"I understand the need to talk, but why are you leading me out into the middle of nowhere? Planning to have me mauled to death by your fuzzy woodland creature friends?"

"The thought crossed my mind." I didn't bother glancing over my shoulder to Ichiji as I continued on, deeper into the forest. It was the only acceptable place to have a proper discussion, without anybody around to overhear us. "Here will do." I halted by a close growth of oak trees and sat myself down, expecting him to follow suit.

Begrudgingly, Ichiji sat down a surprisingly respectful distance away, bending a knee.
"I've never seen the appeal of so much nature in one place." He commented partially under his breath, though it still rubbed me the wrong way.

"Yeah, well, I've never seen the appeal of whatever man-made hell Germa is." I muttered back, beginning to tug at the thicker patches of grass beside me. "You promised to tell me what was going on that night when your men were messing around out here. So, go on. Tell me."

I need to know so I can put a stop to it.

There was a resigned kind of irritation to Ichiji's visible features as he heaved a sigh, as though merely sitting next to me was a mammoth effort. Though, to be entirely fair, it likely was. It wasn't easy for me either, since the pain had once again been replaced with that intense pull towards him.

"I'm going to go out on a limb here and assume you wouldn't believe that my dad has a passion for landscaping?" He waited for me to shoot him a glare before letting his head fall back to rest against one of the tree trunks. "Have you heard of Aeternite?"

I pondered over the name, eventually shaking my head. It was a strange word that I definitely hadn't heard before, even in passing.
"Well? What is it?" I hurried him along, not wanting to remain too close to him for longer than absolutely necessary. It was too dangerous, for both my body and my pride.

"Impatient little thing, aren't you?" Ichiji muttered, arms folding across his chest as he kept his gaze fixed ahead. "Aeternite is an incredibly rare and valuable ore, highly sought after for its strength and its potential as a power source. It can be forged into near-impenetrable armor, the finest caliber of weaponry…the possibilities are endless. In short, it's almost impossible to come by. But Fell Wilds? This place is sitting on a goldmine of it."

I took a little time to soak in what he was telling me, dragging my knees to my chest in a futile attempt to hide at least a part of myself from Ichiji's hidden gaze.
"Okay...so Judge wants that stuff. He does realise he can just, like, ask?"

Ichiji let out a low chuckle, rich and smooth, yet sickeningly sweet—like warm honey poured over my skin. Disgusting.
"Oh, so His Majesty would be happy to let us completely obliterate his country, would he? How convenient. That would save me the headache of dealing with a brat like you for any longer than I have to."

Wait...Obliterate..?

"Why would Fell be obliterated..? A single mine wouldn't do a massive amount of harm. I mean, I'm not thrilled with the idea, but...Hang on, is this why he was so adamant about us being in this arranged marriage? I..I'm sure my parents would let Judge dig a mine where he burned the forest, then we could axe this whole wedding bullshi-"

"Instead of jumping to conclusions, you might want to wait until you have all the facts. Honestly, woman. You're exhausting." Ichiji pinched the bridge of his nose just below the centre of his shades, as if forcing himself to stay composed, a reaction that only added to my confusion. "Aeternite deposits are incredibly fragile. You could even call them load-bearing, in a way. If handled incorrectly, which, mind you, has happened in every documented case of mining it, it triggers a chain reaction. Sinkholes, earthquakes, landslides…the entire island could be at risk. Why do you think it's so rare? Every other place it was found has already been wiped off the map."

I wanted to hit him. I longed to knock him to the ground and start hitting, kicking, punching, scratching, biting...kissing...grindi-

"No. That's not happening." I shook my head to rid myself of those vulgar thoughts. It wasn't fair that it was so difficult to have any kind of interaction with the bastard without hormones getting in the way. "I'll te-"

"Go ahead. Tell your father. And if, by some miracle, he actually believes you, he'll start a war he has no hope of winning. Lose your country, lose your lives. See if I care."

Ichiji was a master at keeping a flawless poker face, but I caught the slightest crack beneath the surface, the faint clench of his jaw, the subtle tension in the way he crossed his arms a little too firmly.

"Oh, you so care, you piece of shit." I scoffed, trying so hard to rein in my temper so I wouldn't make a big mistake one way or another. "You couldn't even handle when I told you I hate you. Imagine if I died. You'd be blubbering like a cut bitch."

Now that's a funny thought.

Ichiji flinched away from me in equal parts irritation and something else I wish I couldn't have identified. Embarrassment. Just thinking about any Vinsmoke, this specimen in particular, getting any type of flustered felt plain wrong.
"My...insistence the other night was purely biological. It's hardly proof of care..."

He's acting stranger than usual. It's awkward...

"I know that you don't have the capacity to feel humany things like that anyway." I hadn't meant to reveal the fact that I knew about his genetic alterations, but I wasn't too upset about letting it slip.

Ichiji hadn't been as shocked as I would have liked. A slight raise if a swirled brow, and a short puff of air from his nose.
"That's relatively common knowledge, but it was purposely left unsaid when arrangements were made. Dad knows how you Fell Wildians like things to be natural. It helped that you hardly hear much about the happenings of the world here."

It was so wrong. Unnatural. Why would anybody want to eradicate human emotion? It was such a powerful thing, and it made people individuals. I couldn't fathom how Ichiji and his brothers could even operate without them. It was like they werent even human at all.

"So you just...don't feel. At all. Is that right?" I may as well get some more answers whilst we had this strange little truce. Picking up a small rock by my heel, I limply threw it at Ichiji's head, watching it bounce off and into the grass.
"As I've stated before, I have nerve endings. Honestly..."

Well, at least I got to throw a rock at his head.

"I have skin like an exoskeleton, despite it feeling like regular skin. I'm faster, stronger, smarter than a base human. I'm just not incapacitated by weak emotions." Both our heads turned to the other side of the small clearing, where a rabbuck doe and her fawn slowly emerged through the brush, sparing us a curious glance before lowering their heads to graze.

"You're wrong. That's what you are. A crime against nature." Saying that left a bitter taste in my mouth, despite believing my own words. I had never felt guilty about saying mean things to or about him, so why now?
"Call me what you will." Ichiji's voice started rather tense, but quickly leveled out. "It doesn't change what I am, or the situation."

It could, because what I saw in that infirmary room wasn't someone lacking emotions. I could use it to my advantage.

"You owe me, so-"
"Think very carefully about what you're going to ask me, Princess. You know I won't betray my own, and besides, letting Fell Wilds become collateral damage only benefits me." He cut me off quickly, already sensing my intentions.

As nauseous as it made me, I knew I had to at least try to persuade him, which meant using this fated mates nonsense to my advantage.
"Fine...I get that." I deflated a little, starting at my shoulders, allowing the silence to return. One thing I knew about Ichiji was that he seldom initiated conversation, which I could use to keep control of the situation.

Okay, (Y/N) ol' girl. Stay calm. Don't lose focus.

"Can I ask you a different question then? One I've been wondering about for a while?" Purposefully softening my tone I inched closer, just a fraction, gauging his reaction. For the most part he didn't seem very phased, but I knew he was masking it, because I was too. "Back when we first met, as kids, what did you think of me..?"

He hadn't been expecting a question like that, and his oddly swirled brows scrunched a bit as he thought of an answer, stock still.
"Nothing? You were an annoying little loud mouth that cried too easily. I was following orders."

Okay, good. Baited.

"What about later on? When we were a bit older? Still saw me like that?" I hated that I was also genuinely curious, like I actually cared what he thought of me. I didn't, absolutely not.
"Mmhmm. More annoying, louder mouth, too much attitude, and the start of puberty wasn't kind to you."

Rude. Reel him in...

"And...now?" I held my breath, hanging on for his answer, purely because I could use it as leverage and for no other reason at all. "What do you think of me now, in this very moment?"

Ichiji didn't provide me with an answer right away. He acted as though he was watching the grazing rabbucks, but I knew he was glancing at me from the corner of his eye. I could feel it.
"I think...you're a stupid woman playing a stupid game she has no chance of winning." He began, slowly and very carefully. "A loud, unladylike Princess who does my ever-loving head in because this damn connection causes me to need to be close by you."

Hooked him, but at what cost?

I could feel my cheeks growing warm, and I threw my gaze to the opposite side so he wouldn't be able to see my fluster. Why did he have to go and say something like that? I felt it too, but come on. This was getting to be too much.

"Interesting. So, how do you think you'd react if that plan did go ahead, and one of those disasters you listed killed me?" There it was. The skin around his throat constricted slightly, and I saw his fingers flex in his lap.
"Considering the physical reaction your little tantrum caused me, I'd likely be in a lot of pain."

Tantrum my ass.

"However, it's pretty bold of you to assume I'd allow you to die, in any case." Ichiji continued, shifting on the spot, his fingers drumming against his cocked knee. "A cruel, heartless monster I may be, according to you, but I can confidently say that I wouldn't let you get killed. I would have thought my actions at the river proved that much."

He had a point. There had really been no reason for him to save me from Niji that day, especially if Germa could easily overthrow Fell Wilds without the need for this arranged marriage. The unwanted bond between us wouldn't allow him to let me get killed. How advantageous.
"Unless you want me to reject you again, I'd strongly advise that you convert to my side on this, Vinsmoke." Whilst it was the last thing I wanted to experience again, I wouldn't hesitate if it meant beating him.

Ichiji had always been unnaturally fast, but it still startled me when he was suddenly right there in my face, pinning me to the papery bark of the tree between two strong arms.
"Do you really think you're in any place to threaten me, Princess? I could do anything I want to you out here, and nobody would hear a thing."

Despite my pulse hammering so hard it felt like I could easily explode, I managed to pinpoint the exact moment where Ichiji realised that getting so close to each other was a very poor decision. He was still managing to maintain his stroic expression, but the bob of his throat, he hold of his breath, the tint to the tip of his visible ear, were dead give-aways to the fact he was feeling exactly what I was feeling.

"You could..." I paused to wet my lips, trying not to breathe in through my nose. "...but you won't. No matter how badly you wish to...you can't bring yourself to hurt me..." Flinching back when he jerked closer, we caught each other's sharp inhalation when our noses touched. His head was tilted in such a way that it would only take the smallest movement to press his lips to mine.

This is too much...I don't know if I'm strong enough to fight against this urge 24/7..!

"You sound so sure of yourself, (Y/N)..." His voice dropped into a rasp, and oh god, the way it sent shivers to places they had no business reaching, not because of a Vinsmoke, of all people. "You think me a monster…so tell me, wouldn’t this be exactly the kind of thing a monster would do..?"

No, (Y/N)! You don't want him! You hate him! He isn't hot and sexy and warm and ripped and-

When I raised a hand to his chest to push him away, I found my body betraying me, my fingers closing tightly around the fabric of his shirt and the cravat he wore.

"Go on then, Vinsmoke. Do your worst..."

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

***This is a Rabbuck (from After Man: A Zoology of the Future by Dougal Dixon)

Next Time: Reluctance***