Archive of Our Own ^beta

There a broken Arthur laid. Writhing in pain and broken bones. Kayne was indifferent. He was used to seeing pain and agony wherever he went. Most of the time he enjoyed seeing helpless mortals beg for him to end their pain. Enjoyed being the cause of the sharp pain that pierced through whatever piece of flesh Kayne decided on. It gave him a sick, bubbling, pleasure.

Arthur’s coin fell out of his bag, clinking and then rolling on the cold rock. Kayne stares blankly, standing tall in front of Arthur.

Flip.

“Well, call it! Heads or tails—call it!” Kayne snapped his fingers and froze the coin in mid air.

“Heads,” Arthur gasped, struggling to talk due to the large gash in his throat. The blood tasted of iron on his tongue and stained his teeth a dark red.

As much as Kayne loathed John, if he could even stomach calling him that. Such a pathetic attempt at claiming humanity. Kayne was eager to stir the pot, curious about how things might turn out for these special two.

Kayne spat with a vicious grin, “Look, I like you. I like when you shoved my dagger into your throat, I enjoy our little repartee!” He thoughtfully bent down and jammed a careful finger into Arthur’s neck wound. “I’ll make you a deal.”

Arthur winced, “A deal?”

Kayne pulled his finger out and stuck it between his lips. He sucked on it before pulling it out with a pop. “I’ll put him back, right where he belongs! I’ll even give you your arm and leg back! But, not your eyes! You only have eyes for him!” He laughed maniacally. A real shame John gets all the action. All of Arthur’s disgusting, mortal love. Kayne cringed at himself for having even the slightest bit of jealousy.

“And?”

Kayne huffed. And. “And? Hm, good question. I have to think of a catch, right? What malevolent entity appears and only offers a trade that benefits?” He cackles and pressed a finger to his lip, looking up in thought. “Huh, huh, huh, huh, hm. Oh.” It came to him. “Oh, yes!” His voice is laced with a deep rumble of satisfaction.

Arthur shivered at the new tone Kayne unlocked. Terrified at what it could mean for him. A new scar? More broken bones? He was all used to that. What did Kayne have that was worse than the King in Yellow? “What?”

“John comes back, owns your eyes, as he always did, you get your body back… But! He. Remembers. Nothing.” Kayne placed a gentle hand on Arthur’s cheek. A heartstring was harshly pulled at the sensation of his skin. The warm flesh gave him a new pleasure unlike the kind he got from gore and carnage. Kayne took note of this and his eyes widened, tucking that feeling deep inside him. Something to be processed later.

“Nothing?” Tears pricked at Arthur’s eyes and he leaned into the subtle warmth of Kayne’s hand. It wasn’t a normal, human warmth. But it was just warm enough to provide some comfort.

Kayne ripped his hand away in disgust. “Nothing. No first meeting, no memories in the dreamlands, no path towards humanity. Nothing. He is as you first met him: A lost and confused, fractured piece of the King in Yellow.”

Arthur took this into consideration for a small moment, “I… I don’t know, I.”

Kayne put a hand on his hip, “Huh. Well, it’s a timed offer.”

“How long do I—“

“Three.”

“Wait!”

“Two.”

Arthur choked out a sob, “Let me—“

“One.”

“Fine!” He clenched his fist, “Deal.”

“Deal?” Kayne’s mouth curved into a wicked grin.

“Yes,” Arthur replied, defeated.

Kayne whispered and got dangerously close to Arthur’s torn left ear, “Oh, Arthur… This is going to be so much fun. Say hi for me.” His breath tickled Arthur’s face.

The coin unfroze and clinked to the ground. And Kayne’s presence whooshed away.

-

As soon as Kayne was in private, he clutched his heart dramatically and took in a stressed gasp. “Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, that should not have been that hard!” Kayne’s eyes panned up to see Hastur hunched over, brooding. “Oh,” Kayne frowned in annoyance, “You’re here.”

Hastur huffed, “What do you want?”

“What do I want? This is my private realm that you decided to invade!”

The King bit his lip. “I don’t want to go back.”

Kayne clasped his hands together, mockingly sympathetic, “Awwwwwww, shucks. I’m sorry, do we need to have a private therapy session? I’m booked every single hour except this one!” He appeared two chairs and pulled Hastur onto one of them that was far too small for him, while Kayne sat back comfortably in his proportionally sized chair. “Tell me, what’s gotten the God of Madness so distraught?”

Hastur’s frustration trumped his desire to rip Kayne’s throat out. “You know what.”

“Oh, you’re right!” He cackled and leaned back in his chair. “I know everything!”

Hastur glared.

Kayne paused. “Except. I don’t know why a god like you has taken so much interest in a mortal. That’s what I want to figure out.”

“It’s not me, it’s him!” Hastur growled, standing up out of his chair, and Kayne could swear his eyes felt like lasers.

“Hold your horses, Big Guy!” Kayne stood and pulled The King back down into his seat. “A part of you, though, has love for an inconsequential man. And I want to know why.”

“Why do you care?” Hastur spat.

Kayne’s chest tensed. “Well,” he let out a strained laugh. “Curiosity seems to have gotten the best of me.”

“I don’t believe you, Carmichael.” Kayne’s response landed suspicion in Hastur’s gut.

“Whoa!” Kayne kicked back in his seat, “No need for the full naming, Your Majesty. Just Kayne.”

Hastur rolled his eyes, “Kayne. I don’t know why my fragment has gone down this path.”

“Come on! Dig deep. Surely, you can figure it out,” Kayne lifted his foot and pulled out a splinter, flinging it at Hastur.

The King growled, “I. Don’t. Know.”

Kayne’s head hung low in disappointment. “You’re no help. I can’t figure out what makes that boy so special. What is it about him that gets him favor from gods like us?…”

“What do you mean?” Hastur stared blankly. “It’s only John.” He spat John’s name as if it tasted bad in his mouth.

Kayne glanced around the realm they inhabited. “Oh, of course. That’s what I meant, King! I couldn’t care less about him.” He slapped him on the shoulder, “Just you.”

“Just him.” Hastur rolled his eyes, “Don’t tell me you like him, as well. That a small aching piece of you even dares to adore a mortal.”

Kayne stays silent, staring off into the distance in deep thought.

Hastur continued, “Kayne, I do not give a shit if you have a pathetic crush on Arthur. I have bigger problems. Just know, all the other gods will think less of you and constantly laugh at you, just as they do at me. You’ll never live it down.”

Kayne snapped back to reality and his jaw hung open. He huffed, dramatically, “What?” He gagged, “A crush? On Arthur? Absolutely not, are you kidding? That guy is merely a toy for me. A source of entertainment, if you will.”

“I don’t buy it.”

Kayne gasped and got on his knees in front of Hastur, “Please, Hastur. I don’t know what to do about it, it’s tearing me apart. I’m extremely worried he hates me? I’ve never cared about that before? His skin is so warm and pretty, I want to rip it to shreds so badly.” Kayne pleaded, dramatically, mimicking how he would tear Arthur’s skin apart. “I need to feel his blood coating my whole body. I need to have him.”

“He absolutely hates you.”

“Fuck!” Kayne stood up and paced around The King, a small trail of fire following behind. His teeth chattered on his bloodied fingernails. “Have I…” Kayne gasped, “Made a mistake? What could I have done to make him think so little of me? He should worship me!”

Hastur brought a tentacle to his temple and rubbed it harshly. “This is pathetic.”

“This stays between us, King. You tell anyone and weeeelllllll,” he dragged his voice out cheerfully, “I might just have to rip your throat out.”

“Amazing,” Hastur remarked sarcastically. “I’m looking forward to that, Kayne.”

Kayne rolled his eyes and mumbled, mocking him.

“You know, I lost everything. I lost a whole piece of myself, Kayne—“

“That’s not everything!”

“I lost everything!” Hastur barked at Kayne. “So you can fuck off with your pathetic crush on a mortal. Thanks for the help.” The King’s eye twitched and he stepped out of Kayne’s realm.

“Yeahhhh! Get out of here!” Kayne threw his fist into the air and broke down when Hastur was out of sight. This new insight about himself was completely word shattering. He fell down onto his knees once more and let out a broken cry. “I need to go massacre another city.”