I thought I'd give something new a try. Let me know how you like it.
Dawn
By Neko-chan the Mewse
7/22/10
It was raining so heavily that the streets were clear of people and shops closed up for the day. This was good for him—it made him harder to track after all. But he was soaked in water, mud, and who-knows-what else and wished he could be one of those holed up in his house. Unfortunately, he had a job to do and it was going to get done if he had to kill himself.
Hopefully it wouldn't come to that.
One hand slipped under his cloak—which was doing absolutely nothing to stop the downpour from drenching him—and gently touched a package wrapped in oiled paper. A quick glance assured him that the precious documents were still safe and dry. Green eyes scanned the street fervently. Even though he came here often, the fact that it was difficult for him to see farther than five feet made the normally familiar surroundings foreign. Movement from the corner of his eye caught his attention and he smiled thankfully when he saw his destination.
"Luke, over here!" A busty sandy-haired teen called. Luke could barely hear her but understood the gist of what she was saying. It was a relief when he stepped out of the rain and onto her porch. "You're late; we were getting worried. Jade was actually watching for you from the windows."
"Sorry, Tear," Luke muttered semi-apologetically as Tear threw a towel on his head and tried to dry his long red locks. "It was hard sneaking out and then the rain made life difficult."
Tear sighed. "It's alright. Come on, you left some clothes behind last time you were here; you can change into those. I don't care about the report right now," she snapped when Luke opened his mouth to protest. "Go get changed."
Luke held his hands up in surrender and trudged into the house, removing his muddy boots and dumping his cloak on the floor. The clothes underneath were wet, but not as soaked and he made it up the stairs with minimal mess.
Tear sighed, something she had been doing a lot of since Luke entered her life, and began to neaten up after him. A towel went under the cloak after she hung it up and another went under the boots. With calm efficiency she took another towel and wiped up any drops of water Luke had left on the floor.
"So, I'm guessing that Luke's here,"
Tear jumped and dropped the towel in fright, turning and glaring at the entrance to the kitchen. "Anise, please try not to sneak up on me."
The girl in pink stuck her tongue out. "It's not like I was trying to sneak up on you. You just didn't notice me."
"Do you think you could make something for Luke to eat? He deserves it after trudging through that weather and if you don't I know Natalia will try to cook."
Anise did a full body shudder at the thought of Natalia cooking. "I'm going, I'm going, yeesh." She turned to walk into the kitchen and suddenly realized that she was at a height disadvantage if she wanted to get anything from the top shelves. She almost turned back to ask Tear for help but recalled the teen was trying to clean up the entrance hall. She couldn't ask Guy and Natalia was out of the question… With a wicked grin, Anise made her way to the small living room. "Oh, Jaaaade,"
Said person buried himself in his book, pretending he hadn't heard his name. He didn't really feel like moving, you see, so he would feign ignorance and old age and stay where he was.
Anise tumbled over to where her friend was seated on the couch and happily intruded on his personal space. Once she had successfully squirmed her way onto his lap and between him and his book she grinned at him.
Jade sighed, realizing that he wasn't going to be able to ignore her. "Yes, Anise? What is it?"
"I can't reach the top shelves," Anise chirped.
Jade raised an eyebrow. "While I'm certain that would be deep and meaningful to some other people that meant nothing to me."
"Come help me cook," she said. When she saw the unhappy look on Jade's face, she added, "Please? I'll give you an extra portion tonight."
Jade sighed. "But my bones ache," He made the mistake of glancing down into big, watery brown eyes. "Alright and you can forget about the extra portion. That's not healthy."
"Okay," Anise said. Since she showed no signs of moving, Jade shifted her weight and got out of the chair, easily carrying her as well despite his complaint of aching bones.
Across the room, Guy grinned at Jade teasingly and mouthed, 'Whipped,'
"Here you go, Guy," Jade replied malevolently, placing Anise in Guy's lap.
The resulting scream could be heard across the house and on the next floor. Luke sighed, readjusting his collar before stepping outside the room. "Let me guess," Luke smirked at Tear, who had been patiently waiting for him to vacate the room before she went in and cleaned the watery mess, "Guy said something stupid and Jade used Anise as his revenge."
"Well, of course," Tear replied. "Hopefully they'll have at least started to cook something by the time you get down there. I'll be down in just a moment."
Luke watched her begin to mop up the mess he had made before kneeling down to help her. "I don't even know why you try anymore," Luke joked. Tear's fanatical cleanliness of the house surprised most people and the extent to which she cleaned still shocked some of her closer friends.
Silently, they dried the floor side by side and Tear moved the wet clothes to the adjoining bathroom, dumping them in the tub. When she came back, Luke had finished and was standing up. "This house is all I have left," she said softly.
Luke's eyes went soft, but he didn't want her to think he pitied her so he turned away. "We should head downstairs and make sure the others are alright." He said lightly. He was halted by Tear's arms coming around his waist. "Tear…?" he asked, turning his head so he could just see the top of hers over his shoulder.
"Thank you," she muttered into his shirt before releasing him and surreptitiously wiping her face. Luke did the courteous thing and pretended not to notice. Tear took a deep breath and let it out. "Alright, let's go," she said.
The kitchen was a mini war zone by the time they got downstairs. Guy had informed Natalia that Anise was cooking; a sort of petty revenge Tear thought, and the princess had taken it upon herself to go help. Luckily, Jade had decided that Anise was cooking and that was that. No one was going to argue with him. Jade's retaliation might level the house. Sometimes he forgot his own strength.
"I made stew!" Anise chirped happily when she caught sight of Luke. Luke smiled then grimaced. Anise only ever made stew when she couldn't find ingredients for anything else which meant it was time to go shopping which would not be fun in this weather. Anise had once told Luke that stew was pretty much what she made to get rid of any leftover food before it went bad. That and pie but pie was a dessert, not a meal.
Everyone else also seemed to understand what Anise making stew meant and there was a collective sigh before Anise dished out the food. As they crowded around the table—it was a tight fit but they'd done it countless times—Guy wondered aloud who would be doing the shopping. That sparked a new argument, everyone wanting to stay inside and out of the rain. "I'll do the shopping," Tear finally volunteered, "On the condition that someone else comes and gives me a hand." All eyes turned to Luke who had an obligation to keep Tear safe.
Luke sighed. He'd just gotten dry too. "Yeah, I'll go."
Tear turned her best glare on him. "You just got back from your mission. You're staying home and resting."
"I'll be fine," Luke replied flippantly. "Besides, there's been an increased presence of vampires around here and there's no way I'll let you out of my sight."
Jade's eyes sharpened behind his glasses. "More vampires? Did they give you any trouble?"
"Nah, Asch ran interference and they're now convinced we're somewhere north." Luke said. He looked at Tear with serious eyes. "We shouldn't stay here much longer."
"I know," Tear looked down at her mostly empty bowl of stew. It was just nice to have a stable house with a routine.
"It doesn't mean we can't come back," Natalia comforted her. "We just have to be around less often."
"If they're catching on it'd be a smart idea to move," Guy said with a thoughtful look on his face. "What about Flanoir? I hear it's nice this time of year."
"I just told you that Asch told them we're up north," Luke hissed. "We're going south."
"I disagree," Jade cut in smoothly. Luke almost rolled his eyes—every time the words 'I disagree' left Jade's mouth it was followed by an explanation that usually tore Luke's reasoning to shreds. "If they're looking for us up north, they'll immediately look south once they fail to find us. If we can slip through their radar, we can take refuge up north for a longer amount of time."
"You just wanna visit your hometown," Anise pouted and jabbed his arm with a spoon. Jade smiled that disturbing smile that promised pain and didn't confirm or deny Anise's theory. So far, Anise was the only one that had seen that smile directed at her and have nothing happen.
"I have been protecting Flanoir for a good portion of my life," Jade agreed.
"More like all of it," Guy muttered under his breath. Jade raised an eyebrow at him and Guy paled a few shades. "Eh, Flanoir is good. Flanoir is very good…"
"So, should we pair off or go all together?" Luke wondered.
"We'll have to go in small groups if we want to slip past the Order," Tear reasoned. "Let's do our usual pairs."
"Alright!" Anise cheered excitedly, latching onto Jade's arm. "It'll be just like old times, Colonel!"
"We'll leave first then," Jade said. "Guy and Natalia can leave a few days after that and Luke and Tear will close up the house and leave last."
"It's a good plan," Natalia said amicably. "We could meet in Flanoir in, say, three weeks?"
"Three weeks is acceptable," Jade agreed. "We can use my house."
"Um, hello? We've never seen your house," Luke deadpanned. Jade's smile grew wider.
"You'll know it when you see it," Jade chuckled. Everyone save Anise paled and Luke began to imagine what exactly Jade's house would look like. It's been said that the state of one's house reflected the state of their mind. Would Jade's house look like a scrambled mess or neat and tidy? Would there be traps hidden in random places to throw off wary guests? What if it wasn't a house at all? What if—
"Okaaay," Anise cut into their thoughts. She leaned forward and gave them a shark's grin. "Really, his house isn't that bad. It is unique though."
"Don't spoil the surprise," Jade told Anise, picking up her bowl and his to place in the sink. "Let's go pack. I'd like to leave tomorrow morning."
"So soon?" Tear asked despairingly.
Guy smiled at her comfortingly and said, "The sooner we leave, the less time they have to hunt us out. Sorry, Tear, but it'll be better if we leave quickly."
Tear said nothing and focused on her empty bowl. She snapped out of her concentration when Luke gently touched her shoulder. "C'mon, let's do the dishes," he suggested. Tear blinked and glanced about. She hadn't even noticed everyone else leaving the table. She gathered the remaining dishes on the table and ferried them over to the sink, dumping them in and turning on the water. "I'll wash if you dry," Luke offered and she wordlessly let him. Halfway through the pile, Luke shut the water off and turned to look at her. She still hadn't said a word and hadn't responded to any of his attempts to talk. "Tear, I know how you feel about leaving—"
"You know how I feel?" Tear snapped, cutting him off. "You know how I feel? What would you know about having your whole life ripped apart, only having one thing left, and being asked to leave it behind as well? My brother is trying to destroy this world and we're trying to stop him! When have you ever had to deal with Asch doing something like that, you—"
"I know plenty!" Luke snarled back. "I was the backup child in my family! I grew up knowing that if there was ever any risk of Asch being killed, I would be the one attending that function! I grew up thinking I was worthless and I never left the house! That home was all I ever knew of the world and Asch burned it down. I do know how you feel, Tear." Luke sighed and with it went all his anger. "I was angry at Asch for a long time, but I'm glad he burned it now. You'll see, Tear, this is for the best. At least you can come back from time to time."
Tear blinked at the sudden appearance and disappearance of his anger before his words started sinking in. "Luke, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that…"
"It's fine, just," Luke glanced at her shyly before turning the water back on and continuing on the dishes, "Just, don't assume you're alone."
Tear stared at his blush, a sure sign of his embarrassment, and smiled before going back to drying dishes with a lighter heart.
"How is it we managed to get lost?"
"I have no freaking clue. Leave me alone," Luke sulked. Sure, he was directionally challenged. But that was because he hadn't had much experience with navigation! It wasn't like he purposely got them lost…
Tear sighed at the pitiful sulking expression on her companion's face and took the map. "We're not lost, Luke, we're just a little off track. Next time, let's stick to the roads instead of trying to invent shortcuts." Luke's response to that was to sigh and turn his back on her. Tear narrowed her eyes and hit him with the rolled up map. "Stop acting like a child and let's get going."
Their little detour cost them a few extra days and they were well into the second week by the time they managed to get to Flanoir. "You okay?" Luke asked quietly, watching her shiver in the cold.
"I'm fine. I'm just not used to this weather." Her hometown of Yulia City was much warmer and almost never experienced snow. She blinked when she felt something drape over her head and glanced over to find Luke missing his trademark cloak leaving him in a short tank top. "I can't take this, aren't you cold?"
"I can barely feel it," Luke waved her off. "I'm not as fragile as you."
"True," Tear conceded. "I'll feed you when we get to Jade's house."
Like any typical male, Luke immediately perked up at the thought of food. "Really? Awesome! I was starting to get hungry." And when Luke got hungry, he was volatile. Tear laughed a little nervously and ushered him forward. "I wonder what Jade's house looks like," Luke pondered.
"It probably looks like that," Tear pointed out a large, rather eccentric looking mansion. It only took them a second or two to decide that it probably was Jade's house. The doll (that looked suspiciously like Tokunaga) hanging off the roof was a definite give away.
"C'mon," Luke stamped a foot against the ground and glanced about nervously. "It's getting close to feeding time." Tear nodded in agreement and huddled closer to Luke. It was never a good idea to be out on the streets at sunset. For some odd reason, that was the time vampires were hungriest.
Tear followed Luke closely as he tread a path through the snow. She tensed when she heard a hiss from a nearby alley. "Luke, I think I—"
"Shh!" He hushed her with a finger to her lips and she immediately quieted, trusting his expertise in such situations. His emerald eyes shifted back and forth, taking in the layout of the street. "Shit," Luke hissed and then Tear found herself face first in the snow on the ground. When she looked up she found Luke swinging his blade in what seemed to be an erratic manner. However wild and inaccurate it might have seemed, a closer look revealed that every swipe drove a vampire back. He gave her a meaningful look and she interpreted it accurately, pushing herself up to run.
Her right ankle buckled underneath her and she realized that she must have landed on it incorrectly. "Luke, I can't run," she whispered. Luke took two steps back towards her and in a blindingly fast move quickly cleared a path between the vampires. It took her a moment to realize that Luke had scooped her up and hauled her over his shoulder like a bag of potatoes. "Put me down!" she demanded instinctively as Luke started running at a pace she could never have hoped to keep up with.
"Trust me, you don't want me to do that," Luke said, his voice steady despite how fast he was running. Tear looked up and caught a glimpse of angry glares and bared fangs.
"Yeah, you can keep running," she agreed, knowing Luke would keep her safe. He'd had plenty of experience outrunning vampires and she was sure he could do it even while carrying her. He'd told her once that she was really, really light. Surely she wouldn't weigh him down. The thought had barely crossed her mind when she found herself flying through the air again. She landed in a snow drift, luckily, and angrily yanked herself to a sitting position. "Could you try not to drop me?" she demanded.
"Stop whining," Luke scowled back as he unsheathed a dagger. "You're the one they're after."
"What are you—?" she cut off with a yelp when he slashed his arm and spilled as much of his blood as he could on her.
"I'm trying to hide your scent," Luke explained as he reached out to messily smear his blood on her. "You can make it up to me later," he added with a cheeky grin. "Now get going! I'll distract them!"
Tear watched with wide eyes as he turned and ran back in the direction they had come from. She stumbled to her feet and turned to hobble on to Jade's mansion. The sooner she got there, the sooner she could send Jade out to help Luke. She winced with every painful step, but luckily it seemed like nothing was broken—a sprain at the worst. She could fix it up in no time if she was in a safer location.
She made it halfway up the staircase leading to the front door before she collapsed. It took all her balancing skills to keep from falling backwards. "Damn it," she cursed, pounding her fist against the stone steps.
"Tear?" Natalia's very welcome voice drifted down towards her. "Tear! What happened?" The princess asked as she hurried down the stairs to examine her.
"Vampires," Tear scowled as she brushed Natalia's hand off her head. "I'm fine, it's all Luke's. My ankle is what's hurt. But Luke is still out there!"
"I'll take care of it," Jade smiled at her, the street lights reflecting off his glasses and hiding his eyes. He continued down the steps at a serene pace and the girls watched him with wary eyes.
Jade had simply shown up with Anise one day and the small girl had vouched for him. No one other than Anise really knew what he was capable of. "I hope they'll be okay," Natalia whispered as she helped Tear to her feet.
"I'm sure they'll be fine," Tear reassured her. "Let's get into the house and let Anise know where Jade went." There was a large explosion from behind them and they whirled around to stare at the fire with large eyes.
"I think Anise knows where Jade went," Natalia said slowly.
"Don't just stand there, you two! Get inside!" Anise yelled from the door.
"Sometimes I wonder about you," Jade said as they began walking back towards his house. "Your lack of common sense astounds me."
Luke hissed as he applied pressure to the cut on his arm. "Look, I was trying to get her out in one piece. Don't patronize me."
"Respect your elders," Jade replied calmly. "Besides, you could have gotten her out without bleeding everywhere. It's evidence that you were here and even if we remove the blood, the scent will linger for days. Any vampire could tell that you were here recently."
"And that brings me to my next point. Do the girls even know what you are?" Luke asked with a scowl. "I know Anise does, but that's because she's your donor. Does Tear and Natalia know?"
Jade bared his fangs, eyes lit up with unholy glee. "Well, if they don't, they're not going to find out anytime soon. You haven't told them yet, so I doubt you'd do so now."
"Tch, you should be upfront with what you are," Luke glared at Jade's back. Jade glanced over his shoulder and raised an eyebrow.
"That's a grand statement coming from you." It was apparent that Jade had nothing more to say on the matter and Luke was content to let the silence be. It lasted all the way up to the point where they walked into their new base.
"Luke!" Tear exclaimed from the armchair she was sitting in. Natalia pushed her back down into the chair and Luke hurried over to her so that she wouldn't try and force herself up. "You're alright!"
"I told you—you're the one they were after. I wouldn't make a very good meal," Luke grinned.
"Let's go get you fed," Tear offered. "You're probably hungry after loosing all that blood."
Luke's eyes widened. "But you're injured," he protested.
"I promised to feed you if you worked on becoming a better person," Tear refuted. "And since you are becoming a better person, I'm going to feed you. Don't argue with me. I'm injured, not dying."
Luke shot Natalia a pleading glance but the princess only giggled and watched as Tear tried leading him up the stairs. Jade was no help either, smiling at him maliciously. "Okay," Luke finally relented and scooped Tear off the ground. "Just stop putting pressure on your foot!" He carried her up the stairs and into the room she pointed to, putting her down on the bed inside.
"You can have as much as you like," Tear told him, pulling her collar down. "Consider it a thank you."
Luke leaned in hungrily, eyes glinting gold. "That's a dangerous offer," he purred. "What if I wanted it all?"
"But you don't," Tear pointed out.
"You're rather fun to keep around," Luke smiled and brushed her hair off her neck before leaning in to bite.