Astral's two-toned eyes didn't move an inch away from the numerous Numbers that called out to him. True, they spoke no words, but they gave him whispers of his past life; his memories. For this reason, today, he was immobile in the Emperor's Key that sat along Yuma's chest. There was something he was missing, and he had no idea as to where he could begin.

Silently, the being continued to gaze at the wall of glowing digits, arms casually folded in their usual stance as his ankles remained crossed. "There's something I'm missing... Perhaps they can only give me so much information after each number?" Silence filled his ears aside from the whir of the Key itself, the machine gears softly clicking.

"Wouldn't you like to understand, Astral~?" A velvet yet ear-aching voice made the astral creature spin around, eyes widening. Before him, grinning like the snake he was, was a certain number card that shared his own form. True, they looked alike aside from the other's skin color, but their intentions were entirely different. Putting it on a scale was like putting paper on one side and then a rock on the other.

"...Number 96... What do you want?" His eyes narrowed as the darker one merely shrugged. "Oh, no real reason," he trailed, but Astral shuddered as he noticed the gaze of the other never left him. Not for even a single heartbeat. Black Mist knew he wasn't going to get out of this one. Not with the way Astral was looking at him. Such sharp eyes! They could cut right through him, but, ah! he knew the little being was incapable of even putting a knife to his neck! Therefore, he knew he couldn't drop dead just from the intense gaze of the messenger.

With a soft cackle of amusement, the Number disappeared for a moment, causing Astral's heart to skip. "Black Mist!" Astral pinched his lips together, spinning about to make sure the other hadn't decided to pop up behind him like a jack-in-the-box.

"Oh come now, don't get so frightened just because you can't see me, dear Astral. Look at you~, looking around for me like a little kitten, ufufu~." A pair of cold hands settled on the bare shoulders of the transparent being who quickly darted away. Twisting around, Astral could already see that the other was having way too much fun with this already, while he wanted to get out of here.

"Tell you what, Astral~, let's have a game!" Astral paused, hearing his words and feeling uneasy about them. A game? As if reading his thoughts, the Number chuckled. "Yes~, a game! A game of cat and mouse." He pointed at the floating being, a massive smirk painting itself across his black lips. "And you get to become the little mouse! But to this game, there are rules instead of the meager deal of hide and seek~."

"These rules had better not be your own-"

"Of course they are, Astral!" Said male narrowed those two-toned eyes again in sheer irritation, causing Black Mist to only give a smile and a snicker. "Don't give me such a look~. If you want to get out and see your precious Yuma, you'll obey my rules." Oh, there was that look. That beautiful flash of realization that crossed the entity's usually stern and crisp posture. If there was something the male had noticed, it was that the blue being could easily be broken with just the right words.

"The rules are simple," the Number began, holding up a single finger. "Don't run off towards Yuma. There you go. Right there." Was it really that easy? This had Astral rather uneasy but it didn't show. No, he wasn't going to please the other with uneasy motions. Soon enough, he slowly nodded and he vaguely shuddered as the other let out a loud, almost melodic cackle. "Perfect!"

Astral felt his entire body tense up as the other lowered himself down a bit, as if ready to lunge. The pose of the predator had his shoulder tense up and he knew that if he didn't move now, he wouldn't have a happy ending. Without wasting another precious second, he turned on his heel and immediately dove off to the side. He knew the other was giving him a small head start to probably hide or just run. But he was never told of what would happen...if he was caught.

All there was to hide in was the many pockets of the Emperor's Key and he soon dived downward, wedging himself into one the more tighter spaces. Even though he was rather transparent, in here, it didn't matter except his flight ability. And even through this, he could feel the cold kiss of the metal. "Ready or not, here I come!" Astral felt his breath hitch in his throat and he let his eyes close for a moment.

'He can't find me this quickly... And for now, I have to think of what he wants.' Ah, but what did the other want from him? Just the thrill that they were going through this again? Or maybe something was at a greater stake. He glanced skyward at towards the entranceway of the Key itself, knowing Yuma was full-well asleep on his hammock and sleeping freely.

Astral looked down, silver and golden orbs watching his feet with a thoughtful gaze. What was he going to do? He tensed suddenly and shifted away from the narrow entrance way, hearing that taunting voice practically rake over his body. "Oh, Astral~. Where are you? Surely you can't be too far from me!" The sing-song, happy tune in his throat made this game all the more unbearable. Black Mist knew he was taunting the other. But he had to move! Astral sucked in a breath and darted out of his hiding hole, spiraling downward.

"There you are!" Astral looked over his shoulder and gritted his teeth, seeing the sadistic smile practically stretching over half of the other's face. This wasn't good! If he had already found him, this meant only one thing. He had to avoid him as much as possible and if he failed...well, he feared at what the answer might be.

A black appendage shot past him and the male flinched away, immediately moving to barely slip past the operating gears to lose the other. "You can't run from me forever, Astral! You can go in as many little mouse holes you want, but no matter where you turn, I'll be waiting!" Those words sunk deep into the astral beings chest, resonating out into every crevice of his being as he dove down again and then fit himself into another tight spot. And boy was it cramped.

Astral had wiggled himself into it so quickly he wondered how he actually managed to find a way in but he was comfortable, surrounded... Even if the other was to find him, it would be hard spotting him through the gears unless he landed directly in front of him.

Stopping his own breathing, the male waited and thought out as to what the other could do and what he would at this point. Yet, he couldn't think straight! Ringing throughout his body was that twisted laugh that had seeped its way into his entire system. Those dark eyes and that crooked, velvet smirk had every part of his chest aching in torment. He knew he had to be away from the other, and for a long time at that. But with him being inside the Emperor's Key with Astral only made things worse and worse.

It felt like an hour before he was able to breathe calmly, a hand slowly settling on the edge as he poked his head out. Pale sand dunes stretched out beneath the air ship, leaving not a single shadow illuminated in the distance. The bright green neon highlights of the ship were practically a safe haven it looked, free of shadows. But yet...something stirred in his gut as he pulled himself out.

"Boo!" Astral spun around with a gasp, eyes widening before he attempted to take off into the air. But it seemed that his attacker had planned that already as a familiar appendage wrapped around his waist and ankle. "Ah-ah-ah~. I don't think you'll be pulling that little trick on me this time, Astral~."

Astral gritted his teeth and immediately pulled, inwardly panicking at the amount that continued to crawl up his legs and then quickly proceed to wrap around his entire form. "Let...Let go!" Each tendril merely squeezed tighter, causing his struggles to become more and more useless. The Number smirked and moved up to where the two were eye-to-eye, a hand making its way to slowly tip Astral's face up.

"Ufufu~, let go? No, there's no way I'm going to let you go, Astral. Not like last time." The being gritted his teeth, feeling pressure continue to screw with his breathing. But it wasn't just from the appendages that currently wrapped around him. It was from the way the other was looking at him, and how he was much too close for Astral to be pleased.

"...You've caught me. What do you intend to do now with me?" Astral could have sworn that his words were heavier than usual, as if asking how the lion was going to eat the defenseless lamb. He flinched away and turned his head away from the other, not liking the sudden movements the other was pulling. The soft nibble on his ear made him shudder and he felt a shock heat up that side of his exposed neck and jawline.

"Do with you? Why, I intend to have you powerless and begging for mercy~." The hand on Astral's chin tightened firmly before moving to make their eyes meet again. And he wasn't letting go of the other, no matter how much he struggled. What really worried Astral the most was the calm gaze he was receiving from the other but his thoughts were moved as he no longer thought about anything.

A pair of soft lips settled on his own, causing his heart twist in his chest as those fluorescent orbs widen. Moving his lips to speak only resulted in a blissful feeling to spread throughtout his mouth, his words muffled. The accidental action spurred on a smirk from the Number who pinned the other to the nearest wall of the Emperor's Key, his lips becoming more forceful on Astral's. Through this, the astral being felt more and more cornered but he gradually began to melt, his eyes closing as the male's hand settled on the back of his neck, pushing them ever closer to where their lips would surely be bruised later.

It no longer mattered if Astral didn't understand these feelings. All he knew was that they were entirely blissful, something he craved more and more to where it felt...wrong. But Black Mist wasn't backing down. No, things were only getting started here as he parted Astral's lips with his tongue. The other squirmed and fidgeted beneath the black tendrils the Number controlled, not used to such a feeling that was consuming him. His gut told him to pull away, to struggle but there was no way-

As if answering his thoughts, the other's lips and tongue left his mouth and he found himself able to breathe, his eyes snapping open. Black and gold orbs met his own, amused and somewhat satisfied, but as sadistic as ever.

"Heh, look at that. It seems that the cornered mouse has given into the cat. Now...do you know what happens to such a poor, fragile mouse?" A thumb cascaded over Astral's top lip to his lower one, causing the male to shudder before he tried to answer. That simple movement made the Number lean closer, momentarily capturing the other's lips again in a heated embrace to muffle all words that tried to come out. "Ufufu~. No, no. Don't answer. Because I will for you."

Astral attempted to lean away from the darker being, turning his head away again to try and avoid his lips that seemed to leave him dazed. He jerked, feeling his hot breath fan out over his neck and along the shell of his ear. "We toy with them for a little while until they grow tired. Chase them until they have no hope left. And then~..." A sharp bite was applied to Astral's ear, forcing a gasp past his lips as he flinched away, the next words forming a cold coil in his stomach.

"We. Eat. Them~. Now all you have to tell me, is how you want to be devoured, Astral..."

(This was way too much fun to write. Also gets this outta my system. a3a; )