Word Count: 899

Pads whispered across the ground, a silent accompaniment to the tall male who was plodding along behind his master. He had stayed with his master to help him in the bathtub, the site of the cherub taking his bath lifting his heart and banishing all other feelings and thoughts that he had. He couldn’t explain it but when he was with his master, his thoughts and other emotions just seemed so frivolous and here he felt that he could truly be himself and everything would be okay. His troubled mind was at ease when he watched his master act and when his master looked at him with just the right look he felt at ease with the knowledge that he wouldn’t have to worry about his past any longer. But still dreams plagued him, consuming his nights with veritable nightmares that still left him waking up, unable to fall back asleep for hours. He had been gone for so long so as to finish his job on the side that he had been aching and longing to come back to his little master. Now he had him back and they were off to go somewhere else and like a good slave, he was bound and determined to follow his cherub no matter where he went.

The wind blew over the water, attracting the gaze of the blue-eyed lupine and the scents carried with it made his ears prick on top of his head. Ever since the sight in one of his eyes was all but ruined, he had relied on his other scents more than ever before. Luckily his tattered ear was of no consequence and did not hamper him in the slightest. The scents carried to him on the breeze didn’t tell him too much other than that there was the brine of the sea water out in the water beyond but it did tell him that there was something coming up that he hadn’t gone exploring in yet. There was a town up ahead, a ghost town if one would and it was where they were headed to. Looking into the direction of the scents, he looked around as they came upon it. Skeletal remains of the buildings seemed cold, uninviting, and he got this itch in the middle of his back that told him that he wasn’t alone and that him and his young master were being watched. Not really caring for this feeling, he felt that it was also a good place to have other people. If he himself got the creeps from just being here, then imagine what their victims would be feeling? Yes, it would do quite nicely.

Already he could hear the screams of their future victims, a rare sadistic moment that set his inner self on fire. When he came back to the present self, he realized that his cherub had turned down towards the water’s edge. He turned likewise and followed him down, standing just a little up the rocks, the coat around him fluttering in the wind. The scar on his side that marked his pride was covered by his jacket, protecting it from the views of anyone else that would happen by them. Luckily though no one had as of yet questioned him or his little master so it seemed that their clothing would be able to ward off any sort of outside questioning at least for now. Running a hand through his spiky hair, the motion set his golden hoop earring jingling and hitting against the side of his fluffy ear. His other hand rested uneasily on his weapon, the heavy amounts of scars on his arms only the top of what was visible from his traumatic youth. Eyes trained on the younger male as he looked around and seemed to be approving the area for their purposes. They would be able to have their own base of operations here and even though not many, if anyone at all, would know of their ranks or what they did, it would be enough.

He gave a nod of his head with the words, walking down to stand on a little area right beside the other male. He was on a flat enough surface so that if anything decided to jump out at him he would be able to immediately defend his master. Kind eyes that were only soft and vulnerable for his master looked down at his cherub and he gave a little sound in his throat, casting another uneasy gaze around before looking back down. ”Yes, I think that this place will work too. Plenty of places to store the bodies and it’s far enough away that the screams won’t alert the rest of the populace. Shall we go and explore some more master?” He asked with a light tilt of his head as he took a step back up the embankment before he paused and looked back behind him at Bastion as if searching for some kind of response or some kind of notion that maybe the other pack member wasn’t ready to leave yet. He was rather interested in the whispering ghost town, wondering just what secretive places would be ideal to set up their shop in. The pride was going to be counting on them so it was only natural that they find somewhere to make sure that they didn’t fail their leaders, right?

Word Count: 1,191

The hushed silence that spread between them was an amiable one. When he had first come to these lands, he had been nothing but shattered, broken, and completely useless to anyone. He would have chewed his own arm off for some company and there was that one strange time with that male that had smelled vaguely familiar but the memory of that scent had faded with time and unless he came in contact with that man again he would probably never find out the mystery surrounding him and what was going on. Watching Bastion’s back like he liked to do, he watched him not only to be sure that he was not going to die but to also watch his body language. He wanted to be sure that what Bastion said that he liked about the place was actually something that he liked. The more that he was around the cherub, the more that he was able to understand him properly. His little savior had a sadistic streak a mile wide but also had a cuddling, loving streak that even though was smaller, it just meant that he wanted to better enjoy the time that he had together with the smaller male. He liked it when they cuddled, a rare scene of affection since he had been captured and forced into slavery.

Even though he might not be Bastion’s first puppy and he probably wouldn’t be his last, it was an honor to be able to be beside him no matter what. It pained him to know that they would have to be separated for a few weeks since he was going to approach the leadership about gaining a co rank. He wanted to do some good and be able to actually live as someone that wouldn’t be displeasing to Bastion and would also keep him busy for the times that his master was busy as well. He wanted to be someone that whenever Bastion thought about his puppies, he would immediately think about Janos. Ice blue eyes stared like doll eyes from his scarred and raggedy face, his ears twitching as different sounds from the surrounding area pricked his interest. There were a few places in the big city that seemed to be good for whatever Bastion would need and now that Janos knew where this place was he would be able to come and help out whenever the cherub needed it. After all, so long as he was within ear shot, he would immediately go straight towards Bastion. He would feel better if whenever Bastion went after a new target that he had Janos with him but he also knew that if Bastion felt that he wanted to do something then Janos would not stand in his way.

Janos would never run away from the other male, never. Bastion was his savior, his glue to hold together the pieces of himself. As that childish face turned towards him, he gave him a little nod of his head, waiting patiently for Bastion to be fully ready to come to him. Janos would always need some guidance from someone, a side effect of having been a slave for so long. But now he had his master and his life was stable. He had a home, pack, and he had a rank, a high rank even, something that he hadn’t dared to wish for when he was a slave. After all, as a slave, if one had high ideals, that was just asking for trouble, trouble that he would have rather avoided at all costs. They had broken him and he was still dependent on the one that could easily order him around. He trusted Bastion with his life and all of his important decisions. He even bore the brand on the nape of his neck, something that with his hair cut was always able to be seen. The infinity sign meant that he would always belong to Bastion until the end of time and the position was even significant. On the nape of his neck was the place for the submission hold after all. Just thinking about how happy he was when his master branded him was enough to send a thrill through him and make his eyes lighten up when he looked at the cherub.

The younger male walked up towards him and seeing the hand that was outstretched towards him, he reached out his own hand to take hold of the youth’s hand, holding it securely in his own. It was such a simple motion, but it was enough to make him feel yet another burst of warmth through him. He gave a thoughtful sound as the decision was left up to him and he looked around the town before he motioned with his head. ”There’s a building down this way that I saw on the way up here that I would like to check out,” he said, following his intuition. He led the way, hopefully still with his hand wrapped around his cherub’s smaller hand into the city. Ignoring the skeletal remains of what was once surely an influential port city. He led the way into the main center of the city before pausing in front of one of the buildings that had caught his eye. But it was too big, too obvious. They needed something more…nondescript in order to keep from the hide out from being found by other packs or their scouts. He gave a thoughtful sound and kept on walking but he kept at a pace that the other male could easily keep up with and was one that was none too strenuous.

He led the way through the city, almost to the very end of the city before he stopped in front of a smaller house, bordering on the derelict but upon closer inspection it was a sturdy building, one that would stand for several more years if not longer. He motioned with his head towards the house. ”Let’s check in here,” he said to him before he tried to lead the way into the house, but he made sure to be a little ahead of Bastion in case there was something dangerous in there that he needed to protect him from. Looking around, he sniffed at the air. It smelled vaguely of mold in there but it was dark, private, and out of the way enough that it wouldn’t be the first building that would be checked. There was also an open door in the kitchen that led down into inky darkness that was darker than the bowels of the ship that he had been a slave on. But it still sent a shiver down his spine and made him draw a deep breath before looking back at Bastion. ”Would you mind waiting up here? I am going to go downstairs and check to make sure it’s safe,” he said as he tilted his head at him, his blue eyes looking for an answer. It may be dangerous down here and he could only guarantee the safety of his master if he was up here where the male knew that it was safe.

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He would always be there for the younger male. While it seemed like sometimes he was spacey and off in his own world, he knew that Bastion knew that he would always be there. He was very in tune to the little sounds made by the smaller male and to the little gestures that he made, especially when they were simple for him to understand like holding Bastion’s hand or carrying him. Surprisingly, the male would actually prefer being in constant contact with his master. This way, he knew that if someone was trying to harm his master then he could more easily defend him or keep him from being stolen. But he knew that even he could not be around his master forever. After all, they each had their jobs to do so while he was around the cherub, he wanted to be sure that he did his very best to keep him from being hurt in any way. He led the way into the house and when he did, he was careful to keep looking for any sort of pit holes or rotten floorboards but not even one of them squeaked under his paws. It was a good sign, and made him feel a little better about having to leave Bastion up on this floor as he went down to the basement.

The loss of Bastion’s hand against his was difficult for him, the loss very harshly felt. But he had noticed that his cherub seemed to be growing tired, and the tall male gave him a little smile. ”You seem to be tired, master. After we find a suitable place we can go home okay?” He said to him, looking to his master as if his master was made out of solid gold. He would have suggested that they go home now but he doubted that the cherub would much like that, returning before the job was done. He would just have to help finish it and then go on home after that. After he released his master’s hand, he gave him a little bow before turning and going to the door that led down to the basement. It took a little coaxing from Janos, namely wrenching the door open before he allowed himself to descent into the bowels of the house. It was a pretty large basement, and his eyes peered through the surrounding dark cover to see that the area down there was a large, very large basement that would more than likely serve as a good area he supposed but it was a little too obvious. There needed to be something even deeper, something easier that could be hidden from any prying eyes.

Then a waft of cold air hit his nose, and ice cold eyes flickered around as he searched for the source of the breeze. Walking deeper into the basement, he came to a spot where his footfalls, usually silent, landed with a soft, hollow thump. Backing up a step, he tilted his head, closing his left eye as he let his right eye analyze the floor. Crouching beside it, he knocked around the floor until he came across the handle. Lifting it up, he opened up his other eye and climbed down the ladder to go down to the second basement. This looked to be a wine cellar, or what was once used as one. It was fairly large surprisingly and would be a good place to hide out. He felt proud of himself, hoping that he had done a good thing for his master. He found a potentially good place for him to do his work and the floorboards up in the first basement would be easy enough to cover and keep the cold air from rising too. All it would take was a little bit of care as far as screams were concerned but this seemed to be the perfect place. Perhaps it was a bit cold, dark, and damp for normal times but for an interrogation it was perfect. He silently walked around, his only companionship being the small pitter patter of scurrying mice as they ran from the natural predator.

Suddenly there was a soft sound that echoed even down to him and had his head turning towards the portal to the surface and he started to walk back that way. By the time he got back up to the main basement the whimper was louder and he knew the owner of that vocal, knew it better than he knew himself sometimes. He hurried up the stairs to the top floor. He didn’t see the cherub anywhere but a little bit of sleuthing with his sensitive nose led him right to where Bastion was, trying his hardest to open up a drawer it seemed. He went to his side, kneeling down beside him. He reached out to yank out the drawer. It took him a moment but he was able to pull it out so that the other could get into it. After he did it, he gave a little sigh, running a hand through his white hair before he turned to Bastion. ”I think that I found a good place, master. It’s down beneath the basement, it’s what I remember is called a wine cellar. Would you like to see it?” He asked him, seeming to be pleased with himself. He wanted his master to be happy and pleased with what he could do and so he wanted to show him in person.

But then something distracted him and he tilted his head to the side, looking at the drawer and then back up at the cherub. ”What’s in the drawer?” He asked as he turned his attention back to the thing that he had just pulled out for his master after interpreting the whine and Bastion’s position and determining what it was that he wanted. He stayed crouching beside him for another moment before his muscles began to burn in protest. Raising himself up so that he was standing, he continued to look down on the smaller male, standing beside him. Now that he was back beside his other half, his ears began to swivel around on his head, flicking back and forth as they searched for any sounds of anyone else approaching the area. So far there was no new scents on the wind and the other sounds in the gloomy lighting of the house were from the birds outside and every now and then the soft skittering of field mice. Not even the apocalypse could wipe out the vermin of the area after all.

Word Count: 1,135

Going home sounded wonderful right now actually. Because to him, going home meant that he would be able to keep Bastion safe and he would feel better when they were back in familiar territory. He would love to lay down with his master and sleep in with him, being able to protect him even while they were resting. That was his ideal day, either watching his cherub as he slept while he did his job and watched over him, protecting him at all costs or sleeping with him. He would do his best to be there with him when Bastion had to go on his assignments but even he knew that there were some times when he wouldn’t be able to be there and he was a little worried and wondering what in the world his master was going to do in that situation but knowing his master, he would figure something ingenious out, maybe even make the people walk themselves over this way. He wasn’t completely sure but he had total faith in his master and knew that no matter what things would work out one way or another. The smaller male was good doing that. He had to be or else he surely wouldn’t be as influential and successful as he was, right? Bastion had a high rank and was able to have his own puppies and he wasn’t the strongest male out there, so that said a lot about his smaller counterpart.

After he left Bastion his thoughts never left his master or what could be useful to him. But the building had lived up to what he had thought and he was glad that he may have been able to give something back to his counterpart after Bastion had done so much for him. Janos watched the cherub after he opened up the drawer. He was about to pick up his small master when the hands reached up to him when the other male suddenly retracted his arms and looked down at the drawer that he had called Janos back up here for. Crystalline eyes watched his movements, looking into the drawer itself. The gleam of silver was dull in the practically non-existent light but his eyes could discern what it was that was sitting in there. He waited to see what Bastion would say and what it was that he would pick up. Seeing the knife, he eyed it before his gaze looked back up into the eyes of his savior. But it seemed as though the knife held little consequence to Bastion and he watched it fall back into the drawer before the sight of movement on the side of his vision drew his attention back once again. It seemed as though the cherub was ready to go down or at least he wanted to be picked up.

Without a second hesitation, he reached down to pick up the light male, slinging him around on his back as he always did so that he would have his hands free to not only be able to draw his weapon if need be but also to be able to climb down the ladder. ”Yes master, let’s go see it,” he said before he started back towards the kitchen once he was sure that Bastion had a good handle on him. Reaching behind him, he rearranged Bastion to be sure that he had a good hold on the tall, scarred male. As he did so and as he carried his master like this, the back of his neck tingled as it seemed to always do. It was almost as if his brand knew that the one who gave it was once again settled on his back and was happy to have the body back where it belonged, very close to Janos. Walking into the kitchen with a bit heavier of steps since he had another body on his back, he made his way to the basement, careful as he walked down the staircase to be sure that he didn’t trip and send both of them tumbling down to the bottom floor. Stretching out a hand, he steadied both of them against the wall, taking his time before he ended up in the very basement where he had been before.

The door that he had walked through was open, the hatch breathing out the cold air of the cellar, and he looked over his right shoulder at Bastion, using his good eye to see him. ”I found this by accident. The trap door could be easily hidden and if someone comes into the house they wouldn’t be expecting to find a double basement,” he said before he went to the hatch where the ladder was located. Being careful here as well, he gently lowered the both of them down to the very bottom of the basement where it was just as cold as he remembered it being. Once downstairs, he paused, not sure if Bastion wanted to get down to walk around or what it was that he wanted to do. ”We are here, where I wanted to show you. Would you like to get down master?” He asked him before he took a few steps in and looked around. From his past experiences with torture and chambers, this would be a good place to do it. ”It is out of the way and far enough underground that it would be difficult for someone to hear screams. There is also only one way in and one way out but if you want another secret exit could be made for you in the case of something happening,” he explained as he looked back around him, his ears swiveling for any sounds from the canine on his back. ”It is dark down here, no natural light, so it would be good for sensory deprivation, it would make a prisoner go crazy even, and it is cold down here, it would help keep prisoners conscious for longer and more alert and would make them feel everything more. What do you think?” He asked his master, obviously hoping that he would get some good feedback from Bastion, or at least be told that he had done well.

Word Count: 1,006

The knife looked to be quite dangerous but he didn’t try to dissuade the other from handling it. He knew from past experiences that his master could do quite some interesting things with that knife and he had the scars to prove it. Part of him wanted to ask Bastion to hurt him, to scar him, give him something else to be beautiful with. He wanted to have that luxury of knowing that his cherub thought him beautiful and thought him worth his time, but really any time that he was able to have with his small owner, the better. If that meant that part of the time that he was with him he was being harmed, well then he wouldn’t mind that. He loved any sort of attention that he could get and right before he was going to say something, the knife had been dropped and he had been turned towards. Oh well, it wasn’t like Bastion couldn’t hurt him later on or with something from their own pack lands. Salsola had some stuff somewhere he was sure that he could get some attention and personal care later from his master. Part of him was more than thrilled with the idea, being able to cover up the horrible scars from the past with the ones from the future that he enjoyed much more.

Holding Bastion on his back was perfect. It was as if the smaller male belonged there. Every now and again Janos would shift Bastion on his back or make sure that he was holding firmly onto him. Sometimes, those small arms started to choke him but he didn’t mind it. It was a rather nice feeling, one that he had grown to like ever since he started carrying around Bastion on his back. Suddenly warmth and wetness was applied to the back of his neck and he shivered, his ears twitching on top of his head as his tail wagged slowly behind him, a happy sound lifting from his chest. He liked his mark being played with. The sign that his master had left with him was wonderful and made him feel comfortable and happy whenever it was messed with in such a positive way. Out of all of his scars, the brand was the only mark on him that he didn’t mind showing to the world. He even covered up his pack mark a lot, not only because he was going to start to try out to see whether or not he could get himself a rank within the pack but also because it didn’t give him as much pleasure as the mark on the back of his neck gave him. Giving a little pleasant sound, he threw him one of his cerulean glances. ”Mmmm master you know just how to make me squirm. I love it.”

He wasn’t sure if his master cared or not about how the place was found or anything like that but he had wanted to say something so that the pause could be broken and the silence shattered. Staying in one place as Bastion moved around the cellar, his ears moved forward on his head, keeping trained on the small cherub as he moved around, waiting for his response. Would he like the place? Would he hate it? He didn’t know but it was practically killing him with anticipation. He just wanted to know if he had done a good job. The room would be perfect he thought it seemed to have everything, even pre-existing holes in the wall where shackles could be mounted up. He would help Bastion set up the place later, helping him with the things that he couldn’t reach and the heavy lifting that he couldn’t do. The silence grew between them, a mantle of darkness and the lack of sound falling over them. Janos felt a thrill of fear as he remembered his old times being holed up in a place very similar to this, the same darkness, the same cold, but unlike then he didn’t feel helpless. The knowledge that he wasn’t alone and that he wasn’t going to have to go through that hell again made things better for him and helped him to calm down and focus again but he wasn’t sure if his master had been able to smell the sudden spike of fear in him or not.

Luckily for him, the words rang out, and it helped unfocused eyes to come back to his body and he seemed to be genuinely happy, his tail wagging happily. ”Thank you master, I will help you make an exit no problem,” he said as he nodded his head to him. Bastion came back to him and ordered him and he reached down to pick up Bastion, swinging him around to let him hold back onto his back again. He would carry him like a princess or a prince, such as he was, but he still wanted to be able to protect them if need be. He didn’t know whether or not someone out there was stupid enough to challenge the heavily scarred male but he didn’t want to take any chances. Janos didn’t just gain himself a master and a new life just to lose it all again because he wasn’t good enough to stop whoever was trying to rip his life apart. ”Just rest easy master, I’ll wake you up when we get home,” he said as he turned back to the ladder. He carried them up to the top and once he was up there, he reached back his hands to keep Bastion well up on his back and he walked up the basement. After making sure that it was locked, he went to the door. After peeking out to be sure no one was there and testing the air for any smells, he left the house and started on an easy lope for the way home, his canine legs carrying him faster than any of the fabled humans, now extinct, were able to do.