POSSIBLE TRIGGERS

"Woah! Nice tats man." He says in an octave lower than his normal voice, the low growl not helping with my southward dilemma.

My blush instantly rises to engulf my neck and cheeks with visible embarrassment. "They aren't tattoos.." I trail off, not in the mood to explain.

He doesn't answer but places his hands on the black tiger paws that are placed on my breasts, perfectly symmetrical in all ways. Mother's prints. Showing up the day after I was placed as her son.

Originally, Crossblood was the last book in about an EIGHT BOOK SERIES. It wasn't even from Moon's view It was from two characters that are going to show up later and you know what I just realized? You all know nothing about their background! So I'm going to have to work info in here and there to catch you up.

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~Moon's POV~

"I-I have somewhere to be, sir." I duck my head to hide the terrible blush that's conquering my cheeks. That's another thing I've been doing a lot. With trembling hands I pull myself up to a seated position, the party in my pants not quite over.

Julius simply tugs on a T-shirt and turns the other way, focusing on something across the room as I sit at his feet, body too tired to move. "Alright."

Alright? Is that all I am? A one night stand for any pig charming enough to get me out of a pair of socks and boxers? Gently, I shut the door behind me though my mind wills me to slam it in his good for nothing, sorry ass, slutty-tick-whore face. I wander the halls aimlessly with my fists angrily tangled in my hair until I come upon a plain white door, it's paint freshly coated with gloss and handle newly polished.

"Hello?" I whisper, standing outside the door awkwardly rocking on my heels. She answers on the first knock.

"Moon."

It swings off it's hinges to reveal a tiny girl only about five-foot-one-inch. Her body adorned with battle scars clearer than day on her neck and arms. "Master Moon?!" She cries, my face apparently more distraught than I thought.

"Just Moon please...I'm in need of a friend and I'm alone here." I whisper.

If only I had Kai's slender arms wrapped around my shoulders, the bones protruding from years of malnutrition. Having the bumpiness of the inside of his scarred arm graze over me and his legs straddling my waist. As she leads me to the bed, I involuntarily rock myself as he would do with me to calm us down after long days.

"What is the matter?" She asks, patting the air beside her and gesturing me to sit.

I stare the servant girl in the eyes. "When someone says 'Master Moon' what do you think?"

"Well Julius of course. He is your Blood Master you know!"

"Do you think whore?" I mutter, adverting my eyes to the bed. I begin to play with the leaf colored comforter as I await her response.

"I think that you made a few bad decisions in your life which led you to be professionally classified as one dear."

I scoff at the reply, "I'm a professional whore? That will look good on my résumé for sure!" I scream, rising to my feet at her remark.

Whatever possessed me to hunt down this boneless girl is beyond me. Was it that her scent is so close to Julius's and it instantly comforts me?

Lucy places a chocolate hand over mine and laughs, "That's not what I meant and you know it."

I allow her to wrap an arm around me for comfort and warmth. The door shakes with the force of a heavy knock before it swings lightly on it's hinges. Julius stands in the doorway for a minute or two before slowly closing the gap between us. "Why did you run?" He sits next to me on the small bed, hands nervously brushing against his knees as he impatiently takes his foot.

I bite back my tears. Why have I been so emotional lately? "You don't care."

"Moon! What on Earth would ever make you think that?"

"Alright." I growl through swollen lips, "Alright is all you have to say to me after that?"

"What did you want me to say? Good job? Hope to meet you again sometime?" He barks, biting down on his lips as if to physically restrain the words he wishes to say.

My voice is rising and Lucy isslowly shrinking into the mattress. "I hoped for you to at least acknowledge me instead of turning the other way!"

"I didn't want to scare you off!" He shouts, rising to his feet and hovering over me.

I stand on my knees on the bed so I'm was almost eye level to him. "I'm not a fucking child for Christ's sake!"

"Then stop acting like one!"

It's too late for this! I'm tired and irritated! "I'm not!" I whine, tears welling in my eyes. Well...maybe just a tad bit.

By this point my mind is racing with how bad my fists yearn to connect with his jaw, hear the splintering of bone underneath my coiled fingertips. A good man to man fight to settle our problems but no, I can't hit Julius or I'll be thrown back in the streets for sure and betray the only person that was ever nice to me. I sprint out the bedroom, down the winding spiral staircase, and through the red door into the night.

Where the hell does this man even live? Even though my feet connects with shattered concrete there isn't a building in sight. Woods, woods, and more woods. I blow a strand of misbehaving hair from my eyes stubbornly and shove my curled fists into my pocket. Why is it so cold here? Without a jacket to keep away the wind, I send boiling rays through my body to stay warm. About three miles until I reach town a sign had informed me a mile or two back. Was I really unconscious the whole drive here?

By the time I reached a sign welcoming me to the city the sinners were awake. Their music was woven through the fabrics of skimpy outfits and poisoned their alcohol. It flowed in the smoke of their cancer sticks, inhaled with every puff to damage the mind. With my shoulders up and out, I stride through the double doors of a high class bar without a care in the world.

"Vodka?" I whine without meaning to. I spot a man staring at me out the corner of my eyes, he's obviously drunk, eyes glazed and red and the stench of alcohol traveling through the room with his smile. Don't let them know you're scared.

"I.D?" The man at the counter whines back, tilting his head as though speaking to a child.

I lean in instinctively, brushing my lips against his ear and smiling at the chills I send radiating through him. "I'll sleep with you for vodka."

No! I didn't mean to say that! He crosses his arms coolly and bites his plump lower lip. "Really lover boy?"

I gulp silently. "I want my alcohol first." Might as well be sloppy drunk while we're doing it.

He turns his back to me to pour a small decorative glass with clear liquid. It's foul stench clogging my senses as I cough at it.

"Hey!" I scream as a large pair of hands grabs the drink from me.

"Serving a minor for sex? How dare you!"

"How dare me? He's the slut that made the offer!"

The older man turns to my cowering figure, legs clamped tight together in fright of my actions. His full eyes pierce mine for a brief second before he turns on his heel to the bartender. "You're the pedophile that agreed." He hisses.

By the time he turns to face me I'm already halfway across the room. One second they're standing up for you and in the next you're crying on an alley floor. My breath comes out ragged as I pump my arms and legs to excel me through the door. I'm out without a second glance.

The night is only growing darker as I weave my way through crowds and away from the light. The feeling of being watched is strong but I ignore it and cut through back alley after back alley until I reach a grocery store. It's neon sign advertises half off deli sandwiches, a sale in chocolates, baby food and toilet paper marked down cheap. The 'A' has already blown out and the 'D' flickers hauntingly beside it. I tiptoe to the back of the store near the sitting area and slide to the asphalt. Laying on my back, I glare at the stars until sleep manages to find me.

•••

"Wake up boy! This isn't a hotel!" The screams of the manager wake me and I'm away like a thief in the night.

I've always been afraid to walk through alleys. Maybe knowing that everything bad that has ever happened in movies occurs in alleyways frightens me. The puddles splash my shoes as I trip over bricks and jump at nearby shadows. I don't even notice the man standing behind me while I watch two cats playfully fight over a French fry, hair standing on end and claws out ready to land a killer blow.

TW

His arms are around my neck, my face, my lips. They slither to my hips and his throbbing member pounds against my lower back. The stench of smoke is strong and as he whirls me around on the brick wall I take in his face. It's smooth and completely hairless except for blonde peach fuzz. His hair is shaggy over his emerald eyes and calms as it goes to the back.

The bartender.

"Remember me?" He growls against my neck, his fingers tightening as I gasp for breath.

"Bartender?" I squeak, surprised a noise managed to come out at all.

He clicks his tongue and smiles through the night, alcohol still lingering on his lips. "I remember when you were tied up in that basement, how good you felt," He moans. "how tight you were." His index finger pokes my bottom through my jeans, my body squirming uncomfortably at his rancid touch.

His lips are on mine. Hot and steamy and filled with unattainable lust. I try to force him away from me but my efforts are useless. He's stronger and I'm going to lose tonight whether I acknowledge it or not.

The bartender's wandering fingers find their way to my pants and he gives a wicked smile through his kiss. The man slowly grinds our hips together as he moans loudly in my ear and whispers: "I know you've missed this as much as I have or else you wouldn't be so hard. Stop your crying! It's not rape if you enjoy it." With that last bit I'm thrown to the ground and he mounts me, greed and lust and hunger overtaking his features.

My pants are off before my very eyes and he's at my entrance enjoying every bit of me. His lips graze my body as he pulls a metal object from his pocket. "Scream and I'll slice your throat, understand?"

The tears overpower my ability to answer him with actual words. I nod as he places the object to my drying throat and tangles his fist in my hair, ready to satisfy himself as he holds my head to the soaked ground, forcing me to look up at him. To watch him.

I'm trembling from head to toe as the familiar pushing feeling takes over. I flinch but the pain never comes. The presence of the man is lifted and a pair of callused hands sweep me off the cold bricks. A blanket is positioned over me and soon enough I'm surrounded by the suffocating heat of a car. "Everything is okay." The man coos and I recognize his muddy hair from the bar. Did he follow me? "You're safe now."

White lips, pale face

Breathing in snowflakes

Burnt lungs, sour taste

Light's gone, day's end

Struggling to pay rent

Long nights, strange men

I sing Ed Sheeran's The A Team through my body rumbling sobs and dry throat to try and control them. The older man gives me a reassuring smile before lifting me from the car and into a two story house. The lawn is of award winning status with a small bird bath and flower garden to the side. Not a single chip of white paint is strewn from the house and the windows are perfectly symmetrical with a golden door inbetween them.

"Daddy!" A small child greets us as we enter before a boy my age enters. His dark red hair (natural?) compliments his pale skin in an unnaturally beautiful way. He stands in Perry the Platypus pajama pants and a white T-shirt that is too thin for this type of weather.

"Boys this is.."

"Moon." I finish for him, the heat of the house bringing some color back to my face.

"Wess!" The small boy pipes up.

The older one lends his hand to me. "Eden."

I take a second glance at his eyes and take in the full lashes and different colors- the inside is green but the outside is a vibrant blue. Distichiasis and heterochromia? Two mutations common in Faes. Not to mention the fact that he's the only red-head in his family.

"You're a Fae?" I whisper once I'm close enough to him that only we can hear our conversation.

He looks taken aback but nods silently.

The man takes my shoulders in his palm and smiles at his sons. "This boy has gone through a lot tonight and will stay with us until his parents come to retrieve him. Eden, I want you to share a room with him and make sure he's okay. Goodnight boys." He ends with a smile before disappearing up the staircase.

•••

"You were almost raped...shouldn't you be even a tad bit scared?" Eden questions with a frown as he adverts his eyes from me.

"Nope," I pop the 'p' and continue to strip for a shower. "I'm used to that stuff by now." It's not a complete lie, I am used to it, but I can't help how my body trembles, jumping at every small noise and cowering when Eden stares.

"Well could you not wave your junk around in my face please?"

"What's wrong man-eater? Can't resist a bite?" I tease in a half-attempt to cheer myself up. It's common knowledge that all Faes are female and the rare few that are born males would prefer to stick with males.

"Just because I am a homosexual man, that does not give you the right to call me a man-eater." He snaps. I should of known he had a short temper. "So what are you?" He mumbles shyly, fiddling with a stuffed Pikachu.

"I'm taking a shower." I groan.

His hand is at my shoulder to restrain me before I even place my right foot forward. "Fae? Vampire? Werewolf? Some new type of troll? Wizard? Demon? Angel? Deformed giant? Please?" He begs.

With a nonchalant shrug I simply answer, "I'm Moon and Moon is about to take a shower."

He lets me go and I walk into the already running water. Will I always think of Julius when I shower? About how he had wrapped his arms around me for just a moment but it set my skin ablaze? His seductive offer? The slight stubble on his flawless face? I peer through the shower curtain and catch Eden brushing his teeth at the pink sink, flipping the faucet off with the back of his hand and continuing to brush.

"Get out!" I scream, hastily searching for something to throw at him.

He turns away from the mirror and faucet and bounces his way onto the cluttered counter. He faces me and the Angry Birds shower curtain with a sly smirk and continues to brush his teeth. What an ass. Now aware of his prying eyes I rush my shower and abandon all thoughts of Julius until further notice.

As I exit the steaming pink bathroom, I catch a glimpse of a glittery post-it note with 'So you don't go Commando' written in feminine cursive atop a pile of clothes. I remove the clothes from the toilet, dress myself, and leave to go back across the hall to Eden's room. I take my time on the carpeted hallway, viewing each family picture and degree on the wall. Eden Parker. Has a nice ring to it if I do say so myself.

I nervously glance at the king sized bed and curl a damp coal colored hair strand around my fingertip. "I'm fine with sleeping in the same bed if you're fine with it."

He shrugs to hide his smile but not before I catch a glimpse of the corners of his lips rising. "I'm fine with it."

I crawl under the Lion King blanket and smile to myself at how childish his bedroom is. On the three white walls there are various quotes and posters from recent blockbusters and Disney classics. The remaining wall has graffitied brick wallpaper plastered over it along with scratch and sniff stickers and more glitter post-it notes.

The floor is a simple white carpet like the hallway but is littered with school textbooks and empty video game cases. A zombie stares me in the eyes for a brief second before I turn my back to the case. Faes were notorious for being childish, tricksters, thieves, a majority of the bad things in the book.

"Goodnight, Moon." Eden whispers beside me before switching the lamp off and allowing the darkness to swallow us.

•••

The light sound of laughter is audible downstairs, engulfing the house in a chiming similar to bells. I groggily jog down the steps still in Eden's clothes, grab a plastic plate and fork, and slide down the bar to greet the Parkers and....Julius? He looks sleep deprived. A slight tinge of white-blonde is buried deep in his messy bed-head brunette. The bags under his eyes run deep and his eyes themselves seem red from tears.

"Are you alright?" I ask him, placing my palm over the back of his hand.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that? Mr. Parker told me what happened last night." He chokes on his words, gripping my hand a tad bit tighter.

"Julius, I'm used to it. It doesn't effect me as badly as it used to."

"It would never of happened if we didn't fight earlier...I'm sorry."

I peck his forehead with a slight kiss and grin . "What was all the laughing about anyway?"

"Oh!" The light in Julius's eyes return as he claps his hands together in excitement. "A little birdy told me that Eden will be in your classes this year! It will be nice to have someone show you the ropes hmm?"

Mr. Parker points to my bedtime attire. "I see you two are already quite aquatinted."

Eden hides his blush as flashbacks of last night leak from his vulnerable mind to my stronger one. "Very. We have already exchanged numbers too."

Julius rises from his seat at the busy table. "Well I'm sure that I will see more of you boys in the future. Bye, Wess!" He says excitedly, matching the smile of the young boy. "Nice to meet you Mr. Parker and Eden." He shakes each of their hands with a welcoming smile.

"Please call me Stan!" Mr. Parker laughs.

"Well goodbye Stan and thank you for caring for Moon!"

As the car door closes behind me, Julius takes my hand in his, rubbing it with his thumb in calming circles. "I received a letter from my brother inviting me to dinner and a party. It's tomorrow night at ten-thirty and I-I want to...er...tell him I'm gay."

"That's great, Julius!"

He continues with his hand movements but turns his head in every which direction."I want them all to meet you."

"I'm perfectly fine with all of this, Julius."

He gazes up at me with puppy dog eyes. "Are you mad at me?"

"Julius...I'm not mad." I groan impatiently. "You're coming out of the closet and for so many good reasons! To be yourself, for closure, for a closer relationship with your brother, to get out the closet once and for all-"

Julius kisses my lips, tugging at them gently and teasingly. "For Narnia?" He murmurs.

I give a slight chuckle between our locked lips. "For Narnia."