Behind him the horse squealed, probably rearing up trying to get free. He hoped Kinz would know when to let go if he couldn't handle it, but Val didn't dare look behind him to check.

"~Phelin ith! Y'Jethen taleyvi! Metyn!~" The dynian language was hard enough on human vocal chords when spoken, yelling it loud enough to reach the one in front of him was shredding his throat, but he had to try.

Liquid gold eyes narrowed and Val knew he had heard him. The dynian just wasn't listening. Not even to Jethen's name. He just kept coming. Val could hear every footfall now and the harsh rasp of every breath.

With a feeling of inevitability he prepared himself to fight. And lose. For all his training he literally wouldn't last a second against a full grown dynian intent on killing him. But if he got in one good strike before he went down, he might injure the chocolate enough to allow Kinz to get away.

A terrified scream and the sound of rapid hoof falls racing away let him know it would have to be a damn good hit; Kinz would be getting away on foot.

The dynian was there, five steps . drew his dagger and aiming and throwing in a split second, so fast his attacker didn't have time to dodge. It struck true, lodging deep in one shoulder, but it didn't slow him at all.

The great thigh muscles bulged beneath sleek fur then released and he was airborne, front claws extended reaching for Val's face, back claws up to protect the tender belly. This was it. He didn't have an opening.

Val desperately threw himself to one side, praying it would take him out of range of those claws, but his attacker twisted impossibly in mid air, claws realigning. Time stretched, slowed. He started to raise his sword but time was counted in seconds that felt like years and there wasn't enough for him to get it at the ready again.

An ear splitting screech blasted over his ears and just before the extended claws sank deep into his flesh another furry body slammed into the male above him. Both dynians hit the ground hard to his left and Val wasted no time scrambling to his feet and away before turning to see what had happened.

The newcomer was a sandy gold, his fur shimmered in the sunlight, making him seem larger than life. They were both already on their feet when Val turned, facing off, the gold growling a warning under his breath. For a moment it looked like they'd spring at each other, but then the chocolate backed down, the tension it held in its muscles flowing away, head dropping submissively.

The gold approached, sniffing at the chocolate's cheek before rubbing against it, pushing the male off balance. Then it looked at him.

"~Y'Jethen taleyvi?~"

Val slowly relaxed and nodded, watching as the gold smoothly rose to stand on two feet, resettling itself to walk upright again.

"Welcome Jethen's ward. I am." The gold visibly hesitated then growled out its name, too much a hiss to ever be translated into human. It paused a moment finding a suitable compromise, "I am. Htheis."

Val nodded again relaxing the rest of the way, holding his sword clenched tight in one hand, point resting on the ground, his other hand hidden behind his body to conceal the fact that it shook. The chocolate glared at him from behind Htheis, refusing to stand fully, still on all fours.

"I am Val, and this," He turned looking back to see Kinz pale and shaking, staring at the dynian as most did when they learned it was possible for the big catlike people to speak human, "is Kinz."

Comments: Yes it took me forever but here it is. I'm itching to start the next chapter but three exams and NPL are going to put that on hold. *G*

Feedback:

T.I. Hudson- Yeah and I updated _again_ age. I feel like jumping up and down *G* Thanks for reading!

BlueCrystal-Thanks for reading. I'm glad you like the characters and I always love plot compliments as that's so bloody difficult to write, I always have to resist letting it turn into one huge orgy or torture fest or some such. I get stuck in ruts easily. And I'm so happy I finished the chapter I'm babbling *G*

Lami (Travis)-As always. Oh I feel all fuzzy now. *sheepishly* I bet it still seemed like it er was. I'm glad its worth the wait, I hope this one didn't discourage you. *G* If you just bear with me I swear I _will_ eventually finish this. *G*

Jess- Thanks for reading!

NotEnough- Val wouldn't have been too happy with himself not hated himself but. And I hate to think of what sort of state poor Kinz would have been in for the rest of the story *cringes*

Thank you, I tried hard on that, because of my beta. She said I needed more, I did more. It was good. *G*

. Soon. What's this 'soon' word?

LadyJessy-I rather enjoyed it myself *G* I like possessive characters for some reason. 'Mind meld' *winces* Oh now that just makes me think of Spock from Star Trek. I promise you that wasn't my intention at all. No Spock here. Er. I think I got to that in this chapter somewhat.

is it with you people and .word?

Rat Mouse- *laughs* Thank you! There's more! Hope you didn't get discouraged by the wait *nibbles happily on oreo after eating the filling first*

Artemis1000- I am hated and . I tried to take it easy on them in this chapter, really I did. I'm sure that relative since it's not really that easy of a chapter, but at least no one _actually_ got tortured. *sits down to reconsider self's definition of "easy"*

I'm glad you enjoy it, and I'm doubly glad that it still flows together well. *G*

Soon..*hides under rock*

Dark Princess of Light- *waves* Hello insane reviewer, I bet you're about as insane as you could get now. *G* 50..oh dear and it was still 2003 when you reviewed. Oh. Dear. Sorry.

*chuckles* if you'd take my Accounting exams for me I'd be more than happy to slave constantly over the story. But otherwise *G* I'm afraid there will be long gaps between chapters. I wish I could write faster .

P.S. *G* Thanks for reading?

Futagoakuma-tenshi02 - That is a monster of a username. Thanks for reading!

Explicit-Soon.*looks nervous* No Habla Englais!!!! (I bet that's spelled _all_ wrong too *G*) Thanks for reading though!

Jess- Hello again. Yep 2004, wonderful year really. The year of nervous breakdowns *G* Hey I updated in '04!!! It's got to count for something!

help. Since I'm um keeping track of your story now with it which. (oh this is going to be funny) *poke with that stick you like so much* Write more Junkyard! I _need_ Dorsey. He is like a drug. Withdrawal is not good.

*cough*

The vet part was my favorite to write, so many horrific little details *wicked grin*

(I don't have a be teasing you or something *smiles innocently* .drama queen-though it is rather flattering)

"a muscular man not letting anything...not locked doors, not evil jailers get in the way of him getting 'his boy'...

there's something romantic about it..."

If you're warped then we'll be warped together cause..oh yeah. *G* Romantic and sick and twisted and just too too good. And no really I'm not hooked on my own story, really..

Oh no prob, I was all wildly negligent reviewing your story too so it all works out *G*

Thanks for reading!!!!

Rivana-Thanks! could be fun just to _watch_.

The kid _will_ grow a backbone, one hell of a backbone from what I've written of how this ends. I don't think he'll ever get a chance to tell Val any of that stuff though, I think he'll just have to whip the man into shape as they go along.

Thanks for reviewing, I love hearing how it affects my readers *G*

Sweetvenom1-Take your time, it'll be there *G* Thanks for reading