Desecration

!Advisory: This story will contain game spoilers, graphic noncon and torture, as well as a few other generally awful and taboo things. Definitely not for the kiddies or vanilla-lovers.

Sitting at his desk with his English homework spread out before him, Souji almost enjoyed the tranquil calm, immersed in his repetitive task. So when the sound of rain suddenly blasted against the windows like the hammer of a thousand tiny pebbles, he flinched and turned his head to stare wide-eyed at the drawn curtains. It took a moment for him to register what the sound really was. Low thunder groaned in the distance. What time was it, anyway? Even before glancing at the clock worry slowly crept through him, licking at the edges of his previous lull. Six minutes until midnight. There was no way there could be…

Souji glared at the blank TV screen as if it had been the cause of all his disorientation. It had been sunny and warm for the past three days; the weather report only mentioned cloudiness with a slim chance of overnight showers. Tomorrow was supposed to be another gorgeous day as well. Things like this were a freak occurrence, a testament to nature's occasional unpredictability. Though they happened sometimes, they never did so like this. Four more minutes and the clock would strike twelve.

Souji's hands began to sweat and he dropped his pencil unheeded to the desk as he stood to look outside. It was absolutely pouring. The slightly inclined street in front of the house already bore little streams of rushing water. Thin strips of orange-tinted lightening tore two neat paths through the black night sky over Inaba. The storm was overhead. He watched the sky through the violent sheet of rain before closing the curtains and turning his attention back to the TV set. One more minute. He was certain he would see nothing tonight, or at least, he had to convince himself of that. But as the seconds ticked away, that surety gave way to doubt. Finally, the clock struck midnight with a hollow clack.

The lights in his room dipped low, threatening to die out altogether when another peal of thunder erupted, closer this time. But that didn't stop the TV screen from flickering. A blurry image appeared, and Souji's attention was rapt upon it. Someone's image materialized before him, and though it was impossible to make out the details, he could tell from the form's general aspects that it was a man. The figure seemed to be in a scarcely furnished room, and oddly enough, it was that room's features that appeared more clearly than the person within it. Little else but a dresser and bed adorned the strange place. But as Souji peered more closely, he could see that the man onscreen was not alone. It seemed there was a woman sitting in one corner, partially facing away. Her light hair was cut short, but her form and style indicated her gender right away. Something was off, however. Thin ropes connected her arms behind her back. Across her eyes and mouth were two white strips of material bound tight. A matching set of earmuffs or something of the like rested against either side of her head. She appeared uncomfortable in that position, but otherwise didn't struggle against her bindings. Souji had little time to pay her much attention before the man's figure onscreen came so close to the 'camera' that the image was totally blocked out. Then, the screen went black.

With a certain attentive panache common to madmen, Souji had his phone whipped open and ringing Yosuke's cell within seconds. It rang several times before a pause, only to be picked up by Yosuke's voicemail. Damn it. Yosuke was probably asleep, or had his headphones on, or was doing anything but being there when Souji needed him. Not bothering to leave a message, Souji hung up and chucked his cell onto his desk. The storm outside was already letting up; the rain became only a soft murmur against the glass. Souji's throat suddenly felt parched.

Making his way quietly down the stairs, he discovered the kitchen light below still illuminated. Dojima still sat at the table, busy working on the same project Souji had seen him with once Souji had excused himself to his room earlier that night. Papers lay scattered about. Dojima seemed to be deeply involved with whatever it was, but once Souji appeared in the soft glow of the light over the sink his eyes lifted.

"Did the storm wake you?" He regarded his nephew with weariness.

Souji shook his head and retrieved a glass from the cupboard. "No. I was just finishing my assignments."

Dojima grunted in response and then changed his mind. He looked closely at Souji, the way he often did when he suspected something amiss. "It's great that you're doing so well in school, but you shouldn't be up this late too often."

With a full glass of cold water now in hand, Souji turned to retreat back upstairs. "I know. I won't. Goodnight." He had almost made it back to the foot of the stairs when Dojima's voice stopped him.

"Nanako tells me you don't even get in until late sometimes. What have you been doing for so long after school?"

Great, Souji thought, another session of drilling awaited him. It was true that there were times when he and his friends spent longer in the TV world than they had intended, but he tried to keep that from happening to the best of his ability and usually succeeded.

He turned again and saw that Dojima hadn't bothered to face him. "Just, hanging out with Yosuke. We lose track of time sometimes."

Dojima set the paper in his hands down and straightened. "At Junes, right?"

"What? Uh, no. Not always."

"One of my guys tells me he's seen you and your friends come and go from that store pretty often. Thing is, you never seem to leave with anything."

Souji quickly sifted through viable excuses, a skill that became sharper the longer he resided with his uncle. "Well there's not much else to do around here, and Yosuke works there. We like to hang out with him on his breaks."

"Yosuke…Hanamura, right? You sure seem to spend a lot of time with that kid."

Now Souji was at a loss for what to say, so he opted for silence at this point. He knew he would be reprimanded, but he didn't care.

"Well, you've got school tomorrow so go get some sleep."

That was not what he expected. Though a bit confused, Souji was not about to protest. He ran up the stairs without another word and shut himself up in his room. By this time the rain had already nearly stopped, but he did not feel any easier.