Impulse

Chapter Twenty- Two

Harry'schest rumbles as he either hates it or is passionately fond of the deed.He's in the adjacent bathroom when Louis starts to freak out. Upon seeing the tub, he wiggles andgets himself out of Harry's arms. He won't go in that tub ever. Harry tries to grab him butLouis' graceful enough to dodge any attempts at catching him.

 "Petal!" Harry races after Louis' retreating form like he's chasing his heart with ten seconds tocapture it.

 For someone of Louis' build, the boy is fast and easily evasive. He's a clever little minx, avoidingHarry at every chance. Louis reaches the top of the stairs and before his first step downward Harryencircles his waist, heaving him up off the ground. Louis doesn't like that he's been caught andpushes down on Harry's forearms, scratching fruitlessly and his eyes tearing up. 

"What was that, petal?" Harry's emeralds are blown wide with his recent sprinting.He places Louis firmly on the ground but that's not near as enough as what's needed for the boy tostop resisting him. 

Harry has had enough of Louis by this point and shoves him against the railingpost, crowding the boy in with both arms."Be still, petal." His fist slams into the wooden furnishing. "Stop trying to run away. Damn it,Louis!" 

Louis immediately stops at the tone of Harry's frightening voice. He whimpers when he meets theman's eye and they're filled with vile anger, boiling rapidly to bring him this close to physicalviolence. To apologise, Louis slips his arms around Harry again and lays his head over his beatingheart.

 "What the Hell is wrong with you? Why did you run?" Harry won't have it

.He seizes Louis by his arms and yanks him backward where the boy can look him in the eye and seehow conflicted he's become. It's all this boy's fault that Harry couldn't think straightanymore, or Edward either

."Sorry, Daddy." Such a sweet voice, such kindness that it thaws a little of Harry's fury.

 "Answer the question, Louis." Harry's neck vein pulsates in rhythm with his anger. "Now!" 

"D-Don't yell." Louis isn't looking at him, staring at his naked legs like they're new to him.

 "Louis!"

 Louis breaks free and shouts back. "Don't yell!" 

He hates screaming so much and Harry won't listen to him. He's scared and how can he tell anyonethat when they're shouting? Louis doesn't let Harry hold any part of him when he takes off down theopposite end of the hallway, running away from everything and everyone.

 "Fuck." Harry painfully pulls his hair back. "He's not supposed to go in there."

 Harry chases after him because he's guilty but too loyal a man to let his own crime go either. Heheads on down the path Louis took, following the heavy breathing as it becomes darker likedisappearing down the throat of a giant monster.

 Louis' not himself in his subspace. He can't defendhimself or take care of himself. Harry has to find him.But the further in he goes, the more he thinks that Louis just vanished.This part of the house is not renovated like every other wing. The wallpaper is still as it was ageneration or two ago when it was first built. There was no electricity in this wing and only lampswent up in the afternoon just like the general public did in the seventeenth century.Harry has to brush back more of his hair with his fingers, too familiar with this part of the house toneed light. Louis isn't though and he needs to make sure the boy isn't fallen over somewhere. 

"Lou?" He calls out to the darkness on either side of him, unafraid of anything that could be hidingin its bowels. "Petal? Come out, darlin'." 

He doesn't get a response and keeps walking, now extracting his phone to use the flashlight for thefirst time. A door creaks somewhere further inward and he follows the sound.