#herb writes

Since he was a child, his owner taught him to avoid everything new, and to just stay by his side. He tried sneaking out a few times but it always ended with bruised skin and broken bones. Sometimes he wondered if it was a setup, but no. It couldn't have been, his owner who raised him, wouldn't do that. That meant that the world was out to get him, to hurt him. And He was precious, that's what the owner said. 

But now, the young man woke up confused, clearly drugged, in front of an unknown man in a lab coat, on a cold stone floor.

- Your name. Tell me your name, Precious. - The man in a lab coat smiled softly as if to try to gain the anxious blonde's trust. - I promise I'm not here to hurt you. 

But the boy wasn't responding. The man sighed and kneeled down to check the blonde's collar, which had a tag on it. 

- Lucius. So that checks out. My name is Dr. Scarecrow, but you precious can call me Sir Azel. 

Azel was a tall man in his early thirties, with white hair that was long enough to touch his jaw, dark brown eyes that in normal lighting looked dark, pale, clearly overworked face, with bags under his eyes, and rounded rectangular glasses. 

- Sir... Azel... - Lucius muttered under his breath, the name sounded familiar as if he heard his owner say it before. 

He indeed heard it before. His owner said it while talking on the phone. He discussed financial matters so Lucius didn't think anything of it at that time. 

- I'm your new owner Lucius. Welcome to your new house. - The doctor said with a smile. But him saying that just made the boy tremble more. 

His owner, selling him? He couldn't believe it. Oh, how Lucius adored and trusted his master, how he loved hugs and pets. He was like a father to him. So how could he have sold him? He grabbed his clearly too big shirt with his boney hands, tugging on it slightly. This also was a gift from him. What could he possibly have done wrong to be sold like this? From what he can remember, it wasn't a big sum either. Lucius couldn't think of any wrongdoing he might have committed, he was a good boy, and that's what master has been saying. So why is he here now? 

Before he knew it, the tears rolling down his cheeks were soaking his shirt, the snot from his nose was sliding into his mouth. Tears were salty enough but it just made it more bitter. His breath was shaking. He didn't know what was going to happen next. Was he sold to be a prostitute, like master warned him he would be if he didn't behave, to be a maid, a worker? He didn't have any useful skills like that. He barely knew how to read and write. He was skinny, and without much muscle. 

He curled up on the floor, hiding his face from Azel. He couldn't contain himself and started wailing, however ashamed he might be later, he simply wouldn't be able to stand being quiet right now. He was scared the same way as he was scared back when he was a child when The Master first took him under his wing. 

He slowly got up and put on the fluffy slippers. Still not sure if the doctor won't be mad, even if he assured him, he wouldn't be, Lucius carefully knocked on the door. Azel soon opened. He had a surgical mask on, nitrile gloves, and some weird fleshy-looking bits stuck to his lab coat, but the blonde didn't think much of it.

- What's happening, Precious? Can't fall asleep? - The boy nodded, but Azel rolled his eyes, seemingly annoyed. - You want to sleep with me, huh? - Another nod - Well I guess it can't be helped. But you gotta cover your eyes alright? Don't want to scare you on the first day. The Doctor took Lucius and tied a scarf around his eyes. The boy was confused, but if it meant being close... he didn't mind. He was slowly taken to the room.

- Please don't mind some weird sounds, I'm working on a new project. - He said as he put Lucius down on a couch and gave him a blanket. The boy got cozy quickly but yelped upon hearing what sounded like another person squealing - I told you. - Azel laughed.

The man stood beside a surgical table, upon which a brown-haired boy was laying, tied up and gagged, shaking in fear, but choking on his words. He knew if he even made a sound, it would end badly. The soft squeal he just let out was enough to spark Sir Azel's Anger. He saw it in his eyes. The doctor took a scalpel from the table next to them and slowly began cutting into the boy's chest. The boy shrieked uncontrollably. 

- You're supposed to be quiet you shit face. - Azel said it quietly but the boy knew how badly he was angry. - If you don't shut the fuck up Julius, you're going to end up much worse. - He took the boy's face in one of his hands, forcing them to lock their eyes. Julius nodded, blood still oozing from a fresh cut on his chest. - Good.

He continued where he left off,  and Julius started squeezing his mouth and eyes full of tears. He could swear he could feel his teeth breaking from the force he was clenching them with. His breath was fast and shallow, he barely could breathe anyway. His nose was stuffed from crying. But finally, the cutting was over. Azel exposed the boy's rib cage, looking at it with excitement for a while. To be honest, it didn't look like a rib cage anymore. More like a boney mass. 

The intern was walking with crutches nowadays, always with his head down, yet still working hard to satisfy Sir Azel. If he was satisfied with his work, he would beat him lighter. Maybe not use a whip, sometimes only using his fists, maybe just starving him for a few days.

Ez sat down, setting his crutches aside, on the chair in the plain gray office. He grabbed a few papers from the drawer below the desk he sat at and looked at them. Five deaths in the last two weeks was a new record for Azel. He got more reckless. Two of them of infectious diseases.

- Why did he do that again...? -  Ezekiel sighed, grabbing his head with his hand, tired. His eyes were slowly closing, until a knock on the door, woke him up. It was Nancy, she was holding a bunch of new papers and photos in her hands.

- Azzie did some shopping. Mostly discounted and already in bad shape, but you have to make their catalogs, Ezekiel. Here. - She gently put them on the desk - They all are branded with numbers, so it's gonna be pretty easy to catalog them. Known medical history is also there, but honestly, considering how cheap these were, I wouldn't trust that. - Nancy chuckled, looking at the intern. He sighed and took the papers.

Nancy soon left, leaving the brunette to deal with the papers. He decided to do the new arrivals first. He slowly took out some new file organizers and started from the youngest.

Number 341, nineteen years old, blonde male, limbless, but healthy organs. That's probably why Azel bought him. "Won't last long" Ezekiel thought.

Number 363, twenty-one years old, ginger female, deaf and completely traumatized, most of the time unable to communicate.

Number 682, twenty-one years old, another blonde male, malnourished and paralyzed waist down, almost completely dependent on the owner with basic needs.

Number 734, twenty-three years old, brown-haired male, left eye missing, right arm missing below the elbow. Except this one was weird in the picture. Usually, the people in the photos were cowering, scared, but he wore a sad smile on his. Not a force one, Ezekiel knew how a forced one looked, more than he would like to admit.

The boy grabbed his history, interested. You wouldn't usually find pets in captivity that look... somewhat hopeful, after a few years. But the more Ezekiel read, the more he was intrigued. He's been in captivity for 7 years now, but the trainers couldn't break him. He has been through several owners, hence missing arm and eye. Due to the owners' frustrations with him, since he was defiant, and wouldn't obey at all. "It's advised to be culled", written at the end of the paper.

The doctor didn't like defiant subjects. So why did he buy this one? Ezekiel scratched his head nervously. "I'm gonna be cleaning it up, aren't I..." he thought, putting away the new catalogs.

He took out the catalogs of subjects that have passed this last two weeks, marking off things regarding their deaths, and putting them away on another shelf. Ezekiel sighed, looking at the clock.

- Shit. - He was late. The doctor told him this morning, that he will help with medical evaluations at four today, but the papers took him too long, and it was past four already.

He slowly grabbed the crutches, he had to get to the other end of the floor. The more he was late, the more fucked he was.  At least he probably won't break his arms, and his leg is already broken.  Ezekiel bit his lips, trying to get to the common room as fast as he could, dragging his leg behind. He finally opened the door to the common room, cold sweat run down his back, awaiting a harsh response.

- Wake up, Precious. Wouldn't want to miss breakfast, would you? - He chuckled and pulled the boy out of the bed by his hands. He may have been smiling, but this move indicated he was mad at something, but Lucius didn't mind. 

Azel took him into the hallway again, presumably accompanying him to the kitchen or a dining room, but they were stopped by another unknown man while walking. He looked no older than twenty-five years old, but he was also wearing a lab coat. He bowed his head to the Doctor. He had bright blue,  but empty eyes, short black hair, and a blank expression. Beneath the lab coat, he wore a turtleneck, from under which a few scars were peeking out, his fingers looked like they're been purposefully burnt off. 

- Sir, I have already prepared the f... - Azel shushed the man with a smile, and he noded. - I'm sorry for not introducing myself. You're Lucius, aren't you? My name's Ezekiel. 

- I will lead him to the dining room and we will talk then, Ez. - Doctor smiled, but Ezekiel could sense his anger. He noded. It wasn't anything new for him. 

Ezekiel was also once in a position, that Lucius is right now. He was a new plaything for Azel, but once the excitement wore off, he only stayed alive because of his medical knowledge. Unlike Lucius, Ez wasn't raised in captivity, rather kidnapped and forced into submission when he was seventeen. He was a high-achieving student and unfortunately fell for a dodgy internship. It has been three years since. Two years in Dr. Scarecrow's possession. 

He once cared for those the doctor buys, but now he is cold, he accepted it's either this or death for him. No one was looking for Ezekiel anymore. He wondered about death, but even if his spirit was broken, there was a tiny piece of him, that couldn't let go of his life. Even if that meant taking part in torture, and being tortured. After these years, guilt didn't even bother him anymore.

- Eghem. Ezekiel. - Sir Azel snapped his fingers in front of the man's face, taking him out of his thought. 

- I-... I'm sorry. - He said softly and hurried back into the hallway. 

- Don't worry about him Lucius, he's my intern. He will help taking care of you from time to time, so you better get along with him. - He laughed, clearly irritated, already planning on a proper disciplinary measure. 

Azel sat Lucius down at the table and wanted to leave. He had maids who served the food, but the boy grabbed his coat.

- P-please don't leave... I don't want to eat alone... - The boy clutched the coat more. He looked up at the doctor, but to his shock, it wasn't a soft smile. 

- Listen here, Precious, I don't have time to babysit you all day! - He growled, leaving Lucius scared and with tears in his eyes, and then he just left. 

Lucius was looking at the door Azel just went through, sitting still. His mouth still open and his eyes watery. Only the maid was still with him here. Her name was Nancy, and she was a woman in her early thirties, with medium-length light brown hair and brown eyes. 

- You shouldn't worry too much. - The woman sat next to him, putting the plate with fresh pancakes down on the table. She took a napkin and wiped away his tears. - Doctor is always like that when he's angry, but it's not your fault, don't worry. He just had a rough night you know, one of his new projects failed. He will be okay soon. - She smiled and pet his head gently. - Now eat up. Oh, and my name is Nancy. We will be seeing each other a lot so I thought you'd probably want to know my name.

-I'm sorry... I'm  - he whimpered. Azel finally let go - i... I just wanted to say. i.. - Ezekiel coughed, grabbing himself by the chest. The cold stare of the Doctor was still there. So this wasn't the end - I've prepared the food for subjects... - he bowed his head down, trembling a little, until a punch came, reminding him to face Azel. The boy took a long breath.

He was mentally prepared, but his body always wasn't. Fragile, thin, already scarred and bruised. But Sir Azel was unforgiving, at least for Ezekiel. Ez once was a plaything, now he was a scapegoat and a punching bag. A stress reliever. While torturing his subjects was a joy to the doc, "disciplining" his intern was a duty of a kind. He never wore a smile during it, rather a cold, emotionless expression was always present during it. Azel didn't say a word before he strapped Ezekiel to a chair, with his back naked and turned to the doctor. 

- Are you this fucking stupid? I tell you how you should behave in front of Lucius, and you forget in a day? Not even a day you moron, few hours at most. Not to mention that it was you who didn't prepare Julius properly yesterday! If not for your fucking knowledge you'd be already sold off to the cheapest pimp I could find, fuckface. - He took out a whip with a hook at the end of it. Ezekiel clenched his teeth. 

- I'm sorry... - he said quietly again, trying to be the most emotional he could, Azel loved when his subjects showed emotion. Quietly, of course. But Ezekiel was so used to this treatment, he couldn't care anymore. Even when tears were rolling down his face, and his body was squirming in pain. He didn't think of anything then.  He accepted his fate long ago. 

A first whip was always the worst. The hook, digging into his skin, to then be violently ripped out. The brunette boy jumped up at this feeling, blood already seeping down his back. 

- Maybe I really should just fucking kill you, you pig! Or use you as a breeding ground for bacteria and viruses for new experiments huh?! I will send your parents a share, I'm sure they will be glad to have you back, whore. Fucking around with your teacher in high school was fun, huh? - He whipped Ezekiel again. - Guess who got you this internship, and knew all along! Yeah, this teacher you trusted so so much~! 

The intern opened his eyes wider. He... knew? It's true. Ezekiel was... "dating" his teacher in high school. He was in love so of course, he trusted him, when the teacher found this internship, having heard about it from his colleague. All these years he thought the teacher also didn't know. It couldn't have been his fault he ended up here right? 

- S..sir... Is... is it true? - he muttered. This only sparked an unexpected response from the doctor. A laugh. So it was true. He wouldn't laugh about it if it was a lie. Again the whip landed on his back, and again, again, and again. Ezekiel lost count. He only could yelp in pain. 

Azel finally kicked down the chair, landing Ezekiel face-first on the concrete floor. Blood started oozing from his nose. So it was own his fault he is here right now. He was stupid enough, he was trusting enough. It was his own fault. His own naivety and teenage love caused this. 

He soon felt the Doctor putting a boot on his neck. Stomping him repeatedly. He couldn't catch a breath. He could only feel his consciousness slowly fading, and the quiet laughter of the man, until he finally fainted. 

Their flat was small and destroyed, it was an ex-crack house after all, but it was all they could afford. The walls were growing mold and there was no heating. Thank god it was late spring, but it's not going to be hot like this all the time. Summer was coming up and Mikołaj was frantically looking for a good-paying job. He needed to earn the money quickly, he couldn't let his already sick mom and his little brother live in a place like this. Mold, floorboards coming apart, walls cracking, and shady neighbors. Although it was either this or coming back to his father and grandparents, who made their life hell in the first place. 

Mikołaj sighed and searched for his phone, finally finding it on the table. He took it, but cut himself on the broken screen, breathing out annoyed. He couldn't be too loud, his family had to sleep well, or else he would be really mad at himself. Magda - his mom - didn't have a good night's rest in such a long time. So maybe at least today, she could sleep well, or that's what Mikołaj hoped for. He sat down on the old creaking oak chair and opened the marketplace app, searching for more jobs. Oh, how many nights he lost over this, right now he was doing various small jobs, illegally of course, but he doesn't have time for any of the job contract shit. He has a family to feed, although his own belly growled many times throughout the day, he pulled through. 

He only had the high school done, and vision impairment, so no one wanted to hire him for anything else than a cashier or stocking up shelves in the stores, but that wasn't even close to a living wage. There was no interesting job offers again. Mikołaj angrily put his head down on the table, letting two tears slide down his cheeks. He wiped them irritated. He can't cry. He has to find something, for his brother and mother. He can't be weak, he's the family's patriarch now, he has to take care of them! So at least his brother Tymek can have a good life. 

He laid down on the table until the still not healed wound going through his eye started oozing puss again. At least the healthcare here was free. Well... somewhat. Mikołaj went to the bathroom to look in the mirror. With shaky hands he took a piece of toilet paper and lifted his eye pad from his left eye, hissing from the discomfort. He took it off and putting the toilet paper next to the wound, he squeezed it, trying to get rid of the puss. He clenched his teeth, trying not to make a sound while doing it. It hurt like hell, his father slashed him deeply, he lost the vision in this eye. Yellowish puss spilled onto his cheek, dripping right into the sink, grossing Mikołaj out. It's probably an infection, he thought, annoyed again. Infection meant antibiotics and antiseptic spray were needed. So that's more money gone from them. 

His Mistress - as she required him to call her - always found flaws in his behavior. No matter what the boy did. Her punishments ranged from simple whipping or beatings, to sexual abuse and death scares. Fear of never waking up again was stronger than anything in Jules' life and Mistress knew it very well. That's why, her hands tugging on his already thin hair prompted immediate screams.

----

Jules broke a teacup.

Another one this week. Yet it was enough for her to get incredibly angry. The sound of porcelain hitting the hardwood floor, was like the sound of nails hitting the coffin with Jules' name written on it. Scrambling to hide the evidence, he fell to the ground, cutting the shaky fingers on the pieces. But the footsteps were approaching faster and faster, seemingly to the speed of tears flowing on his face. The closer the sound was, the more tears chocked Jules up.

Until She walked into the room, with what appeared to be an angry grimace, but he wouldn't know better, the tears covered his vision.

The woman looked around the kitchen. Kettle still on the hot induction plate. The boy crawled on the floor, to the nearest wall, hugging it tightly, hoping, praying, that somehow it will swallow him and save him.

But life just doesn't work that way, does it.

Sudden grab of his thin white hair woke up Jules from the delusion of safety, he didn't even process the screaming of the Mistress.

Though she surely did hear his. Every inch of movement, only making them louder and louder.

Pressing the left side of his face to the hot induction plate, immediately caused a blood curdling scream, that just wouldn't end.

Every second felt like he was burning in hell. Tugging and wiggling didn't work, he tried pushing, kicking, but his face was more and more pressed into the hot induction plate. Skin melting into the material, peeling off from his muscles at every tug and move, scorching, burning into black when it finally came off completely.

His whole body wanted to get away at any cost, gasping for air, trying to do something... but it was useless. His muscles failing to stop the humiliation of pissing himself. Like a helpless child. The sound of drips of liquid, pushing him into shame more and more, wet clothes sticking to his scarred skin.

Every tear evaporating as soon as it hit the plate, their salt only worsening the pain from exposed tissues.

Jules felt like every fibre of his being was on fire. His left eye felt like it's going to melt out the socket at any second. The burnt eyelids couldn't even close properly, eyelashes and eyebrows disappearing with the foul stench of burnt hair, to never grow back again.

Every second felt like a lifetime.

Until Mistress finally dropped his head.

Jules' trembling body, sliding onto the floor, with a humiliating splash.

- Pathetic.

And he truly was pathetic at this moment. Curling up into a fetal position, hiding away his freshly burnt face