Serenity's world seemed to change as she closed the door to her small house. Everything was dark, except for the sliver of light coming from the living room. Serenity knew that Joey would be asleep in front of the TV again, probably watching some drama that had lost its prime years ago. She slowly went to her room, the sound of her footsteps padding gently beneath her were her only companions. She wouldn't see Kaiba for another two days since it was the weekend. That both relieved and saddened her. As she slept, she dreamt of many things. Death, life, hope, joy, and what seemed like eternal sadness hidden behind a pair of deep blue eyes.
Serenity woke up earlier than usual the next morning. As she came out of the trance of sleep, the memories of the night before hit her. She saw them all in a flood of motion, all ending with her promise to Kaiba, "I'll change your mind." In truth, she didn't want to die. Living eternally seemed to leave Kaiba with a sadness so deep, she didn't think she could endure that either. She would change his mind, but not in the way of him killing her. What she did want was to change his mind about life and the way he lived his.
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Kaiba sat in the basements of his mansion, watching his clan train. The morning light shone through the windows, making the sight seem even more, if possible, ghastly. It was brutal; those fighting with weapon or hands were often bloodied to a pulp. Fighting was an essential, and so were other things. They captured enemies, sometimes even the toughest of mortals, and made them fight to the death. Usually, Kaiba's clan won in the end, but when they put up a good fight, he was usually there to watch. He saw Zakura out of the corner of his eye, nursing the seriously injured in a crevice of the wall. The pang of guilt he usually felt came to him, but quickly disappeared as another body fell to the floor. Kaiba remembered when he had to train like that. The skill came to him naturally, not just brought on by the powers the queen gave him when she died. That gave him more of an edge, and that caused more fear to stir in the hearts of those who feared him. He would be just as bloody, just as bruised; but he would win.
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Serenity walked to the kitchen and made breakfast for her brother. The smell would wake him in about an hour or so, but she needed to clear her head. She left a note on the table, saying she had gone for a walk, possibly even meet with Tea to go shopping. She threw on the same tank top from last night, but wore it with a pair of jeans that fell to her slender hips because they were so big on her.
The park was empty when she walked through it, which surprised her since it was a weekend. Serenity steadied herself as she felt a dizzy spell come over her.
I didn't get enough sleep last night, she thought to herself as she sat on a bench. Her thoughts, no matter how hard she willed them not to, wandered back to Kaiba. How last night, all she wanted was to feel his warmth around her, and how she knew that he wanted something more from her as well. She wanted him, he wanted her. But for two very different reasons. But, were they so different? Serenity opened her eyes to stare at the blue sky, but instead found herself staring into a different kind of blue. The blue eyes of Seto Kaiba.
"Hi," she said.
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He looked directly at her, drinking in her features. He had to get away from his past for a day, and walking out he found himself drawn to where he had last seen Serenity. Seeing her there, he thought he was hallucinating; but when he stared into the depths of her honey eyes, he knew that he wasn't. She was staring back with equal intensity, and then she whispered a greeting. He nodded in acknowledgement of her. He realized that he was towering over her, so he swiftly moved to the side and sat beside her. Her body heat seemed to beckon to him, a quiet, but obvious temptress. The silence and stillness, though brief, was too much for him. He got up quickly, dragging his hand through his hair in the process.
"Walk with me?" he said to her, holding out his hand. She nodded, and placed her hand in his; but as she got up, she tripped over a crack in the side walk. As she started to fall, Kaiba pulled her in and held her close to him, not even bothering to let go after she regained her balance.
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Serenity didn't seem to grasp the reality of what had happened. As she grabbed Kaiba's hand, she felt herself fall forward over a crack in the sidewalk. She braced herself for impact until she felt herself being jerked forward. She was against his chest, feeling his arms tightly encircle her waist. He didn't move to push her away, and neither did she. She rested her head against his chest, breathing him in. She longed to feel soothed by a beating heart, only to realize that he had no heart; his true nature had stolen it from him. She felt his hand stroke the small of her back, sending a shiver up her spine. The chaotic emotions were rising inside her again, and it was taking every ounce of her strength to not act on them. After five minutes of stillness, she shifted her head to look at him. Her eyes met his in a long stare, one that held so much emotion she thought she might drown in it.
"Uh, Kaiba?" she said, feeling his arms weaken their grip on her. Speaking seemed to break the moment, bringing both of them back to reality. To anyone who would have passed by at that moment, they would have just been a pair of lovers in their own little world, not the cursed hunter and his prey, who both didn't understand what they were doing to each other.
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Serenity walked home by herself later that afternoon. After Kaiba and she had broken their embrace, he told her he would see her tomorrow, and then he walked away abruptly. She started to step towards him, wanting to ask him to stay a little longer, but he disappeared into shadow as she took her first step. After that, she went and did some shopping and then wandered aimlessly around the park again; hoping, if only in her deepest thoughts, to see him again.
She didn't.
As Serenity relived the day's events, she realized that she hadn't eaten anything. She quickened her pace home, hoping that they still had enough food to make dinner. As she stepped inside her house, she met the fierce eyes of her angry brother.
"WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU!" he shouted, sending something in the house crashing to the floor.
"I was out," Serenity said, trying to side step him. He wouldn't let her.
"Don't try to tell me you were with Tea, because I know you weren't," he said to her.
"I didn't try to tell you that," she said to him. Serenity had become used to his outbursts, but they were always at random moments. She turned to directly look at him.
"I'm old enough to make my own decisions now, and if I don't tell you things that aren't your business, you don't need to worry about it. However, if you must know, I went for a long walk in the park today, and then I went shopping." Joey was quiet; seeming to know that he over reacted again. Serenity was glad he was looking down, because if he looked up at that moment, he would have seen the guilt on her face. She didn't technically lie to her brother, but not telling him the complete truth made her feel awful. She quickly went to the kitchen, busying herself making food.
An hour later, Serenity sat on her bed. She was full and she was happy. Her brother was put in a good mood because of dinner; you wouldn't know he threw a tantrum by looking at him. Her thoughts, of course, returned to Kaiba. The way he held her, it seemed like he never wanted to let her go. She touched her hand to her heart, feeling that heartbeat beneath her fingers. Kaiba didn't even feel the warmth of his own life running through him anymore, his heartbeat hadn't been there for such a long time.
Seto Kaiba, why do you intrigue me so much? Those were the last thoughts in her head before she drifted into a troubled sleep.
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Kaiba relaxed, in his room, feeling the cold air of air conditioning wash over him. Most of his clan was out hunting, others taking out their lust in the underground underneath his mansion where most of them slept. A select few, like Bakura, Zakura, and his brother, slept in rooms in the mansion. He layed his head back on his bed's backboard, lost in his thoughts. Serenity. She was in his head all the time. All of her physical and inner beauty brought him to a place where he didn't feel safe. Because when he was there, he saw what humanity looked like, and he almost, almost, wondered what it would be like to possess it again. He shook the thought out of his head, but then thought of Serenity again. He wanted her body, he was sure of that. But, he also knew there was more than lust behind it. It had been a week and a half now, and he hadn't done anything but touch her. He wanted more, but somewhere, something was telling him that even touching her could be too much. When he touched Serenity, Kaiba's in control manner that he usually carried with him seemed to slip away. All he wanted to do was hold her forever. He stopped his thoughts in midstream.
"What is wrong with me?" he asked himself softly, shifting so that he slowly fell into a sleeping position. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door, causing him to sit upright again.
"What?" he said in an agitated voice, not bothering to look up.
"I always loved it when you use that voice Seto, it's sexy," someone said as the door opened, then closed again. Kaiba looked up into the cold eyes of Shiori. Kaiba straightened a little. Shiori was the most beautiful, and the most dangerous woman of his clan. She was small, had a petite frame, and pale, creamy white skin. Her hair, as dark as a moonless night, flowed down her back to her thighs, smooth as silk. Her eyes were a wild shade of green, so bright that he could feel the intensity from across the room. Her lips were full, and her fangs peaked beneath them. She had a perfect body, thin, with a flat stomach, and ample in the areas that drew men in. Whatever she wore didn't do justice to her body, her beauty was otherworldly. She stood in front of him wearing a short, black, lacy nightgown. He saw that it untied in the back. This was enough to drive any other man over the edge, but he wasn't any other man.
"Hello Shiori," he said, watching as she made her way towards him. He had been with her many times, and he was familiar with her slow seductress walk. In bed, she was amazing. How she lived and everything about her made her in control. She seemed like she didn't care about anything, but he could read almost any emotion very well. She was hungry for him; he was the one man who kept her coming back for more. She stood by the bed.
"Do you want some company tonight?" she asked him, her voice dripping with seduction. In truth, he could've used someone like Shiori at the moment. He wanted to get out of his own head, and what better way then sex? He looked her over. He was the one who had converted her all those years ago. She was eighteen when she turned, a soul already corrupted from the tainting of the human race. She made a very good vampire, killing was no problem for her; she even managed to add a little flair to anything she did. She kneeled on the bed in a position where he could see her bust line. He didn't even flush. He smirked at her when her face came close to his. His lips were barely inches from hers when he turned his head.
"I'm not in the mood tonight," he said. She pulled back to look at him, cocking her head to the side.
"That doesn't sound like you," she said. "The old you would have never turned down something like that." She smirked at him. "Could it be that too much human interaction is messing with your head?" Faster than the eye could see, Kaiba grabbed her and flipped her on her back. He pinned her and fixed her with a menacing glare.
"Don't ever say that again," he said in an icy whisper. She smiled up at him, pushing her body up and closer to his. She brushed her lips against his, and waited. He mentally kicked himself. She had him in a trap, and he had to prove to her that he was still Seto Kaiba, the vampire leader with no soul and who would take any beautiful woman into him for a night. He returned her kiss; the ferocity channeled through it was his anger. She didn't care. She pushed his shirt above his head, as he reached around her back, pulling the lace gown from her body. Sex for Kaiba was next to nothing, and he usually just concentrated on keeping his partner needy. This time though, he just wanted it to be over as soon as possible. As he looked into the intensity of Shiori's immortal eyes, a pair of honey ones flew through his mind.
Serenity, he thought.
The sex was over soon enough, and Shiori smiled as she got dressed.
"I knew that I was wrong about you," she told him. "You're still the same old Kaiba." Kaiba was dressed already, urging her to get out with his mind. She kissed him again before she left, full and intense. He reluctantly returned it. She broke the kiss, smiled, then left. He wanted to see Serenity. He looked at his clock, the numbers looming large above him.
Three A.M., huh?" he thought to himself as he got up. Well, this can't wait.
He dissolved into shadow, and let the wind carry him toward Serenity, knowing that somehow, he would find her quickly.
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Serenity's sleep was broken by a tapping sound. She sat up, looking around. There was nothing. She stretched and got out of bed, her shirt sleeve falling off her shoulder. She wore one of her brother's tank tops and her own panties to bed, meaning that the shirt was longer since he was taller, and a little loose. It showed of her body in the moonlight. And her creamy complexion seemed to glow. She walked to the window, then looked out. There was nothing but the moon, high up in the sky. It looked so peaceful; she didn't know if she could break her eyes away.
Suddenly, she felt a strong arm encircle her waist and a hand clamp her mouth. Her scream caught in her throat and she tried to struggle.
"Calm down you fool," a voice said in her ear, "It's me." Kaiba? The hand slowly dropped from her mouth, and the arm let her go. She turned and looked into Kaiba's eyes. He was not bothering to hide the longing beneath them now. Serenity realized that Kaiba was looking at her from head to toe, and all she was wearing was a white tank top and panties. She blushed intensely, which made him smirk.
"How'd you get in here?" she asked, looking to make sure her door was still close.
"I came in as a shadow," he told her. She didn't even bother to question him. He suddenly took a step, and he was right in front of her.
"I've been thinking about you Serenity," he told her, leaning in close. She swallowed.
"Same here," she said in a whisper. She didn't even know what made that come out of her mouth; except that it had it was true. He put his arm around the small of her back, leading her to him. She didn't pull away.
He traced her mouth with his finger. His face was inching closer by the second. Finally, his kiss reached her lips with such ferocity. She returned it, feeling it throughout her entire body. His tongue gained entrance to her mouth, deepening it. He directed her backwards to the bed, feeling her soft whimpering as she hit her pillow. His desire was building, but all of a sudden, he found himself pushing it back. He broke the kiss, and looked at the girl beneath him. She was even more beautiful than he remembered, and the look in her eyes told him that she would do almost anything with him tonight. But he couldn't say the same. He pushed himself off of her, sitting on the bedside as he got up. She pushed herself up, placing her hands on his shoulders.
I don't want to hurt her, he realized. He touched her hand with his, enjoying the warmth on his cold skin. He wasn't himself, and there was nothing he could do about it.
"I understand," she whispered to him, leaning her body against his back. Somehow, he realized that she did. He turned to look at her, and held her against him. He didn't realize how long he held her, but he knew he had to go. He gently pushed her away. She lay back, her body moving in a way that made him ache for her again. He dissolved into shadow, leaving her behind. He would see her soon enough, but he had to get out of her presence. If he stayed but a moment longer, he wouldn't have been able to leave.