Part: 1 of 7 Manipulations of the Heart T. Rose Disclaimers in Prologue ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Fox whimpered softly as he shifted onto his side while he tried to sleep. Images swirled in his head. He remembered another day when Grysher had shown him love. There had been no hitting, no insults or angry accusations... just tenderness and pleasure. But it also had been the day of his first kill. Surprisingly this hadn't been as horrible as he had feared. The regrets came later. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "We're going to a dinner party this evening. There will be many prominent people there." Grysher handed Fox the suit he would wear that evening. Suspecting there was more the Professor wished to say, Fox remained silent as he took the suit. "There will also be a man there from my military days. He's eager to meet you." Fox was surprised. "He is? Why?" He continued to dress, pulling on the slacks. "I told him about your intelligence and your ability to defend yourself." Fox was distressed as he realized what this really meant. "You told him I could kill?" "I'm so proud of you, love. You've mastered so many skills so quickly. You're no longer the weak and naive boy I was attracted to in the beginning, but now a strong, intelligent man I can be proud to love." The pride Fox heard in the Professor's voice made his heart flutter. All doubts were gone when the Professor spoke like that. "Thank-you, Professor." Grysher smiled in acknowledgement as he moved behind Fox to knot the black tie around his neck. "Your father works for the government as a scientist, doesn't he?" They were facing the mirror, and Fox felt safe and secure with Grysher's arms holding him like this. He hardly heard the question as he nodded his affirmation. He turned his head to rest his cheek against Grysher's. Grysher petted his hair tenderly, then cleared his throat. "My friend has heard of him. Come along, we don't want to be late." He pulled away. As they rode to the party, the Professor spoke urgently to Fox. "Mr. Eastleigh is an important friend. But, he is also a very dangerous man. I want you to promise me you won't shame me." "I'll try not to, sir." The Professor made sure what he was saying was clear. "If he wants you to kill someone, you don't ask questions, or argue with him. You just obey him." "You know I can't do that." Fox knew he risked the man's anger, but was unable to agree to such a thing. The Professor didn't get angry, instead he got very serious. "If you will not obey him, he could decide to have us both killed." This distressed Fox. "Why would he do that?" "Because he has to trust us. If he thinks you're unreliable, or that I'm dishonest, he will dispose of us. I told you there was a reason I was teaching you what I did. This is the reason. If we don't do what Mr. Eastleigh wants, he could ruin me, or kill me. Do you want that to happen?" Fox shook his head. "Of course not. But..." He was about to argue when Grysher interrupted him. "I know you're a good man. I don't want you to become a murderer, but if you disobey this man, you forfeit my life. We all make mistakes, my love. You can forgive me mine, can't you?" He presented the question as a challenge. Fox recalled the day before, when he'd forgotten to lock up a few ancient texts and Grysher had been furious. He'd eventually forgiven him, and just told him not to forget next time. Surprising, since the manuscripts were worth thousands of dollars each. Fox unhappily nodded at the Professor. "Yes, of course." The Professor hugged him. "I love you, Fox." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Mr. Eastleigh, this is Fox Mulder. Fox, this is Mr. Eastleigh." Mr. Eastleigh seemed to stare straight into Fox's soul. His ice blue eyes were sharp but calm. He was impeccably groomed and appeared to be in his early fifties. "So, you're William Mulder's son." Mr. Eastleigh's British voice was emotionless and soft. Fox nodded, keeping his expression neutral. The Professor wanted him to be able to conceal his true thoughts behind a mask. He thought Fox was too expressive. So, he had taught Fox the right expressions for every occasion, the proper words for any conversation, and had impressed upon him the importance of never revealing his true feelings. Fox realized he was now in a situation where it would be important to demonstrate what he had learned. "I'd like to speak with you, Mr. Mulder--- alone." Mr. Eastleigh looked at Grysher imperiously. Grysher nodded and backed off immediately. Fox was a little unsettled by his companion's easy acquiescence, but he followed Mr. Eastleigh without question. "Mr. Grysher tells me you're a very intelligent young man." Fox shrugged, saying nothing. Mr. Eastleigh changed tactics. "You are very fond of Mr. Grysher, are you not?" "Yes sir." "What will you do to protect him?" "Anything necessary." "That's fortunate for him. He's going to be shot tonight, as he's leaving the building, if you don't prevent it." He watched Fox carefully. "Why do you tell me this?" Fox kept his expression impassive. "I have no reason to want him dead." Mr. Eastleigh nodded absently at a guest. "Why don't you stop it then?" "Mr. Mulder, I have no reason to care if he lives, either." Fox knew that this was it, the moment of which the Professor had warned him. He tried to sound as casual as possible, while his heart was stuck in his throat. "What can I do to prevent it?" "I will introduce you to the man. As for what you can do-- I believe you know that as well as I do. Come along." Not waiting to see if Fox obeyed, he changed direction and led Fox further into the crowd. Fox swallowed and as he caught up to Mr. Eastleigh, he considered the least noticeable and quickest acting pressure point methods he knew. They stopped in front of a handsome young man in his early twenties, with light blonde hair, blue eyes and a fancy tux. "Mr. Josan, this is Mr. Grysher's companion this evening. Fox Mulder. Mr. Mulder, this is Frank Josan. My companion." He watched as they shook hands. "You two may learn you have a lot in common." Mr. Josan smirked. "You think so? Hey Fox, are you any more comfortable in this place than I am? There's a card game going on in one of the back rooms, would you like to go hide with me?" "No, I don't think so. Maybe next time." Fox then addressed Mr. Eastleigh. "I'd better go find the professor." "Nice to have met you Fox." Mr. Josan smiled. As he was walking away, Fox heard the man snicker before suddenly gasping for breath. He returned to the Professor, his insides quaking as he thought of the deadly handshake he'd bestowed upon Josan. The Professor patted his shoulder kindly with an understanding smile on his face. An hour later, Mr. Eastleigh approached them while Frank Josan was carried out of the house in a body bag. "You did well, Fox." Mr. Eastleigh stared straight into Fox's eyes, gauging his reaction. Fox lowered his eyes and turned away. He noticed the gentleman nod at the Professor before walking off. Grysher praised Fox as they rode home in the cab. "I'm so proud of you, Fox. Mr. Eastleigh tells me you saved my life. I'm very grateful to you." Fox snuggled into the older man's embrace, trying to ignore the guilt threatening to suffocate him. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Fox shifted on the cot, shivering while he remembered his actions after Mr. Josan's death. It bothered him to kill. But he did it for the Professor's safety-- and his own. Mr. Eastleigh had required his 'services' six times. He had to travel to France over a weekend once as Mr. Eastleigh's 'companion', for a meeting with some of his cronies. He had been instructed to take care of one of the older men subtly, and without evidence of subterfuge, as he had done with Josan. Though he had hated what he was becoming, he had been grateful he was asked to use his skills with pressure points, rather than with weapons. It had occurred to him that he was no better than Mr. Josan. Mr. Eastleigh had said that evening that they might discover they had quite a bit in common. He hadn't thought so at the time, but as he had continued to carry out his 'assignments', he had realized at what Eastleigh had been hinting. It had shamed him to think of himself as a hired gun. He had mentioned it to the Professor once, but Grysher had made a production out of what could happen if Fox ever refused. Funny how in the beginning he had thought he was protecting the Professor-- while now it was more a manner of self-preservation, since he had learned that he was in more danger from Mr. Eastleigh than Grysher ever would be. Fox heard a soft noise and was off the cot immediately, groaning in pain when his stomach protested the quick motion. He slowly crept toward the cell door, knowing it would not be the Professor. The Professor never relented when he was punishing him. Candlelight seeped into his dark cell and he heard the housekeeper whispering. "Fox, it's Mrs. Keplar." Fox winced. If Grysher ever realized the kindly old woman was helping him while down here, she would be lucky if she were dismissed without references. His urging was gentle. "Go to bed, Mrs. Keplar." "I will, but not until you drink this tea. It'll help calm the pain in your tummy." She reached into the small partition in the locked door, holding out a mug of steaming tea. He took it gratefully, having previously experienced the effectiveness of her concoctions, and drank it slowly. "Thank-you, Mrs. Keplar." Once he'd finished the soothing tea, he handed her the mug and she bid him good-night. He heard her tching about the pair of them as she climbed the stairs. He vaguely wondered if Grysher even realized she knew about the dungeon. His affection for the sweet-hearted woman prevented him from asking. He moved slowly, leaning against the wall, until he found his cot. The room was again pitch black and he hated it. Some nights while being punished, he thought he could hear the screams of long dead prisoners that had been tortured within these confines. On the nights he was locked in this cell, falling asleep usually meant waking in a cold sweat, screaming for mercy after reliving the memories of the persecuted souls. The knowledge that Professor Grysher had once been a part of this world had frightened him, when he first found out; it still did. He lay down and remembered the evening he had found out about the Professor's immortality. About 4 months after his first 'assignment' with Eastleigh, Fox had met another man from Grysher's past. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Hello Edwin." The young man's voice was a challenge as he greeted the Professor and walked into his study. Mrs. Keplar followed him, wringing her hands in distress. "I'm sorry sir, I asked him to wait but he wouldn't." The Professor nodded at her. "It's all right, Keplar." She walked away muttering, and he waited until she was gone before he turned to greet the handsome young man. "Marcus. Would you like a brandy?" The Professor was already walking to the liquor cabinet as he made the offer. "Sounds good." Marcus made a mock bow, a lock of light brown hair falling over light blue eyes to give him a boyish look. "What's it been, Ed? Thirty years?" Marcus accepted the glass. His eyes slid over Fox with blatant interest. Grysher scowled at the other man's actions. "At least." Fox didn't understand how they possibly could have known each other for thirty years. Marcus didn't appear to be more then a few years older than he was. But his thoughts were interrupted with the realization that Marcus was using Grysher's first name. The Professor had never allowed Fox to know his full name, much less use it. He wondered who this man could be. "You had me arrested for murdering one of your 'boys'." Marcus turned to stare at Fox, considering a repetition of the offense. "I thought you were given life with no probation, in the United States." "I got out on good behavior. So I decided to come repay you for all your 'helpful' assistance during the trial." Marcus growled as his handsome young face twisted with anger and hate. Grysher glanced at Fox and tilted his head to the side. "Fox, go tell Mrs. Keplar not to make dinner tonight." Fox obeyed, though he was concerned for his lover's safety. Fox returned about 10 minutes later and Grysher talked to him privately in the next room. "Marcus and I are going out to the woods. He's challenged me to a duel. We'll fight to the death." Fox argued desperately. "But, that's foolish. You can't." "It's a matter of honor, Fox. It's what I do. I'll explain more to you this evening." "But what if he hurts you. He might defeat you. Let me fight for you, instead." "No, it's my responsibility. He challenged me. If you'd feel better about it, you could follow us. If you think I might lose, I want you to shoot him. All right?" Fox nodded determinedly. Grysher patted his back and went off to get his weapon. Fox took a deep breath and swallowed hard. He had never used a weapon on a real person before. Targets, they were easy, not humans. //Oh God, I can't do this. Please help me do this.// The times Mr. Eastleigh had required his abilities, he had always wanted the subtlety of pressure point contact. That had been difficult enough for Fox. Now he would be shooting someone. //Come on, Fox, it's no different than anything else you've ever done. If you don't, the Professor could die.// Fox stealthily followed them into the woods behind the Professor's castle. Grysher owned almost 200 acres of land just outside Oxford and almost a third of it was forest land. He hid behind a tree and watched the fight. Marcus was obviously a better swordsman than Grysher. He toyed with the older man as he nicked him on the arm and taunted him with promises of what he would do when Grysher was dead. "Don't worry about that pretty little boy in the castle, Eddie. I'll take really good care of him." He sliced open the Professor's leg and easily dodged his attempts at retaliation with a laugh. Unable to watch the fight any more and sure the Professor couldn't possibly win, Fox shot the other man. Marcus turned around, clutching his shoulder, and spied Fox. "This is against the rules, Edwin." He snarled when Grysher shoved the blade into his stomach. "I follow no rules, Marcus. You know that." Grysher positioned himself to strike as Marcus fell to his knees, blood flowing freely from his gut. Fox watched in horror as the Professor stood over the kneeling man and sliced off his head, with one stroke. He stared in disbelief as the corpse fell, head rolling to the side. A feeling of unreality washed over him as he heard thunder. He hardly registered the screams of the Professor as he was pummeled with the lightening that seemed to shoot out of the stranger's headless corpse. The air crackled with electricity as he watched. He was still standing there in a daze when Grysher staggered over to him. "Thank-you, Fox. You did well." He led the shell-shocked young man out of the woods and back to the castle. Later, when Fox finally came back to reality, he left his room to find Grysher. "Back with the living?" Grysher sounded sarcastic, as he looked up from the book he'd been reading. Fox nodded, feeling suddenly ashamed. His questions were shoved to the back of his mind, not wanting to anger the man with his disillusionment. "Good. You can help me take care of the body." Grysher stood up and started to walk away. "Aren't you hurt? I saw him get a good swipe at your leg." Fox was surprised to realize the Professor wasn't limping. There was a bloody rip in Grysher's trousers, but when he parted the tear to look, he found no wound. "I heal quickly." "The lightening in the forest-- what was it? I saw it strike you. It hurt you, why didn't it kill you? Why did you have to cut off the man's..." he gagged as he said the word, "...head?" Finally Grysher came to a decision and nodded. "Fox, I'm immortal. Marcus was also immortal. That means we heal quickly, we don't age, and unless someone takes off our head, we don't permanently die. The lightening you saw was his Quickening. The Quickening is our life force. When we take someone's head, we receive their Quickening. We receive their memories and their knowledge." Fox had always been open to extreme possibilities. If Grysher said he was immortal, then Fox was willing to believe, especially after what he'd seen. Other things began to click and fit into place too. Things the Professor said and the way he seemed to talk about events as if he had lived through them. The importance placed on certain objects in the house. Comments he heard others make when they talked to the Professor. "How old are you?" Grysher smiled at him, pleased with his reaction. He didn't answer as he led Fox out to the woods to get rid of the body. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Fox shivered as he heard a rodent scurrying about beneath his cot. Since then, the Professor had faced only two other challenges, with Fox loyally waiting in the background to ensure that Grysher didn't die. It seemed that the only way to be safe and to keep the Professor safe was to kill anyone that stood in their way. Fox rarely questioned the necessity of his actions anymore and attempted to ignore the nagging doubts that lurked in his subconscious. He needed the Professor more than a conscience, didn't he? Fox finally fell into a fitful slumber, wondering why nothing seemed to make sense anymore. Chapter