Karin: Salutations!

Demyx: Goodbye!

Axel: No idiot! Salutations means hello!

Demyx: It does? Salutations then to the people!

Axel: How did a guy like you get into Organization XIII, I will never know

Disclaimer: Don't own the game. Heck, I never even dreamed I owned the game!

Title: Crimson Twilight

Rating: T to M

Pairings: Sora/Namine/Roxas, Tifa/Reno, Squall/Kairi/Cloud, Yuffie/Vincent, Axel/Larxene, Hayner/Olette, and others

Genres: Supernatural/Romance

Summary: AU. In the year of 1785, London, she was an ordinary mundane girl overcoming the grief of her parents' deaths. A ghost in the crowd, she was never noticed nor admired upon. However, one night at a party will change everything. One night at a party begins her spiral into a dark obsession between two seductive vampires out for her blood.


Crimson Twilight

Chapter One:

Mundane

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The year was 1785 in London, England with the weather being on the cloudy side. It was the rainy season in the capital of this proud nation year round and the sun barely shown at all.

The wooden wheels of the carriage beat against the cobble stones as it traveled through the town of London. The atmosphere was gloomy and desolate, yet people were not affected by the depressing environment.

A pair of dull sapphire eyes looked out upon the people in the street on their own business. No one paid her heed for she was just a silent observer. Her carriage was nothing extravagant, being gray and plain, but it did demonstrate her higher middle class status. Fair blonde hair laid three inches past her shoulder with her complexion almost as pale as a ghost.

Her clothes were nothing to be envy of either. She wore a Victorian style dress that hugged her upper body slimly with a dark brown corset hugging her torso under her bosom with a square neckline showing a modest amount of cleavage, the sleeves stopped below her elbows with no designs on them unlike you would see on many noble women. The dress flowed down to a little past her ankles, plain with no special designs or extravagant additions to the dress other than the normal design. The dress itself was a dreary color of greenish gray like the atmosphere in London. On her feet were simple black ballet shoes that women walked around in. On her hands were black fingerless gloves that stopped up to her wrists. The only thing that seemed to have life on the young woman was the silver ring she wore around her neck with a thin silver chain. The small jewel on the ring was a garnet.

Plain and frail—that's what everyone would describe her as. She wasn't excessively beautiful nor was she flirtatious at parties. In fact, she downright hated parties. She found them to be a mundane noisy bore. She only attended them to watch her younger cousin who was the complete opposite of herself—flirtatious, charming, and a rare beauty.

Watching; that seemed to be all she ever did in her seventeen years of life. She was the quiet observer, never once the instigator of actions. She was too responsible and anti-social to indulge herself into something such as flirting and including herself in a conversation that talked of pointless matters.

In all her seventeen years of life, the young woman could never recall herself as being a risk taker. Her life was just one mundane matter after another. Nothing interesting at all. Nothing like what happened in her novels she passed the time reading.

She was a very bookish person. Books seemed to be her only companion for the last three months since her parents had passed on—god bless their souls—and for the first time in months, she would be in the presence of human life again.

Since the young woman was not married nor did she receive lots of money from her parents in their will, she would be living with her aunt, uncle, and younger cousin at their manor.

She wasn't sad about not getting any money from her parents. They were in debt since last year and the young woman doubted that she would've been able to keep the house anyway if she had received any money. No, the only thing that she had was her mother's wedding ring around her neck for a keepsake—to this, the young woman would prefer than money any day.

The carriage continued its trek even after they were out of the small town. It traveled up the path not far from the village. The woman could still see the town when the carriage pulled to a stop in front of the Victorian manor that was to be called her home.

The white manor stood in front of the deep and dreary forest that reeked with silence. Not even ghosts would inhabitant it, she was sure. From the front of the manor she could clearly see the town down the dirt path with no trees in the way. Around the dirt path was dead grass of a plain that was never furnished.

"Namine! It's such a delight to see you!" a cheerful voice exclaimed belonging to a young woman of sixteen with rich auburn hair almost down to her mid back and sparkling violet eyes. Unlike the blonde woman with her plain dreary wardrobe, she wore a beautifully designed robin blue Victorian dress with midnight ballet shoes.

The auburn haired woman embraced the quiet woman with a delighted smile on her beautiful features. She kissed her cheeks before pulling away and looking at her eyes with a gentle smile.

"My dear cousin, how are you this day?" she asked the blonde.

"I am well" the blonde woman spoke for the first time in what seemed like forever. Her voice was quiet and soft, but the auburn haired woman loved the soothing sound of it. "I apologize for making you come out here to greet me, Kairi"

Kairi Heartphilia was a bright and gorgeous young woman living in London all her life. She was the daughter of Tifa Heartphillia—formally part of the Lockhart family and sisters with Namine's mother—and Reno Heartphilia. Both respectful people of society and not one black mark on their reputation. In some ways, Kairi was naïve, just like most of the high class society, but that was what made her a sweetheart and kind to anyone. Something that Namine admired about her dear cousin.

"Oh nonsense!" Kairi waved the older woman off, "I enjoy greeting you! You are my dear cousin after all" she said to Namine.

"You are too kind to someone like me" Namine replied with a smile. Unlike Namien's quiet soothing tone, Kairi's was lively and bubbly. Another grand difference between the two of them. Yet, Namine was glad to have such a joyful person in her life.

"Namine Belacqua! You must not put yourself down like that! You are as important as I am and nothing lesser than that!" Kairi reprimanded her cousin.

Namine Belacqua; that was the name of the quiet observer. Average, plain, and a ghost to society. No one paid her mind and no one noticed her in a crowd. She was someone who fit in with the crowd very well—too well according to her cousin. She was level headed and never really showed emotion. Even when the two were young and she spent her summers at the Belacqua manor, the auburn haired woman never recalled her cousin demonstrating any wild behavior. She was always reading a book under the shade of a tree or sitting on the sidelines watching her as she played in the sunlight. Such as her shy nature.

But even so, Kairi adored her cousin. She was such a nice comfort to the auburn haired woman—like the older sister she never had. Both girls didn't have any siblings so it was only natural that they would portray each other as sisters.

Kairi's healthy skinned hand grasped the pale frail one gently and tugged her inside the Heartphilia manor.

"Come, mother and father have been anxiously awaiting for your arrival all day!" she told Namine. She didn't reply, but Kairi knew that Namine was listening.

"The color looks well on you" Namine said all of a sudden referring to Kairi's dress. Blue was her favorite color and she often wore it before the death of her beloved parents. Kairi smiled at the compliment. She wore the color especially for Namine.

Silence then rained between the two girls as they walked through the manor towards the sitting room. No conversations were spoken nor was any attempted to be brought up. It was nice and comfortable to which the blonde woman enjoyed immensely.

Kairi didn't want to push her cousin into talking when she didn't want to. It was shocking to see her in such dreary colors, but the woman didn't make a fuss. Namine was, after all, still grieving the loss of her parents. It was only natural she would dress in dark dreary colors to show that she was still mourning.

The sitting room was filled with emerald green furniture. The rug was a rich mahogany with the walls being a dark violet color. Paintings with gold frames hung around the sitting room and a huge fire place was sitting across the room from the wooden doors Namine and Kairi entered through.

A woman in her early thirties sat at one of the couches with a cup of tea and biscuits sitting on the coffee table in the middle of the couch and chairs. The years were generous to her for she was very beautiful with dark long tresses of brown. She was dressed in a fine-looking gold Victorian dress that was also more extravagant than the blonde's. Her stunning ruby eyes lit up when she spotted the two women.

"Namine Belacqua!" she cried out in joy. She rose from her seat and approached the blonde woman. "My dear niece! It's been so long! My, you have grown into a stunning flower" the woman complimented her.

"I thank you for your kindness. You too are a stunning woman as always, dear aunt" Namine replied with a polite smile. The woman smiled at her manners and stroked her hair. She then pulled the younger woman into her arms.

"Every day that passes, I see my lovely sister in you more and more. Please, treat our home like yours for we welcome you without any strings attached" the woman told Namine and let go of her.

"You are too kind" Namine replied.

"Ah! Of course we still have the library and most of your favorite novels are in there! I hope you find it to your liking!" the woman told her niece knowing that she still adored the written words of books.

"I am sure that I will" Namine said with gratitude. Due to her parents' debts, she was not allowed to keep any of her precious books. It was a shame to leave them but at least her aunt had made sure that she would be comfortable here in London.

"Mother, where is father?" Kairi asked. Her mother, Tifa Heartphilia, turned to her daughter to answer her inquiry.

"Your father had business, but he regrets not being able to greet his niece" Tifa said to them apologetically. Namine shook her head.

"It is quite alright; I understand that uncle has things to do" Namine told her aunt. Tifa nodded in appreciation.

"However, he will be back by supper to dine with us" Tifa said to the two women.

"I am excited to see him" Namine said with a tender smile. Tifa and Kairi smiled back at her. They were glad to see the woman smiling since the death of her parents.

It was a tragic death to be sure. They were traveling home from a trip up to the bank in the next town—since theirs didn't have a bank—to discuss the matter of their debts. However, it being very late and the path traveled through the woods, the carriage was attacked and not even the coachman survived.

They were found the next morning. Skin as white as snow and lifeless. All warmth was gone from their bodies leaving an ice cold chill only belonging to the dead. No one could explain it how they had died. The carriage was in perfect condition while the bodies looked to be unharmed except the two tiny holes in each victim's neck. The only answer the authorities could provide was death by impalement if the holes were any indication.

But that wasn't the worst part. It was the fact that each victim had so much horror in their eyes. Their expressions were that of fear. They were downright terrified before their deaths. Since then, no one dared to go near the forest in Namine's town.

However, it just so happens that that road was the only road leading out of her town to London so naturally the young woman had to take it. And yet, here she was safe and sound. Not that she doubted the forest to be dangerous. Nonethesless, she was glad that she wasn't there at night to experience the horrible death her parents had.

"Dear cousin, you must be tired. Please allow me to escort you to your room" Kairi said to Namine.

"Yes, I will alert you when it is supper" Tifa agreed with Kairi. Namine nodded and curtsied along with Kairi. Then they both departed from the sitting room to go to Namine's room.

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It wasn't the most extravagant thing, but it was elegant. For that, Namine was grateful. It seemed they knew she was more comfortable with the simple things.

The room was a dark maroon and big enough for Namine to easily run around in with a four poster bed with midnight blue and silver covers. The curtains over and beside the bed were a creamy white with the wood holding the curtains up were a dark shade of brown. The rug didn't cover the whole wooden floor, only the middle of the room. It was extraordinary with its magnificent designs mixed with reds, whites, greens, golds, and grays. Off to the side of the bed were large windows looking out into the forest. Nothing could be seen in that dark domain, but it gave off a peaceful aura to Namine that soothed her mourning.

"Mother thought that you would love this room" Kairi spoke out. "The quiet atmosphere will allow you some peace in mind" she told Namine smiling.

"I like it very much. Thank you" Namine replied with a small smile. She walked over to the desk by the windows and ran her fingers tentatively across it. The texture was smooth and cool under her fingers.

"Mother also thought you might like a desk too. She knows how much you love to read" Kairi gave off a giggle. "In my opinion, that's probably the only thing that will keep you from sleeping in the library" Namine lips lifted at that.

"Yes, I probably would've spent my nights in the library reading if I didn't have a desk in here to read at" Namine told her cousin.

"Well, I suppose I will leave you to your rest" Kairi said and headed for the door. Her hand touched the doorknob before looking back at Namine. "It was a pleasure to see you again, sweet Namine. I can't wait to introduce you to my friends" and with that, Kairi had departed from Namine's new room.

Once her cousin was gone, Namine turned towards the window looking into the forest. Above the trees she could see the horizon of the sky. In the distance, she saw some orange and pink from the upcoming twilight. It was a nice difference from the gray clouds in London.

Twilight was Namine's most favorite time of the day. The time where day and night join together as day is leaving and night takes over. The clashes of colors and the sun glowing beyond the horizon was glorious. Twilight was such a beautiful time of day in Namine's old town where she could see it clearly without the influence of the gray clouds London has to offer.

Another thing that Namine enjoyed about twilight was that it was everything she wasn't. It was beautiful, she was average; it was bright, she was dim; it was amazing, she was plain. It was extraordinary, she was mundane.

Sometimes she wished she was like twilight. If she was twilight, perhaps people would notice her.

But she wasn't, she was a dull cloudy day. Too mundane to be twilight.

Twilight was something she could never be.


Karin: Okay, there's the first chapter! Hope that you all enjoyed it! Don't worry though; things will get more interesting in the next chapter, okay?

Axel; When are we showing up?

Demyx: Actually, I think we're minor characters in this one

Axel: What?!

Demyx: I said we're only minor characters in this one. Do you need your hearing checked Axel?

Axel: No! I heard you. I just couldn't believe what you said

Karin: It's not like you guys will only show up once, but you won't be in the story right away either

Axel and Demyx: Erm… I guess that's okay.

Axel: Better than only showing up once

Karin: See, not so bad. Besides, until then, you can be in the author's notes with me

Demyx: that makes me feel better author-chan!

Karin: Good. Please be kind enough to leave a review. Until next time everyone!

See ya next time!