Die bittere Pille schlucken (shuichi-kun x CHEMICALS)

[Shuichi-kun]

* Die bittere Pille schlucken = 'to bite the bullet'.

***

The shop was near empty when he stepped in, but that was understandable. Varick had known from the beginning that the creatures this establishment had to offer were could be delightful, and were likely exotic, as the advertisement proudly stated. These were not the luxuries just anyone could afford -- and so many of these pets went unowned, for days, weeks, months, even years. He glanced to the front of the store and inclined his head to the cashier, who smiled uncertainly in return.

"Can I help you with something, sir?" the older man called from across the distance.

But the blond-haired customer was already half way to the first aisle. Stopping just beside a wall from which hung various leashes, collars, and harnesses, he shook his head and smiled. "No, thank you. I am just...browsing." he said. And he didn't have to look back to read the expression of disappointment and more than likely disgust that crossed that man's face. People often browsed, but they almost never bought. Luckily for the shop owner and himself, Varick was here to buy.

So he had a look at what the shop had to offer. He studied the catgirls, who raised their tails enticingly, each flashing him their own full lipped smile. He smiled to them return, but just as quickly turned his back, an action that drew out a few offended hisses. There were others, too -- a succubus in bondage, who eyed him with malevolent yellow eyes -- and a merman in a tank. These poor creatures had all started as human, once, or at least, their ancestors had. And now here they were.

He walked some more. And then he stopped outside a plain, nondescript cage. Leaning over -- but not too close -- he peered inside, bewildered by the fact that it appeared empty. But then he noticed it wasn't empty. Not at all. Rather, its occupant had chosen to huddle in the back corner of it. Varick smiled. "Hello there." he said, his voice cautious, but friendly. "What's your name?"

 

[Shuichi-kun]

"You don't know your name?" Varick asked, skeptically at first, but then he went and played along. "All right. For now we'll call you the nameless one. Nameless for short. Well, Nameless, I'm Varick, and I am pleased to meet you. Though clearly the circumstances aren't the greatest..." Again, he cast a glance about the somewhat dreary shop. And in that second he could practically feel the boy's gaze pinned to him. Looking back, the blond haired man saw that, lo and behold, those eyes were trained on him. He smiled in response to the stare, and tilted his head slightly. "Ah, Die Wechselfälle des Lebens. A police officer? No. I'm not. But what of my other question? You honestly don't know?"

Still, he smiled, and his tone of voice wasn't one to suggest he was interrogating the boy. He sounded exceedingly laid back, as if he were chatting about the weather, more than anything. Looking down at the caged teenager, Varick lifted his arms, crossing them lightly over his chest. "How do you feel with your current living conditions? Do these workers care for you? Do they feed you well enough?" he continued to question, even as he looked down to see that there were two small bowls in the boy's cage -- one obviously for a gruel-like substance that he guessed was food, the other water. "Are you...satisfied?"

* Die Wechselfälle des Lebens = The ups and downs of life.

 

[Shuichi-kun]

"Thom is a respectable name...and you seem like a respectable young man." Varick said with the slightest of chuckles. He turned his head slightly to look in the direction of the counters again. The shop owner had brought out a magazine and was now reading it with a rather bored expression on his face. If he heard the conversation taken place, he gave no indication. Either way it wouldn't have mattered. Varick was secure with himself and the words he spoke. He knew what he wanted in life, generally, but at the moment he found himself undecided. Did he want this boy? He was certainly interesting enough. "I'm sorry to hear of your difficulties up to this point."

"But perhaps I can change them for you." It seemed there would be no conning this man, for he was offering up his hospitality free of charge. Or so it seemed. He flashed a smile, and cocked his head. "You don't want to spend another night in that grubby old cage I'm sure of it. So why not come home with me? There, you'll have proper sleeping arrangements, a roof over your head, and food that's at least edible, though I don't know your tastes, so I can't say you'll enjoy the cooking of my chef."

He shrugged his shoulders. "In her defense, I like her cooking perfectly well. So Thom with an H. What do you say? Will you come home with me, and be my companion for a time?" Companion...such a soft, inviting word. For a boy whose mind was on freedom and geared strictly towards mating with the female sex it might be all too easy to overlook the fact that such a word could mean several things, the least of them being anything as simple as friendship.

 

[Shuichi-kun]

"No, not much else." Varick agreed with a smile. "Unless you'd like to shack up with the siren -- but these cages rather hinder that, don't they. And in the end I think she'd sooner kill you...I hear her kind can be quite hostile."

And so it was done. He fetched the shopkeeper, who opened Thom's cage and set him free. Varick appeared with a thick leather collar in hand. This he held out, to be seen by Thom. "I would prefer if you leave with me wearing this. I've just paid a hefty sum to have you as my companion, and I can't say I'm ready to see you streaking off in the direction of the place you came from before this..." he explained, his words borderline apologetic.

But he made no move to force the collar onto the boy, curious to see his natural reaction to it first. Would he protest? Or would he play it cool and go with the program? He wanted to know all there was to know about his new little pet. Everything...

 

[Shuichi-kun]

"You are unfamiliar with the way the world today works, then." Varick said, confidently. It didn't take anyone of any particular intelligence to guess the fact. The black eared youth behaved in no way he had ever seen one of his kind behave before. It wasn't a bad thing, necessarily, but he acted like he thought himself an an equal -- unlike his peers, most of whom were well-adjusted to the life, and if not happy with it, then content.

This fact showed in many ways, that the blond would be pleased to examine further later, as he got to know the boy, but until then he focused on the matter at hand. "The moment you entered this shop, you became a potential pet...but now you really are one, and there's no sense in hissing about it. Many of the others here would likely give anything they had to be in your shoes right now, you realize. Faced with the opportunity of leaving the cage...leaving this place." he trailed off, deliberately, as he calmly studied Thom's face for signs of more hostility.

"And all you have to do right now to breathe that fresh air, right out there, is to wear this collar while I, your owner, hold the leash." Oh, yes, Varick knew it was low, using this kind of manipulation to get the response he wanted, but he sensed that for the time being it would likely be the only route. Until they reached the house, where he had no doubt all hell would break loose. If Thom was this upset about a collar after all...what would he think of his other duties as a pet? The idea was exciting, for certain. "It seems a small price to pay, kätzchen, in exchange for an escape from this place."

* Kätzchen = kitten.