AN: I realized as I was editing this that pretty much all of Juugo and Sasuke's interactions sound rather shippy. That wasn't my intention-since their relationship is a close friendship, but if want to see it otherwise, go ahead.
Please review! I have a lot of stories lined up to work on and your review can boost this one to the top of my priority list.

No. Juugo please no. Don't offer, don't look for another way out, just do it...Do what I asked for and kill me…

Sasuke froze, his breath catching in his throat and his heart feeling as if it was going to come out of his chest, a roaring sound in his ears as Juugo's words seemed to echo in his mind like the reverberating sound of a gong.
Take mine. Take mine. Take mine…
"If you do you'll live, right?" Juugo moved forward and Sasuke pulled away, trying to put some distance between him and the overwhelming temptation to accept a foolish offer.

"No…yes…I will, but it won't be the same…you know that" He stopped, his gaze falling on the thick vein that was pulsing in Juugo's neck.
"I would…need it…frequently…" It would be so easy to take it. He wouldn't have to die and Suigetsu and Karin wouldn't have to know.
The Order could be avoided if they were convinced that he had recovered and all could remain a secret between him and his companion…he shook his head, trying to clear his mind and stop the silent voice of temptation that was whispering in the back of his head.
You can do it. He is offering. Taking his blood will save your life and you are not forcing him to do anything. It is of his own free will so is it not alright?
He didn't want to die...Nobody could truly want to die.

"Juugo…" his throat was dry and he could practically feel the blood in his mouth already "Go. Please go now…" beads of sweat were standing out on his pale skin as he croaked.
Juugo straitened hesitantly "but Sasuke—" he started to protest but Sasuke shook his head
"go Juugo" before I accept, please…just go.
Finally understanding at least a small part of the desperate plea but still hesitant to leave, Juugo stood and backed away, watching as Sasuke rolled over painfully and drug himself up to sit against the nearby wall, his lips parted slightly as he panted from the effort, his eyes closed.

The cold sound of the iron door closing brought Sasuke out of his semi-conscious state and he opened his eyes opened slowly, his empty and exhausted gaze finding the ray of sun that were shining through the partially curtained window and resting on it.
It was hopeless. All of it was hopeless. His entire life of training, his years of dedicated work for The Order…all of it was useless against the bite of a pure vampire. He was going to become one of them. A vampire that would be hunted down by The Order and exterminated…if he wasn't killed before that….

Under the law of The Order, no hunter—once infected-was allowed to live. No matter how skilled he had been beforehand, no matter how big the cost would be or how many lives would be lost in the task. It was the law and the law was unbreakable.

The only way to escape such a fate would be to take the blood of a human; the life-force would be enough to sustain a regular appearance but only if he fed regularly and on those they called 'vessels', special people whose life-energy was stronger than that of a normal person…Juugo was a vessel, but there was no way he was going to give in and accept Juugo's offer.
Taking blood was painful for the giver and he wasn't going to put Juugo through that agony, not again. His friend has already been through enough.

.

.

I can't let you die Sasuke…Juugo was standing on the other side of the door, his hand resting on the frame of the rough-cut wood as he sunk in a deep feeling of looming despair.
I can't just stand back and watch them kill you. I know it's breaking the law, but you deserve more than an executioner's blade and I want to save you. Just like you saved me…He sighed, a shuddering breath that seemed to resonate in his chest.

He had come from a small village on the outer edge of what was now called "Le Sanguine-Blood territory" a stretch of land completely controlled by vampires and rank with their vile stench.
He had been a small child when the creatures first attacked, overrunning everything he held dear and feasting on the spilt blood of the villagers, only sparing his life because of the gift he had been born with.
He could barely recall the day when he was taken prisoner, but he even now he could clearly remember the pain of their fangs in his neck as they fed on his life-force, clearly feel the warmth of his blood as it ran down his skin, and perfectly recall the chill of their crimson eyes as they watched him greedily.
It wasn't a life he wanted to go back to; just thinking about it brought a sick fear to his stomach.
That existence had been dark, cold, and filled with excruciating pain…but ultimately, it had been Sasuke who had set him free.

Blood territory had been on The Order's list ever since the onslaught of vampire attacks had begun, but they didn't have the forces necessary to execute such a large assault until several years later.
By then, Sasuke had become a hunter and it had fallen to his squad to purge the land. And so his squad had stormed the outer castle, overturning the balance the vampire's claimed rights to and purging the cursed land in a river of their black blood, driving them into the inner walls of their territory in a retreat so hasty that they had been forced to leave all of their vessels behind.
Most of the vessels died shortly afterwards, unable to survive from the prolonged drainage of their life-force, but Sasuke saved Juugo by nursing him back to health and then saved him a second time when the council of The Order had tried to pass an execution on the basis that Juugo could be conspiring with vampires.
The argument had cost Sasuke a higher position on the council, but he hadn't let that sway his resolve.
Instead he left his high rank and assembled a team of his own. Together they roamed the country-side, helping villages and purging cities. At least, they had been until four days ago…
Juugo clenched his fist tightly
but now that Sasuke's fate was hanging in the balance everything had changed…and if he couldn't think of a way to save him, Sasuke would be executed.

.

.

Karin looked up from her food as a tormented groan came from the room next door, sparing a quick glance at Suigetsu as her grip tightened on her spoon. What was happening in there?
"It's going to be tonight…" Suigetsu said, answering her unspoken question in a tone more serious than any of their party had heard from him before.
"…either he's going to make it, or we're going to have to contact The Order"
Juugo stiffened "would you really do that?" he asked quietly
"Juugo—" Karin began
"If it comes down to that…we're going to have to…it's what Sasuke would have wanted" Suigetsu replied.
"Suigetsu! Don't say it like that, Sasuke isn't dead" Karin snapped
"But if he becomes one of them he practically is, don't you think?" Suigetsu countered, suddenly turning to face Juugo "Out of all of us you know firsthand what the need for blood does to them".
Juugo set his bowl down firmly, the cords of his neck standing out prominently as his jaw worked back and forth. "Yes. I do" he growled as he stood "But Sasuke isn't one of them"
Suigetsu paused, torn between everything he had learned in The Order and everything they had built together as a team "alright…" he said quietly.
Karin and Suigetsu resumed eating after a few seconds of silence, both of them watching as Juugo grabbed his cloak and headed towards the door. He needed air

"You shouldn't have said that Suigetsu" Karin said finally, breaking the silence of their meal.
"He has to be prepared for whatever comes, especially if Sasuke loses this battle…no matter how much it hurts"
Karin looked down at her bowl of soup, a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach as yet another cry sounded from the confines of the room they had placed Sasuke in.
"We can't do anything for him?" the feeling of helplessness was terrible but Suigetsu shook his head
"If we interfere, the virus may come back…there's no telling how he'll react if he doesn't do things for himself…but Sasuke's strong, he'll make it"
Karin said nothing as she set her spoon down and placed her hands in her lap, the desire to cry welling up inside her. Why had this happened?
"Karin."
Suigetsu's voice cut into her thoughts as he placed his hand on hers "It's going to be okay. Either way, it will work out" It was the best he could do to help her feel better—to help himself feel better.

.
.

You have to do something Juugo…you have to do something unless you want Sasuke to die!
Juugo was lying on the balcony outside, one hand behind his head as he stared up at the black sky. A storm was coming, he could feel it in the air.
What should I do? He mouthed the words silently as a chilly breeze began to blow what would he do for me?

.
.

How many hours had passed? How long had his body been burning?
The heavy door opened slowly and Juugo stepped into the room, a tray balanced in his hands as he turned and shut the door behind him.
"Suigetsu and Karin went to take care of some trouble near the village." He reported as he walked across the room and sat down on the floor a few feet away from where Sasuke lay "they should be back before nightfall".
Sasuke said nothing in reply as his eyes opened slowly and he turned to look at his visitor, his gaze automatically coming to rest on the pulse of the large vein in Juugo's neck with a hungry look in his dull-red eyes.
It was right in front of him, so close he could almost taste the warmth in his mouth, almost feel the power in his veins, all he needed to do was reach out—
"Sasuke!" Juugo grabbed Sasuke's hand and Sasuke jerked back, his eyes widening as he realized what he had been about to do…when had he moved?
"Why did you come here?" His voice was husky as he forced himself away, fighting to keep the urge for blood under control as he turned his back to his team mate. It was like having a glass of water placed right in front of him without his being able to drink…
"Because you need me"
Sasuke whipped his head around at Juugo's response *No*
"Juugo, I told you to go" Forget about me and just go, please.
"Suigetsu said that if you became one of them tonight, he's going to summon The Order…" he stopped, trying to see if Sasuke was going to react
"so…?" Sasuke's voice was dark and Juugo clenched his fist
"I can't let that—"
"I'm NOT TAKING YOUR BLOOD JUUGO!" Sasuke roared, the effort causing him to lean heavily against the floor, his vision swimming.
"…I'm not going to make you go through that again" his voice wavered as he spoke "I'm not going to use your life-force just to keep my sanity…" why can't you understand that?
Juugo grabbed Sasuke's shoulders firmly, supporting Sasuke as he forced him to meet his gaze. "You could have left me to die back then, but you gave up your position on the council to save me. Do you remember what you said to me? Even when I thought I should die because of my connection with the Vampires."
No one in their right mind should want to die…
Sasuke nodded faintly. Yes, he remembered those words…but it was all different now…
"I don't want you to die Sasuke" Juugo continued "You don't need to die. There are plenty of them out there who aren't dangerous or corrupt or killing people in order to survive, weren't you the one that said that it isn't the fact that they were vampires, but their plunge into insanity driven by bloodlust that makes them beasts?" He paused, anxiously waiting for an answer as his eyes darted between Sasuke's dark ones—there was nothing and Juugo resisted the urge to shout, instead lowering his voice to a tone of deep intensity.
"Sasuke I'm offering my blood to you so you don't have to face that plunge"
Sasuke's eyes raised slowly and he swallowed, his eyes tracing the vein in Juugo's neck before meeting the soft orange eyes of his closest companion.
"Juugo, I…" he stopped, his heart aching as he tried to reach a decision. Would it be right to take Juugo's blood? Wouldn't that turn him into a beast? But if it was given freely…no, he couldn't ask Juugo to make that sacrifice…
His thoughts stopped as one of Juugo's hands left his shoulder and he held it out in front of Sasuke's mouth, the underside of his wrist exposed.
"It's of my own free will" Juugo said softly—the words of the hunter's oath
"My will to give my life for the cause I believe in, my oath to defend the ones close to me…my duty to bring balance to the world…"
he was reciting it quietly and Sasuke gave a faint shake of his head—as if he was too tired to resist anymore, his eyes fading from black to red, black to red as he leaned forward slowly
"…my desire to be loyal " Juugo winced at the two pinpricks of pain in his wrist
"…my destiny to fulfill this oath"

TBC...