Bryn kissed him back. "Hot! It's so cold on earth, it was really terrible for the first few years before I adjusted. Also… big. Open. We didn't used to have…houses– not the way humans do– and it was scary to be so closed in all the time. I miss being able to see the sky every day, whenever I want.
Sebastian nodded as Bryn spoke, listening intently. It was obvious he cared about what Bryn had to say, especially when he talked about himself.
"What were your houses like, then?" he asked in a curious tone.
Bryn flustered a little over Sebastian's attentiveness, not used to being given so much direct attention, but he managed to stay mostly composed. "They were made up of fabric, thousands of different colors of fur and silk and satin, with big open tops so you could see the sky."
"Oh wow," Sebastian said, trying to imagine what one would have looked like. He kissed Bryn lightly, smiling. What he came up with probably didn't live up to reality, but it was impressive.
Bryn nodded. "It was breathtaking. I could show you if my magic weren't all bound up, but…" he trailed off, shrugging. "Whatever. It was a gorgeous place. We never had to worry about things like weather or sickness, or… or anything."
I wonder if there's a way to get Bryn's magic back… That was the first thing Sebastian thought. He quickly brushed it to the side for later, though, knowing it would be damn hard even if it was possible.
"It sounds amazing," Sebastian said, rubbing the small of Bryn's back with his thumb. It must have been horrible, being kidnapped from there to be forced into this world.
Bryn purred softly, nuzzling Sebastian's cheek with a lazy nod. "It was. My mama was the one in charge of our latera, our… tribe. And I was the magistro, the most gifted one of us. There were days when I could have forced the universe to its knees, and now… I'm empty."
Sebastian was quiet for a moment. He didn't want to say anything that could bring up bad memories for Bryn.
"It… must be hard," he said gently. He wanted to fix this- he wanted Bryn to have his magic back.
Bryn nodded with a soft sigh, kissing his cheek gently. "I can… I can feel it sometimes. It hurts, a little. Like someone cut off a piece of my soul."
Sebastian pulled Bryn a little closer, kissing him gently. He so desperately wanted to get Bryn his magic back, but he didn't say it out loud. He didn't want to get Bryn's hopes up.
"I'm sorry," he said quietly.
Bryn kissed him back, seeming a little confused but also not willing to question any gesture of affection from his human. "It's okay. You didn't take it from me, I don't blame anyone but my first owner and the ones who sold me to him."
Sebastian nodded. What Bryn said made sense, but Sebastian still hated it. He was trying to avoid questions that would bring up any painful memories- he didn't want Bryn to have to tell him something was off limits. He was still curious, though.
"Okay," he said. "I… I'm still curious as to what demons believe about humans."
Bryn winced, squirming a little closer to Sebastian's chest the way he always did when he wanted to ward off uncomfortable topics. "Do you really want to know?"
Sebastian hesitated a moment when Bryn squirmed closer.
"Yes," he said softly. He wrapped his arms securely around Bryn.
Bryn nodded, biting his lips as he considered. "Okay. Um… we have our first Demon, and he was… beautiful. And perfect. And he had a brother, the secondling, the foundling, who was made of stardust where the first one was made of clay. And he was… sharper. Crueler. And more jealous. So he killed the first demon, only the daemos were angry and so they killed him."
He swallowed. "But… his spirit stayed. His anger, his bitterness, his evil, they had grown too strong. And that darkness… it took shape. The shape of their owner. The shape of humans."
Sebastian stayed quiet as Bryn spoke, and continued in silence for a moment after. He hadn't really expected much else.
"…Thank you," he finally said, after a while. "For telling me." He sighed a little.
"I wasn't expecting much else."
Bryn winced at his silence, burying his face in Sebastian's shoulder until his human finally spoke. It didn't do much to ease his anxiety. "Sorry. I never should've said all that, it was really rude, you're probably mad at me now, aren't you?"
Sebastian kissed the side of Bryn's head gently.
"I'm not mad," he said softly. He didn't like it when he caused Bryn to feel like this.
Bryn didn't relax. If he'd said even a word of this to his old owner, let even one of the tiniest, most harmless details of his life before slip, he'd be punished. And here he was, spilling the worst, most gnarled parts of his religion out to a human. "Sorry," he mumbled again. "I know… I know that's wrong. I shouldn't've said that."
Sebastian pulled Bryn closer, frowning softly.
"Bryn," he said softly, "please don't be sorry. You didn't do anything wrong."
"I did, I know I did, 'm not s'posed to tell you about my old life." He shook his head to show that he knew the rules. That he understood if Sebastian needed to hit him or… or punish him somehow. His posture was the definition of submissive: head bowed and resting on Sebastian's shoulder so he could bare his neck, hands in his lap, body pliant as it rested against Sebastian's.
Sebastian just held Bryn, being so, so gentle. There wasn't a hint of malice, or anger, just… Worry.
"I'm the one who asked you to tell me," Sebastian said softly. He sat up a little bit more, holding Bryn in his lap in the same way they always did, chest to chest. One hand went up to carefully cup Bryn's cheek, going slowly so Bryn would know he wasn't going to hurt him.
"I wanted you to tell me about your old life. Bryn, you're my boyfriend- I want to know about your old life."
Bryn wanted to shiver beneath Sebastian's touch. He wanted to shift until they were flush up against each other, chest to chest and cheek to cheek, and he could breathe the way Sebastian did as he tried to calm down. But… he couldn't. He couldn't because he'd broken one rule today and he wasn't going to break another. "D-demons don't have old lives," he said, quiet but sure. He'd heard this repeated to him a thousand times. "I was summoned to serve my master, and I don't…" he took a shaky breath. "I don't have a life outside that."
"That can't be true," Sebastian argued gently. He had one arm around Bryn's hips, and he used it to pull them closer together.
"Because you don't have a master anymore. And as long as I'm alive, and hopefully long after I'm not, you won't. I won't let anyone do that to you."
Bryn finally gave in and buried his face in Sebastian's neck, tears starting to prick at his eyes as he shook his head. "You can't promise that, Sebastian. I… I'm here. I'm stuck, and I've got no magic anymore and… and I'm never gonna be free again."