Legal Drug : The Chains That Bind – Chapter 1

Summary: Kazahaya's past and present collide for his 18th birthday, as dangers unfold that even Kakei and Saga can't see. Only Rikuo can save Kazahaya from a family reunion, and finally get intimate with Kazahaya in the bargain - more intimate than Rikuo had bargained for. First chapter of the Chains That Bind story arc.

Disclaimer: I have no rights to Legal Drug, of course, which was written/drawn by CLAMP.

This was my first attempt at a fanfic.

Names:

Kudo Kazahaya – about to be birthday boy (17)

Himura Rikuo – his room-mate (17)

Kakei – drugstore manager the boys work for

Saiga – Kakei's hanger-on

Kudo Kei – Kazahaya's sister (only met in memories before)

Tsukiko – a girl disappeared from Rikuo's past, before Kazahaya joined them

Chapter 1 – Coming of Age

"Stop banging! I'm coming already!" Kazahaya called. He opened the apartment door to Rikuo's dark T-shirt, striped with sweat, backing into the room. Saiga's sunglasses bobbed up the stairs behind him as Rikuo made room on the landing. Rikuo knocking at their habitually unlocked door was explained by what the men carried between them.

"A box fan!" squealed Kazahaya. "Saiga, I love you!" Rikuo glowered at him. Kazahaya added defensively, "Well, did you pay for it?"

"No. I just carry heavy things. Like you." Rikuo kicked his own shoes off, then kicked his room-mate's shoes out of the way. Kazahaya took the hint and scurried to pick up the living room to make space for the fan. The room being near-barren, this took only moments before the 3-foot square heavy-duty fan was purring like a tiger, Rikuo's morning newspaper flapping in the corner in the gale.

"Ahhhh!" moaned Kazahaya. Clad only in sketchy shorts, he assumed a prayerful lotus pose before the wind. "This feels so good…."

"Well, happy birthday, Kudo-kun," said Saiga. "The present's a bit early, but Kakei really doesn't want you sleeping on the roof again. You looked like you had measles this morning."

Reminded, Kazahaya scratched at a few mosquito bites between his shoulder blades. There'd been no choice last night about the roof. It was the worst week yet of Tokyo's sweltering sticky August heat. The upstairs apartment was unbearable. But the tarred roof hadn't been an improvement.

"Thank you, thank you! And thank Kakei for me, too!" Kazahaya flopped back on the tatami mat floor, spread-eagled to present maximum skin to the wind.

"Ah, the box fan's from me. Kakei has another present in mind for Friday." Friday would be Kazahaya's actual 18th birthday.

"Ooh!" Kazahaya hugged himself in anticipation. "I wonder what!"

"Oh, and Kakei wants you to put this on your bug bites," Saiga said, placing a pink bottle on the table.

"Yes, Dad!" Kazahaya sang.

Rikuo had wandered into the kitchen, boiling water for instant ramen. More cooking than that was out of the question tonight. "And Himura-kun! At least serve some fruit with it if you're eating that freeze-dried junk for supper."

"Yes, Mom," Rikuo sneered.

"And don't call me Mom. Well, seeya tomorrow," Saga said cheerfully, and headed back downstairs to the drugstore.

Rikuo leaned against the wall, waiting for the water to boil. His eyes narrowed, watching Kazahaya enjoy his new fan with every inch of his skin. He's three months older than me. But he's like a little kid. How could he be my age and so…clueless. But so sexy…

Pouring the boiling water into the ramen cups, Rikuo's eyes lit on the Tokyo Disneyland spray bottle Kazahaya used for their one plant, a lush fern currently strewing green confetti to the wind. It was half dead when he found it by the trash cans. He's with it when it comes to plants and animals. How could he know nothing about anything else? Sneaking up on Kazahaya was easy in the noise of the fan, and he maliciously sprayed his room-mate head to foot.

"Oooh, thank you!" Kazahaya cried, flipping over onto his stomach to yield space in front of the fan to Rikuo. He craned his neck to look up Rikuo's long black-clad legs with an ecstatic childlike grin. "Spray my back?"

Taken aback by the stunning smile, Rikuo flushed deeply, eyes narrowed.

"Rikuo, you look flushed. How can you wear all that black in this heat? Get some shorts on. We'll have a water fight!"

Rikuo sprayed him full in the face, then down his back and legs, and turned away. He busied himself steeping instant ramen and putting pears and grapes into a bowl. Kazahaya closed his eyes again and happily basked in the fan blowing across his dripping backside. Drops of water quivered in the light, a little rivulet running along his spine. I don't know how much more of this I can take, thought Rikuo. "Food's ready," he said.

Kazahaya bounded to his seat at the table and said, "Itadakimasu!" as every Japanese child is taught, and started slurping ramen. "Let's both sleep out here tonight, right?" Rikuo's narrowed eyes focused exclusively on the universe of his ramen cup. Tentatively, Kazahaya said, "I tried napping in your room earlier – it's worse than mine."

"Stay the hell out of my room."

Kazahaya slammed his spoon down and half-raised himself, fists on the table. "Why do you have to be such a bastard about everything! It's my birthday fan, I don't have to share it! Can't you ever be nice?"

Be nice. Be kind to living things like dead ferns. Always give thanks for your food at the supper table. Why did I have to fall for a first grader in a gorgeous body? I don't want to play nice with him… "Yeah," sneered Rikuo. "We'll have a nice slumber party in the living room. Baby."

-oOo-

"Good morning!" crooned Kakei to the boys with vicious enthusiasm. It was mid-morning in the drugstore, but Kakei had been away for an appointment until then. "Himura-kun, you look so refreshed. The heat's had you sleeping together two nights in a row now, right? How … fun."

Kazahaya, who actually did look quite fresh, said, "Oh, the fan was great! Best night's sleep I've had in a week! Saiga is an angel!"

"Mm, yes. Himura-kun, may I speak to you in the back room?" Rikuo, looking like death warmed over, followed him to the back.

Closing the door, Kakei said, "I have a mission just for you this time. I'd appreciate it if you kept it a secret from Kudo-kun." Rikuo's eyebrow lifted suspiciously. "Oh, there's nothing he could help with – all quite simple for you to do. And the item you're retrieving is a birthday present, something only Kudo could use as it was meant to be used."

"The current owner can't appreciate it properly, eh?" Rikuo said. Saiga snorted from where he lay on the couch behind him.

"Exactly. You'll see after we give it to Kudo-kun - it's quite specially suited to him. The item is a silver ring, attached to a silver bracelet by fine chains." Kakei extended a long delicate left hand and wrist to trace how the ring and bracelet would drape on it. "It's quite wasted on the middle aged woman it currently belongs to, not her thing at all, locked up in a jewelry box. All you need to do is go into her house and take it from the lockbox in her bedroom on the second floor, and come back."

"Breaking and entering."

"The locks will be child's play for you. You have a unobserved window when the house will be empty and no neighbors to avoid from 11:35-12:50. Simple. I've already text messaged the address to your cell phone. You'll need to leave in about ten minutes."

"Do I get paid, or just have the pleasure of contributing to Kudo's birthday present?"

"Both," Kakei said sourly. "But remember – Kudo-kun must not touch, er, see the item before his birthday. Without fail."

"Got it."

As Rikuo returned to the front of the store, closing the door behind him, Saiga rose and embraced Kakei from the back, snaking an arm across his belly and under his white manager's jacket, nuzzling at his neck. "Himura was breaking locks as a toddler. My intelligence is flawless, he shouldn't get caught. So what's eating you? Besides me," Saiga asked, nipping Kakei's ear with his lips.

Kakei frowned, but didn't answer immediately. "I can't see what comes next. It's a white-out. Everything around Kudo-kun. In a week or so, there are paths. Some have Kudo and Himura still with us as a team. Some Himura alone. In some we lose both of them. But where the branching happens…it's all lost in the white-out."

"Like with Himura and Tsukiko…" murmured Saiga. "But you still want to send Himura alone?"

"Yes. I'm sure of that. I don't want to let Kudo out of our sight any more than necessary. Physically, since I can't… Himura either, but this mission's special. The item is really for both of them. But…let's not tell Himura about the white-out, hm? It's best that he…not know. That this is like…when we lost Tsukiko."

Saiga cuddled him closer. "We'll protect them. And the ring will help, hmm?"

-oOo-

With a few customers drifting around the store, and the rest of the staff in the back room, Kazahaya was hanging out by the cash register, tidying the magazine and knick-knack racks. He was frowning deeply at the cover of a magazine on flower arranging. As Rikuo pulled off his store apron and stashed it behind the counter, he asked, "Rikuo, what does this say?"

Rikuo read the simple cover to him. "Kazahaya… Did you actually pass grammar school?"

"Um… Why'd you take off your apron?"

"Going out. Kakei job."

"Without me?!" Kazahaya wailed. "I want a job! I need the money…"

"Maybe next time, dum-dum," Rikuo said, and the door chimes clanged as he went out.

Dum-dum. Idiot. Baby. He never treats me with any respect. Nobody does. Because I really am stupid… Kazahaya tried to read the flower arranging article that caught his eye. It was their birthdays, and it was just the kind of thing Kei would love. But it was just too hard. As Rikuo had just pointed out, he didn't know half the kanji needed to graduate grammar school. If I did, if I knew them, maybe people wouldn't think I'm so stupid.

When he came up front again, Kazahaya asked, "Kakei-san, can I take a 15 minute break? There's a book I want to buy."

Kakei blinked, and smiled sweetly. "A book. Sure sweetie-pie. It'll be nice to see you reading."

Later, while Kazahaya ate lunch in the back, Kakei stole a peek at the book he'd hidden below the cash register. Kazahaya had bought a kanji primer, all 1800-odd characters one needed to pass high school, the first 800-odd grammar school characters with much more detail. The book mark was partway through the 3rd grade kanji. Next to the book were some index cards taken from the drugstore, apparently with the first 10 characters Kazahaya had chosen to master. Reason, or logic. To play. Leaves, or foliage. Journey…. Kakei laid the book back where he found it with a crooked yet tender smile. No brains, but plenty of spirit….

-oOo-

Rikuo reached the house a bit early, so rested on a bus stop bench a couple blocks away. He wanted to wait at least ten minutes into the unobserved window Saiga promised. But there was no shade to be had on the neighborhood's main street. He was hot and tired, the glaring sun was giving him a headache, and the humidity and car exhaust were making it hard to breathe.

Light dancing off water drops, quivering on Kazahaya's back, soft light hair ruffling, cool in the breeze of the box fan…. Don't think about that. The half-dark at night, the curves of Kazahaya's shoulder blades, three pinkish splotches where Rikuo had dabbed calamine on the bug bites Kazahaya couldn't reach. Tossing and turning through the night, not quite asleep or awake, always aware of that other near-naked body next to his…

Think about something else. That flower magazine…those words, at what, a 5th grade level? So, OK, he ditched school and he's none too bright. But, even so, there's nothing. How could someone live 18 years like me and pick up…nothing? It doesn't add up. Even if he didn't go to school, even if he never left the yard, even if he's dimwitted, surely there'd be…something. Something to show for 18 years. Can anyone be so sheltered? So natural, childlike, petlike, trusting… Though, it's fun to shelter him…carrying him home, cuddling him, having him cling to me…

Don't go there! Damn, I hope this heat wave breaks before I do. Finally - time to do the job.

The house had a high wall with a tiny strip of yard inside, but no lock on the gate. Rikuo put his own key into the doorknob for show while breaking the lock mechanism with his mind. Inside, the entryway was embarrassingly normal and middle-class. He had to stop himself from replacing his shoes with indoor slippers. Feeling like a cad, he wandered up the stairs in his street shoes. In the upstairs hall there were a number of boxes sitting half-opened. It looked like someone was slowly sorting through sad relics of inherited memorabilia.

He glanced at both bedrooms quickly, but the right one was obvious. A small locked jewelry box sat on a small, aged vanity with darkening mirror, both made of some rich reddish wood, shining with well-waxed care. Rikuo easily broke the lock with his mind and opened the box. No sifting required – the silver ring and bracelet and chain contraption was right on top. It would look great with black leathers, but woefully out of place atop the woman's fine gold and pearl and diamond jewelry. Kazahaya could carry off wearing this delicate stuff, too, but the chains would look better. He shut the lid sharply on the box and the thought. Daydream after you're outta here.

After the first bus and a change of trains, Rikuo felt safe enough taking out the ring contraption to study it. The ring only fit on his pinkie, though it would do for slight Kazahaya's middle or ring finger. The bracelet had a sixth chain for its closure, which dangled a couple centimeters free after fitting Rikuo's wrist. The ring-to-bracelet chains were a puzzle, one quite a bit longer than the others. With the ring on his pinkie, and the longest fine chain at its maximum, Rikuo couldn't quite get it to reach across his palm, between his thumb and forefinger, and hooked at the only place to hook it, on the back of the hand near the base of the thumb. So on Kazahaya, on the middle finger, there would be two chains widening in a V to meet the chain below his palm, another two chain V on the back, and this fifth chain wrapping across to the back. Sexy as hell, especially the dangling feel of the bracelet closure chain's tail.

Rikuo took the device off and shortened the 4 chains to the right length for Kazahaya's hand, not even noticing that he knew exactly how long they should be, exactly how Kazahaya's hand compared to his own, knew for a fact the ring would fit on the middle finger. There was an inscription inside the ring, written tiny and worn.

Feel as I feel. Ri love Ka.

What a truly interesting relationship that must have been, Rikuo thought wryly. Some chains for you like the ones you use on me… Then he blushed furiously, realizing the kana characters engraved as shorthand could stand for Rikuo and Kazahaya as well. He guiltily stuffed the bracelet set into his jeans pocket, and glanced out to see how far he was from the station where he switched to a subway. A guy, he realized, remembering the boxes in the hallway, and the heft and length of the chains. The guy's romantic youth was about forty or fifty years back, judging from the memorabilia. Rikuo got off the train and bounded down several flights of stairs to reach the subway platform. This thing wasn't remotely in style. Heh, but if Kakei wanted this much read, he would have sent Kazahaya with me. Me, he just assumed I'd enjoy breaking things and never give it a second thought. Or…maybe not.

Back at the drugstore, Rikuo went straight to the back room, and handed the jewelry over to Kakei, relieved to get rid of it, the "Ri love Ka" inscription seeming to burn in his front pocket.

"It's beautiful. Wish there were two."

"Or four. Or eight," Kakei laughed. "But no, this one's special. It needs someone like our Kudo-kun on one end, or it's mere sexy jewelry."

"Mmm. Well, very sexy jewelry. What does it do attached to Kudo?"

"You'll see." Kakei smiled most evilly.

"Outright theft, though. Kind of a bald crime even by your standards, Kakei, wasn't it?"

"Ah, but this, this was meant for a special person, not the nice lady who inherited it." Kakei read the inscription and his eyes widened. He murmured, "One hardly thinks Ri would have wanted to chain it to her hand."

Rikuo flushed dark and accused flatly, "You knew about the inscription."

"No…but I like it." Kakei smiled his most impish smile and made shooing motions. "Now back to work, I'm paying you twice for your time!"

-oOo-

"How'd it go? Are you alright?" Kazahaya asked eagerly while Rikuo tied his apron back on.

Rikuo paused, then settled on a simple evasion. "Failed. Didn't find the item."

"Oh, too bad! But, hey, it was great working here without you. The girls talked to me for a change." Kazahaya grinned. Clearly he was more interested in his day than Rikuo's. "You know the one with the green high school uniform? Cute bouncy short hair tied back with a green ribbon? She asked me out on a date Friday night!"

Rikuo felt like an elevator jerked to a stop beneath his feet. He had no right to feel like this…. He stared blankly at his room-mate for a moment, face draining, before groping his way to a comeback. "Friday, huh? Well, we've got separate bedrooms. Don't expect me to clear out so you have the place to yourself."

"What?! We're just going to a Bon dance! It's a first date! It's not like she'd expect me to even kiss her on a first date!" Rikuo just glared at him, and Kazahaya grew worried. "Um…would she? I've never kissed anybody before. Except my…" Rikuo smirked. "Oh, hell! You're just making fun of me!"

"You've kissed me. You're not bad at it. Natural, sweet."

Kazahaya turned scarlet. "WHAT!? I HAVE NOT! Or…damnit, have I?" It was Kazahaya's turn to be struck speechless. He whispered, "I don't remember it. I hate this, hate not remembering, hate being weak like this." His eyes teared up, though the tears didn't fall.

Rikuo swallowed, hard. "I'll help you practice. Later. If you want. It was on a job before. I'll tell you later."

Kazahaya nodded and didn't trust himself to speak. They both got back to work stocking shelves, in different parts of the store.

-oOo-

In the dark that night, in the breeze of the box fan in their living room, Kazahaya lay on the tatami mats, mouthing a pear. Rikuo came out of a cool shower . He settled beside his room-mate on the floor to sleep, then propped himself up on one elbow to talk.

"Forty kanji. Don't you think you should take it slower?"

Kazahaya sat bolt upright. "What?"

"You learning the elementary school kanji. Forty at a time is kinda hard. I can quiz you on them if you want."

"That was supposed to be a secret!"

"From…whom? If you wanted to keep it secret, you should have picked someplace better than the cash register to hide your work. Besides, if you bring it up here at night I can help you with it."

"You won't tell Kakei, will you?"

"Um, actually, Kakei told me. He asked me to be supportive. He didn't need to ask – I'm impressed. If you don't know the kanji, it takes guts to admit it and memorize them now. Better late than never."

The conversation dwindled to a companionable silence. Kazahaya returned to sucking on his pear.

"What are you doing?"

Kazahaya looked sheepish in the gloom. Between street lights and bright signs and traffic and the complete lack of window dressings, the room never really got dark. "Um, practicing kissing. Just in case." He braced for a cutting remark, but none arrived. So he took a careful bite and went back to figuring out how to kiss the pear mouth he'd just cut. Rikuo stayed up on his elbow watching this, his face mercifully in shadow.

"You were in a trance, in someone else's memories." Kazahaya jumped at the sound of Rikuo's soft voice. "When I kissed you before. Don't worry. You're good at it."

The silence stretched a while, then Kazahaya's voice came vanishingly small, "But I don't remember being good at it."

Rikuo reached over and pulled Kazahaya's hand and pear to his mouth, and took a small bite. "So kiss me now and remember it." He licked some pear juice off of Kazahaya's fingers. Kazahaya lay there frozen, eyes wide. So Rikuo bent down and kissed him lightly. Then kissed him harder as Kazahaya's lips started to move on a, "But…"

He was good at it. Natural and sweet, just as Rikuo remembered, just as he'd said. Kazahaya's mouth was fresh with mint toothpaste, sweet with pear juice, and yielded to Rikuo's whenever it should yield, pressed harder just when Rikuo would have wanted him to kiss harder. And after the first half-hearted "But…", Kazahaya objected not at all.

In the dark later, Rikuo could still taste the minty pear freshness on clean teeth, to the point he was almost ready to brush his teeth and eat a pear again to revive the memory. Kazahaya had fallen asleep in his arms soon after they'd started kissing, without a word. A restless Rikuo had eventually laid him to lie separately. The sound of his breathing was drowned by the raucous box fan propeller, but Rikuo could see the regular rise and fall of his ribs and belly in the neon-tinged gloom.

Rikuo rolled onto his stomach, burying his head in his arms. Let me kiss him again. I'll buy a watermelon. The juice will drip down his chest…

-oOo-

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