A.N.: Thank you everyone for continuing to motivate me! Bunniez17, klippie, 'Open your eyes Chopstick', The Twist in Life, pretensions, ricemidget, and kissedbymidnight, you guys are all so awesome! I really enjoy getting all kinds of constructive criticism, since it will help me greatly as I go back to do a second draft of this story!

Vindicated

IX.

Recap:

He entered, the sounds of bones snapping and flesh stretching in his wake. Once through the doorway he stopped and hastily glanced around, taking in the largest room he'd seen yet. At one end was an unkempt bed and closest to him was a small library of sorts.

There were also lots of dead things hanging from the walls and, he noted with a grimace, at least a dozen humanlike skulls resting atop a table. He approached the table for a suddenly curious closer look, coming across more strange almost medieval weaponry lying on the floor. And what a floor it was, seeming a butcher's floor, stained with dark circles and splatters of unidentifiable substances. There were a few burn marks also present, which made Alex think of the spell on the cellar door he'd come in contact with.

But, what horrified him the most and caused him to gag upon sight was the dead body chained to the wall, clothes mere tatters around the decaying flesh.

"Alex?"

He turned, a chill moving rapidly up his spine to face the wall with the door he'd just come through. The source of the raspy voice was clear, the only inhabitant of the room alive.

"Chad…"

At that moment as he ran over to Chad the dragon came protruding through the doorway with a grunt of effort, eyes glinting dangerously. Upon seeing the huge beast lock his eyes on him, Chad screamed at a high ear-shattering tenor. The single chain that bound one of his wrists to the wall was jerked taunt as Chad scrambled backwards, trying to put distance between himself and the one whom wanted him for a meal.

"Wait!" Alex howled, "He's on our side!" By the time Amato had lunged forward Alex was able to convey his other thought, "He's like me, kidnapped by a wizard!"

The dragon snarled, "Stupid boy! He smells vile. Doomed! Condemned to death!"

Alex used himself, battered and bruised as he was, as a shield. He would try and protect Chad for now he could begin to understand why there might have been complications in their relationship. Wizards were complicated things to deal with.

Plus, he'd never actually gone through the actual act of breaking up with Chad.

Feeling like an idiot Alex turned his back on the one thing in the room that could effortlessly kill him. The dragon roared in a sudden bout of rage and tried, with his muzzle, to knock Alex aside. Hanging on to the chain, Alex pulled at the cuff around Chad's wrist, then at the stake attached somehow to the wall. He figured magic was at work, for he could do nothing to budge the seemingly simple contraption. The steel grip around his wrist, Chad's hand grabbing him and begging him with a simple physical touch was all too much for Alex to handle. Tears started to blur his vision and he wiped them away to join the blood stains on his muddled cheeks.

"They're coming!" Amato growled lowly, eyes once resembling calm oceans turning into turbulent seas. "They heard you!" Barring his teeth at Chad, Amato stood firm in his decision to kill the boy. He could see the boy's fate clearly and it wasn't promising. Alex wouldn't understand however, he was too far over the edge of sanity.

Alex held the chain up in between his hands as Chad stared wide-eyed at the dragon. "Amato, can't you do something? Break this chain?"

"Rescuing him will kill us," the dragon snarled, eyes elsewhere. The dragon suddenly spun, whipping his tail around to smash into the shelf holding the skulls. They toppled and broke into fragments as they collided with the ground. Just as Alex tore his gaze from the remnants of the humans, a man with sun-streaked hair entered the room at a breakneck pace. His eyes flew around the room wildly.

The moment he saw Amato, mouth parted and neck ready to plunge forward to strike like a snake, the man froze in place. Alex dropped the chain he'd been holding, preparing for the worst. He recalled vividly the last dragon-wizard battle he'd witnessed, one that ended with the massive creature landing on him and nearly breaking every bone in his body. He braced himself.

The wizard dressed in a dark suit of sorts raised his hand and looked fleetingly between Alex and the dragon, trying to gauge who was the biggest threat. Amato, meanwhile, took the opportunity presented to him.

As Amato tore the head off of the wizard's body and blood sprayed the wall next to him Alex could only think, fleetingly, gentle dragons my ass.

Teeth dripping red Amato's entire body convulsed twice before getting a hold of himself. He looked to Alex and then back at Chad and decided, once and for all, that he wouldn't let his Master's boy throw his life away.

Alex didn't have the strength or words on his lips to protest as Amato knocked him over onto his neck. The signal for Alex to get on or else be handled with much less care. He did, knowing that neither could do anything for the time being. Save for cutting off Chad's arm, which didn't cross Alex's mind until Amato had them in full flight.

Chad screamed after them, the sound that would haunt Alex's dreams and plague his living hours. He was ashamed with himself, but at the moment knew not what to do. Chad had been his lover, sure, but Amato would not see that.

He would be a fool to try and stop a dragon.

The chilly outside air hit Alex as Amato ploughed through the front door of the building, too caught up in escape to do so with grace. They cleared the front lawn and Amato rose up and up, soaring higher as if relishing in his freedom. Alex clung tightly to the dragon for flying through Lupin's mansion at a reasonable distance from the ground was nothing compared to being so high up that trees were indistinguishable.

Not daring to look over his shoulder at the doomed place they'd just escaped for fear of losing his balance and slipping off Alex instead focused on looking between Amato's horns. He was hunched so low out of fear that the creature's mane tickled his face and obstructed his vision. He could only see so much, and what he could see was the lack of a lake anywhere near their position. Where was Amato's lake? Lupin's home? Not that he would be able to recognize it from a bird's eye view.

Suddenly, Amato plummeted towards the earth. It wasn't a gradual descent; Alex felt the dragon dropping out of the sky. Frantically he prayed the beast wasn't falling asleep up in the clouds. Would the moisture in the atmosphere trigger that?

Gritting his teeth Alex could only watch helplessly as the countryside became detailed and less abstracted. He was falling and he wouldn't be able to stop Amato from sleeping. Unless...

He called the dragon's true name aloud. "Amattoes!"

With a jerk the creature righted himself and continued soaring downwards, this time at a more controlled pace. Alex exhaled in relief that he wouldn't be a flat pancake before the day was over.

It was clear his noble steed was tired to the point of passing out. The drgon flicked his head about, searching for something as they came closer and closer to ground level. The detail of the land underneath him made Alex feel queasy and in response he let his eyelids slide shut.

The dragon eventually landed in a haphazard fashion, Alex tumbling onto the grassy field Amato had found for them. He got a bit of dirt in his mouth but he supposed it was the least of his worries. After all, he had just survived another kidnapping that could have ended with him deader than a doornail. He was thankful in that regard.

However, he wasn't satisfied with just his and Amato's safety.

"We could have saved him," Alex argued the moment he caught his breath.

Snuffing softly Amato only rolled his eyes and flipped his head around to press into his body, blocking out the sight of Alex. "He was a dead human," Amato mumbled into his stomach.

"Why do you keep saying that?!" Alex yelled in his confusion. "He was alive! You saw him!"

"Maybe he was alive by your standards, but not by mine or the Master's."

Gritting his teeth in frustration Alex managed to stutter out, "Y-you're like a demon! What the hell is wrong with you?!"

Amato rolled onto his back and twisted his head around to take in the sight of Alex fuming. "Demon? You haven't even seen demons yet, human." Suddenly, the glint in Amato's eyes darkened again, like the moment he'd ripped the head off of one of the wizards. "But I'll bet that if you'd saved that pitiful little human boy you'd be seeing demons awfully quick."

Alex collapsed to the grass feeling the energy leak from his limbs. He inched up to where Amato lay in a loop, tail twisted several times around like a braid and body half right side up and half down turned. He wasn't too afraid of the dragon anymore. There was something unsaid that told Alex the dragon had been put into an agreement by Lupin to keep his talons out of Alex.

"Okay, what's a demon by your standards?" Alex asked tiredly. He figured it would be best to know before he met an unfortunate end. Plus, if he wanted to do anything about Chad…

Amato snorted, "Just a bunch of dead matter. I don't think I want to scare you anymore today."

"Then how am I supposed to know what's chasing me?"

Again, the dragon snuffed a humouring grunt. "Oh, you'll know. Trust me."

"I don't know who to trust," admitted Alex. "It's been so strange lately." He lay back against the trunk of a tree, small branches poking at his tattered clothing and exposed skin. He thought in silence while the dragon breathed noisily, something that hadn't occurred since they were back in the mansion. Which reminded him…

"And Lupin. Where is he?"

"Not here," Amato answered unhelpfully. The corners of his maw turned up at his own sarcasm as Alex shot him a hard look. "Back doing wizard stuff. He can't often leave his territory and invade another wizard's you know."

"So what are you saying? We're stuck here?"

"No, I'll fly us back of course. Besides, I can feel a storm coming," Amato mused, staring up at the sky. Alex looked up as well, found the blue afternoon to be devoid of any wind or clouds, and gave Amato a glance of distrust.

"It doesn't look like bad weather."

The dragon stood on his fawn-like legs, wobbled and shook out his matted fur. All the while he stared upwards listlessly. "I meant the firestorm is coming. Lupin must have sent Kiki to come and get us." He paused, then said gravely, "She's a terrible messenger by the way. You'll see what I mean."

After ten minutes of standing motionless with the dragon Alex sat down in the grass once again. Clearly the dragon's definition of time was different from Alex's. He supposed that it could have something to do with the fact that humans lived much shorter lives and therefore theoretically had less idle time on their hands to stare at the nearly cloudless sky.

Soon though, Amato faltered and growled, "Brace yourself."

Shooting to his feet Alex recalled earlier on in the day when the dragon had given him the same advice. Fearing for the worst Alex crept close to the dragon and stared in the general direction the dragon's ears were flicking towards.

The orange blur came through the trees at a much lower altitude than Amato had foreseen. Gasping as Kiki came all too quickly into sight Alex could barely duck in cover before the large furball had smashed into the dragon, knocking him from his twiggy feet.

The next thing Alex knew: he had a wonderful view of the canopy of trees overhead.

" – very angry! I'm so very angry at you for taking the Master's boy and, a-and, good heavens what are you talking about?! I am not a joke! This is no laughing matter!"

Sitting up Alex was met with the grilling of the dragon. If Kiki wasn't spitting fire rather than saliva he would interject to save Amato but as the situation were…he would wait things out.

Playing the role of the passive bystander Alex didn't get in the way of the magical creatures' bickering. At last Kiki took notice of him, flapping her large eagle-like wings as if to brush off whatever the dragon had to say in his defence.

"The Master wants you home safe and sound," Kiki meowed stiffly, suppressing the angry yowl that had dominated her conversation with Amato. She moved in closer, her pink feline nose broad as a lion's nearly touching the tip of Alex's own sniffer. She mumbled with a tinge of a hiss, "He's been gravely worried about you. And when he's worried he gets angry. And when he gets angry he goes on a rampage."

Alex shivered despite the temperate breeze. Lupin angry and on a rampage? He wondered what that entailed. He wasn't sure he wanted to know, so for the moment bit back the arising question.

Feeling slightly self-conscious, Alex felt Kiki's jade eyes rove his skinny, dirty and somewhat bloody body.

"I'd offer to feed you but all I can do is regurgitate the remains of a chicken I ate earlier."

"I-I'm alright," Alex managed to say amid Amato's snorting in the background. Kiki's ears swivelled in a crescent but otherwise she didn't acknowledge Amato further.

Alex took the eerie silence as a sure sign the winged feline was annoyed. If he squinted, he could see tiny licks of flame trickling out of her nostrils and dissolving into the air as heat waves. No, this was not a good sign at all. Alex was beginning to wonder if her mood was influenced by what was doubtlessly going on back at the mansion.

More than likely.

Confused, Alex watched silently as the lioness shot Amato a meaningful look. One that, for the first time since landing, wasn't laced with harsh undertones. He decided to try and break the silence that had developed. "So, um, do you usually go out like that?" he asked the cat timidly.

Pupils dilating, Kiki's nose twitched. "Pardon me? Did you just ask if I usually went out like this?" She shook out her voluminous fur and pursed the skin around her maw. "What did you think I was going to come rescue you as, the breakfast kitten?"

Kiki looked about ready to yowl some more, this time at Alex, only as soon as the thought crossed Alex's mind the huge lion-like creature promptly sat down a few feet from him. Her attention was diverted, Alex moving to the back of her mind.

Amato shuffled over, his body making tired and sluggish spirals. He inclined his head to Alex's knee level. "Get on before the Armageddon happens," he muttered as lowly as he could.

Glancing nervously over to where Kiki sat, wings and fur dishevelled, Alex came to the conclusion that the feline was clearly out of it. Normally he was sure Amato's brazen words would have ruffled her feathers more severely but from the suddenly blank look on her face he was finding it hard to believe that she was more than a statue. She stared vacantly off into the distance, in the general direction of where Alex and Amato had narrowly escaped. Her marbled eyes were cloudy, hide rippling and twitching like flies were after her enchanted blood.

Amato lifted Alex up into the air the moment he sat his butt down. Wildly grabbing for the twisting horns Alex gritted his teeth as Amato started to weave in that familiar take-off run of his. Alex clamped down his legs and braced himself for the jarring of the leap into the sky when the flapping of wings distracted him.

Watching through Amato's mane Alex took in the sight of Kiki's powerful though slender hind legs hurtling her through the air. The graceful upturn of her wings as she climbed in altitude held Alex's attention taunt, even when the dragon curved steeply up through the pine trees.

The bobbing motion of the lioness-like creature, not unlike the motion of a ship out at sea in a storm, made Alex glad he was atop the dragon. Kiki moved quickly, her wings beating an ever-quickening pace that Amato was forced to match before the cat become irritated. And Amato knew quite well what could happen with an irritated fire furball.

The dragon's worn-out curves, dips and arcs made Alex anxious to get off and let Amato rest but Kiki showed no signs of letting up. Her fur was pale in the distance as they floated through the clouds, condensation slicking their bodies.

I wonder if they use magic to conceal themselves from us humans, Alex thought suddenly as he realized that the sight of out of the ordinary things in the sky would be a treat for the media. Humans haven't mentioned a while lot of magical creatures in the past century so I wonder just how many people like me have seen…well, strange shit like this.

He bravely let his hand slip off from Amato's horn, holding his arm above his head. The wind rushed around his fingers, buffeting them until he returned his grip on the dragon. Wonder how many people have done that. He let his thought wander again and he thought of being back home, Who could I tell about magic? Everyone would be convinced I belong in an insane asylum. In fact, they'd probably send me there for safe-keeping.

As Alex pondered his family's reactions in his mind the countryside blurred past under him, gradually opening up into a lake. Alex felt the familiar and always unsettling sensation of falling as Amato began his descent.

It was better than any amusement park ride Alex had ever been on.

For a second Alex looked down past the side of Amato's thick neck. He tried to piece together why they'd be landing in the middle of nowhere. His best bet was that Amato wanted a long drink of lake water.

It soon became much clearer, literally, to Alex the reason for their sudden drop in altitude.

Lupin's home materialized out of the trees, warped out of taking the appearance of the forest. The old, almost Victorian sharp look of the house from above made Alex believe he was entering another time frame. All he needed now to believe he did time leap was for the colour to drain from the image, leaving it in greyscale. The stark black roofing, previously submerged in the shadows of the trees, hid the glint of the windows and the elegant trim. As they approached Alex noticed the fancy, ornate woodwork along the side of the house. It blended so well with surrounding mammoth trees that he wondered if the house had actually been made of the trees needed to clear the area. The mahogany architecture from another era, an era he studied in his old history classroom, made him wonder a few things.

Questions ran through Alex's head, as the usually did when exposed to the weird and freaky. Most importantly was Lupin's house haunted with old spirits and did the house feel like a Venus flytrap today?

No, he hadn't quite forgotten that particular conversation with Lupin. Scary things tended to stick like honey to him.

As Amato alighted on the ground not far from the entryway Alex braced himself for the ground to swallow them up. He remained frozen on the dragon's back, waiting for something horrific, something that usually happened to him. His bad luck.

Nothing happened for once.

It was silent except for Kiki whooshing past them and digging her claws into the ground as she landed in a bundle of tense muscles. Amato's own muscles convulsed under Alex and before he knew what had happened Amato had twisted upside down and dropped him in the grass. The only reason he'd gotten away with such a rude move was the fact that Kiki's back had been turned.

He groaned as the pain from earlier blossomed, blazing brighter than before. If he weren't clenching his jaw so tightly he'd have a few choice words to say to Amato.

Kiki's furred face appeared in his vision. "Did you fall over? Let me help you up."

The oblivious feline dug her wing underneath Alex's body and gave him a boost. Unstable, Alex nearly fell forward to end up on his stomach in the grass but forced himself to catch his balance as movement caught his eye. He became rigid as the stern face he hadn't seen in some time captured his attention.

Yes, Lupin certainly looked angry.

Alex seized up as Lupin approached with rage written clearly all over his body. For a moment Alex's mindset reverted back to the moment in the kitchen, the only thing between him and Lupin being the knife he'd held in his hand poised to strike. His knees locked up and he flinched as Lupin outstretched his arms, suddenly fearing being hit for running off in the middle of the night.

But, Lupin pulled Alex into his arms, tightly squeezing him and burying his face into Alex's neck, snuffling as if he were inhaling his scent. Hissing under his breath, Alex wished Lupin wouldn't try to unintentionally injure him further, which might have been selfish considering the circumstances but it was the first thing to pass through his mind.

Hearing him whimper Lupin froze. "Shit, you're hurt, aren't you?" Lupin growled, drawing Alex's face away from his body. He kept their stomachs pressed together as if he didn't want to feel anything, even air, come between them again. "The hell did that bastard do to you?!"

Gulping Alex stared up into Lupin's eyes, noticing nervously that Lupin's pupils had enlarged. The primal side of the wizard was beginning to emerge.

Lupin scooped up Alex into his arms, the latter too weak and wary of the ground beneath his feet staying solid to protest. Besides, he'd take being in Lupin's warm, strong, protective arms over riding on the neck of a sinewy, cold-blooded, often unstable dragon any day.

The only thing that scared him now and convinced him he wasn't entirely safe was the plain fact that he couldn't see more than a ring of cloudy colour around Lupin's pupils. He would have to be careful with Lupin in such a volatile state. By seeing Lupin become more animalistic Alex could only conclude that the angrier he became the more Alex had to watch his actions and words.

Lupin didn't even have to push the front door open, it opened for him, and at the pace Lupin was walking Alex was glad the door had the sense not to stick closed. He was sure that Lupin would have kicked it open or used magic to blow it off its hinges. The loud earthquakes coming from Lupin's feet slamming down on the hardwood flooring hinted at that much.

Briskly moving through the house it wasn't long until Lupin reached his destination and carefully placed Alex upon his bed. The room they'd shared had changed since Alex had been there last; the clothing in the dresser was strewn across the floor and it was hard not to notice the hole in the wall that looked like a fist had gone through. For now he'd ignore the signs that Lupin's upset state had been his fault.

Lupin stared down at Alex, his hands moving to ruffle Alex's hair carefully as he leaned in to place a kiss on Alex's forehead. Something in the tenderness of the kiss made Alex breath easier. He felt like he'd been wanted in his absence.

And, he knew without hesitation, that he'd wanted Lupin too. Their brief time apart had left Alex longing like a pathetic puppy dog for its master.

He reached for Lupin, took hold of the wizard's hair and pulled Lupin's head down to kiss him forcefully. Crawling onto the bed beside Alex, Lupin rubbed his hands over the boy's cheeks, sucking slightly on his lower lip as they continued to kiss. The warmth of their breath intermingling relaxed both of their senses as they let their tongues dance demurely.

Still, something wasn't right for Alex. He felt…guilty.

Lupin eased himself off of Alex and looked down at the frown on the other's face. "What's wrong? Does your back hurt?"

Swallowing Alex nodded slightly, unable to open his mouth to voice his real concerns. His back he'd forgotten about until Lupin mentioned it again. His mind went back to the place where he and Amato had been brought. His mind went back to Chad.

The thought startled him as the guilt painfully slammed into his conscience. Quickly he muttered, "My back is hurting me. I think I was dragged over some rocks or something." His memory wasn't working to recall that particular event, no, it worked now to recall all the times he and Chad had held one another.

He really did feel the pain now.

Lupin nuzzling his shoulder and whispering for him to "roll over" helped to break the stream of thoughts revolving around Chad. He obliged in Lupin's will, the wizard's fingers and hands assisting him in turning onto his stomach. He felt Lupin's hands graze up his skin from his waist to his shoulders, bringing with him the dirty fabric of his shirt. It was slid easily over Alex's head and arms then deposited the shirt off the side of the bed to the floor.

Lupin snarled to himself at the mess he'd found under Alex's shirt. Who dared to tamper with his Alex's health?!

"I swear I'm going to kill the man who touched you," Lupin muttered stiffly. Forcing himself to take a deep breath Lupin summoned up the source of magical power swirling about inside of him. He felt a cool wave of magic rush through his veins and trickle out of his fingertips. As he applied his hands to Alex's back the boy emitted a soft grunt.

Running his particular brand of healing magic up and down Alex's back, Lupin repaired the damaged tissue. It wasn't long until Alex's back was pale and devoid of flesh wounds, no trace of black and purple bruising. It was still stained with a thin layer of blood in some areas though, making Lupin feel uneasy. Not because he was squeamish but more because his imaginative mind kept imagining what could have happened if he hadn't sent Kiki out to search for Alex.

Not to mention Amato. He'd have to get the full story from him later. Indeed not only would the dragon have to explain himself but together they'd find a way to enact vengeance. It was a crime to cross the territory of another wizard without permission. If it weren't for Kiki he would have broken the rules of his league and trespassed to get Alex back. It took a lot to keep him from crossing borders that weren't meant to be crossed.

Lupin, as crazy as he was sometimes, knew better than to test the patience of the Supreme Wizards who governed most of the magical world. Granted his league was more slack than the other two in the way they punished law-breakers but territory crossing was up there on the list of no-nos.

He'd have to report that other wizard sometime soon. Or not. He could just kill him and write it off as an accident. The Supreme Wizards didn't question much when it came to personal affairs.

Alex stirred under his hands. He kept shifting slightly, almost nervously until he finally asked, "You're mad at me, right?"

"I'm not mad at you." Alex twisted his head around and lifted himself to the side to stare up at Lupin in disbelief. "Really, I'm not," Lupin assured. "I'm not even that angry with Amato. If I'm angry it's because someone is messing with my head by taking you away from me."

Blushing Alex put his face back into the pillow, breathing in the smell of Lupin that permeated the sheets. He hadn't known he'd missed that scent until now with it freshly buzzing about his senses. Lupin's hands returned to their previous task of massaging his back. Alex began to feel a bit drowsy, though whether it was from breathing in Lupin's musky scent or if it was the effect of Lupin's healing magic, he couldn't tell.

He felt a familiar tightness in his jeans, attributed to the muscled man hovering over him, crouched just so over his legs to make his presence known. Lupin's hot breath reached his ears and the wizard whispered, "I'll take these off for you."

Hands moved down, down, down until Alex could feel fingertips on his ass. Lupin pushed his hands under Alex's thighs and wriggled them towards the bulge in his pants. Alex accidentally bit the inside of his cheek as Lupin's slow movements against the fabric of his jeans caused a teasing friction.

"Moaning already?" Lupin taunted as Alex let loose an involuntary groan. Alex hid his smile in the pillow and instead bucked down on Lupin's hands as those fingers searched out the single button on his jeans. The probing felt gentle but at the same time urgent, Lupin not bothering to mask his intentions. Alex felt the button come loose as all of a sudden the zipper went down and Lupin removed his hands.

And Alex's pants. Lupin took those away too.

Relaxing as Lupin's hands continued to massage his back and now his buttocks, Alex could barely manage coherent thought. But, what he thought about didn't feel far away and dreamlike but instead felt like reality and a harsh one at that.

Chad was out there somewhere, slowly dying. And here he was in another man's bed enjoying the attention his lover was slathering onto him.

Disgusting. Vile. Unfaithful.

The words prodded Alex like razor-tipped spears and despite the relaxing effects of Lupin's magic he was more wound-up that ever before.

Lupin rolled him over so he lay on his back, staring upwards. Alex knew without the use of a mirror that his face showed the world he was deep in thought and ultimately perplexed.

As expected, Lupin called him out on it. "What's wrong, Alex?"

Entranced by Lupin's dark eyes boring down into his own Alex let himself simmer as he wondered just what he could possibly reply with. If he told Lupin that Chad needed him he risked upsetting the wizard into a frenzy that could end with him terrified of Lupin once again. However, on the other hand if he kept Chad a secret and divulged that he was just tired (which was somewhat true) Lupin would likely question his sudden rigidness.

"Remember that time we went to the mall together?"

Lupin leaned in closer to Alex, smiling as he nodded once that he did in fact remember. He held himself suspended over Alex using his elbows, dark hair dripping down onto Alex's pale skin. The position oddly enough made Lupin wish to incline his head and rub noses. He had no idea where that urge had come from. He attributed it to Alex's large doe eyes and other adorable facial features.

"Well, I'm sure you remember that wizard that was there too."

"I already know that he was the one that took you away from me," Lupin growled lowly, suddenly tensing. He felt the familiar magic storm in his stomach building frighteningly fast. "He didn't violate you, right?"

"Err, no. B-but, that's not what I'm getting at. Remember the boy that was with him? Chad?"

If Lupin's eyes had been cold before they were now in the likeness of Arctic permafrost. Alex would even go as far as to compare them with glaciers, perpetually locked in limbo for millions of years. That was the intensity of Lupin's gaze.

"Did he touch you?!" Lupin snarled, one hand coming up to reside under Alex's chin, lifting it.

Alex tried to focus on a different part of Lupin's face but found he couldn't break the stare Lupin had him in. "Yes," he gulped, "but not in the way you think, plus I went to him first. He was chained to a wall! That w-wizard w-was going to do something terrible! Horrific! Maybe even kill him!"

Alex's cries grew in hysterics until Lupin leaned down and touched noses with him, freezing Alex's rant where it ended. "I'm glad he didn't hurt you," Lupin mumbled onto Alex's lips. He pushed down further and sucked slowly on those lips, relishing in the feeling that Alex was still so untouched, so pure.

He felt irritation prick at his insides as Alex pushed him upwards and away from his body. Alex's next words caused a boil in his blood.

"I want to rescue him."

Lupin answered immediately with a crisp, "No," though it hurt him to refuse his boy anything.

"Why the hell not?! It's…it's not like I'm choosing him over you! I just want to save him, okay? I made a wrong assumption and–"

"Alex, I'm not going to risk your life for someone I know little about," Lupin interrupted harshly. "Besides, that boy belonged to that wizard. There's little we can do about it that doesn't involve killing."

By now Alex had wormed his way out from under Lupin. Though he could feel the drugging effects of Lupin's magic wash over his body the energy that came with denying the wizard's words won out. "You said there's little we can do. What's this little? There's something we can do, isn't there? There's something you're not telling me!"

Alex let all of the day's trials and turbulence wash over him as he shouted, "There's always something you conveniently forget to tell me!"

Abashed, Lupin could only stare at the tears pricking Alex's eyes.

"I'm sorry," whispered Alex as he came to his senses. A part of him couldn't believe he'd taken out all his frustration on Lupin while another part was implying that it was about damn time.

Lupin reached out and touched Alex gently on the arm, coincidently releasing a stream of tears down the boy's face. Instinctively Lupin moved to brush them away with his fingertips. "No, you're absolutely right. I guess I just…don't want to see you hurt or overwhelmed by," Lupin gestured to the air around them, "all of this. This strangely magical world."

As Lupin outstretched his arms Alex felt the desire to go and crawl into Lupin's lap and have those arms wrap around him. It had been a long time since he'd just been held in a comforting embrace. He acted on his gut feelings, much to Lupin's surprise, grabbing at the shirt on Lupin's back and burrowing his face in the crook of Lupin's neck.

Worried about pushing his luck Lupin simply allowed Alex to rest in his arms. He felt the tears run onto the flesh of his neck, eventually dissolving into his skin or absorbing into his shirt. At every minute that passed the tears lessened until they eventually let up and the stickiness of the salt clung to his body, Alex fast asleep in his arms. He sighed into Alex's hair as he contemplated what was to become of them.

In order to please his Alex, Lupin supposed that he and Amato would have to come up with a much more cunning plan than they'd anticipated.

A.N.: Remember, read and review!

~Reiki