A/N: Hi everyone! I'm sooooo happy! I have a beta! She is AMAZING! And I just know you guys will appreciate her handy work! Anyway, this chapter is going to answer some questions and make you ask more hehe I think I like these types of chapters lately.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Chapter 4- Mage Power?
The night sky was peaceful. The stars could be seen more clearly the further from town they traveled. Kenshin, in the form of air particles, followed Sano and Kaoru's kias they too traveled in the same fashion.
Kenshin raced after Kaoru as fast as he could, trying to be as close to her as possible. The instinct to be close in case of attack was just too hard to ignore and besides, he liked being close to her. "Kaoru, we don't know who we will be fighting, but if I'm right and it is who I think it is we could be cutting it close. If that happens I want you to promise me you'll run and take cover."
Their bond was becoming stronger every time they talked through it. Kenshin could feel every one of Kaoru's emotions as she processed his request. He felt the sadness from his distrust in her ability, and he felt the need to assure her. "I believe you are strong sweety, please try and understand," He felt her frustration, and continued, "the need to protect you is who I am. I am a predator. I must do all within my power to keep you safe! If you die I will not greet the dawn quietly I fear," Now anger, "Please don't be angry with me; it's just in case things get….out of hand," He felt her courage.
"This is who I am!" She was also in tune with his emotions, and felt his confusion. "I am a warrior! It's my job to protect this city from vampires!" Uncertainty "Listen if things get too hard core then I'll let you take a shot but don't interfere right away. I have studied all over the world and have been fighting for centuries, so just stay out of my fights until I say so!" She felt his smile.
"It's agreed then I shall stay watch until you need me. Please don't let this vampire hurt you though, ok?" He sensed her assent. They soared the sky line until they reached what looked to him like a run down futuristic festival area.
"This must be what Sano called the abandoned amusement park."
"It is. This place used to be a lot of fun." He could see the images of the past through Kaoru's memories. The park was all lit up with lights and moving rides and an abundance of laughter and screams from amused people could be heard throughout the park.
"It must have been fun. Why is it like this?" He landed in his physical form, Kaoru landing right next to him.
"Hey stay out of my memories!" Kaoru was glaring at him. Sano landed behind her, laughing.
"Well you were thinking them so it wasn't something I could just not see, you know."
Sanosuke noticed how angry and embarrassed Kaoru was, so he spoke up before things got anymore out of hand, "Hey guys keep it down! He could be anywhere and you two are giving us away!"
"Sorry." Both looked down in embarrassment.
"Sheesh!" Sano was shaking his head, "Why don't we split up? I'll take the east side and you two look on the west? We will meet back here in half an hour if neither of us finds this vamp." He smirked and started to walk off, thinking, "Now this ought to give Kenshin time to put the moves on the missy, and then maybe she won't be so cranky all the time."
"Hey! Sano!"
Uhlp. Freezing in place, Sano looked over his shoulder at Kaoru.
"You're headed north you numb-skull! East is this way…" Kaoru pointed Sano in the right direction.
Wooooh. "Uh, thanks missy! See you in half!" Taking the form of a brown rat he scurried behind an old cotton candy booth, "Oh crap that was scary! She sounded so angry I thought I had thought that on the common mental path for a second there. Man, I thought I was toast! Good thing it was just that I was going the wrong direction. Hm...I wonder why that happened. I must be having an off day or something; I never get lost or lose my sense of direction! Oh well."
Now Kaoru was the one left shaking her head in embarrassment. "Oh that Sano!
He is always going the wrong way! I swear, sometimes I just want to tape a compass to his butt! Of course then again he probably couldn't find THAT with both hand and a map!"
(Sano was off somewhere more south than east at this point, sneezing: AH-CHOO! AH-CHOO! AH-CHOO!)
"Hahahaha! Well, he sure is an interesting character, that he is. I thought all
male Carpathians were born with an internal compass!" Answered Kenshin, laughing. Walking closer to Kaoru he grabbed her hand, "Well shall we?" He started walking off to the west as planned.
Kaoru laughed and it sounded like silver bells to his ears. "He is indeed. You know, you're kind of strange yourself? No body says 'that there is,' or "that he is," or "that I am," or really anything like that." She felt his sadness at the thought that she didn't like how he talked. She smiled reassuringly at him, "I kind of like it though." He smiled back and she felt his happiness through their bond. "Have you always talked like that?"
Kenshin tensed. Unsure what to say, he simply went with the truth. She would either hate him or accept him and he would deal with either, but he would never lie to her. He smiled sadly, "No. No I haven't. I remember that I did when I was but a fledgling, but I lost my emotions even earlier than most; Shoshou said it was because I entered the war when I was 14." Sadness and sympathy washed over him, he squeezed her hand in comfort and gave her a smile. "I suppose I talk like this because now that I've found you I've regained my emotions. For this I am eternally grateful."
Kaoru looked down. She hadn't even thought about what his childhood was like.
He didn't know it, but she was already beginning to be a shadow in his mind and when she heard the only emotions he expected to find in their relationship were either feelings of sympathy, anger or acceptance, Kaoru was shocked. Not love or friendship? Did he think he was so unlovable? Or maybe it was simply that he had never had love? This made her feel even sadder. Running her thumb over the hand she held, she gave him a winning smile. "We should turn into cats and start really looking. He could be anywhere and I would rather find him, than him find us."
Smiling, he nodded his agreement. "I'd give anything to see her smile like that more often." They both took the form of cats; Kenshin was a stunning orange tabby and Kaoru was a blue black cat. Kenshin gracefully jumped to the top of the old game booth. The moon shone high above him and gave his coat a luminous glow. He stretched out his senses to locate this enemy. He felt over the booths and the pathways, the rides and the…"Found him." Jumping down he found that Kaoru's fur was standing on edge and she looked angry. "You sense him too, don't you? He's at the small clearing behind the park."
Kaoru nodded and reached inside for the thread she and Sano shared to talk.
When two Carpathians share blood they made a bond and through this bond they are able to talk to one another telepathically and find each other's location with it. "Sano, we've located him. He's near the pond behind the park."
"Thanks missy I'll meet you there."
Kaoru looked to Kenshin and they shared a look of understanding. Shifting into air once more they took flight. There was a large pond in the middle of the clearing that at one time probably contained many fish for the children to look at, but was now black and murky. The fish have long since died and the grass around it was brown and slimy.
Kenshin landed behind Kaoru and just leaned against a tree with his armsand legs folded. The sky was quickly obscured by the newly formed clouds and the wind picked up to an almost violent pace. The energy in the air became almost tangible. The leaves and twigs in the air snapped in half giving a visual to the energy swarming around Kaoru.
Arm raised to the sky, and face the picture of controlled power, Kaoru formed a large six foot ice pick from the moisture in the air. Kaoru hurled the ice pick straight to the center of the pond where a giant 12 foot alligator shot throw the water screeching in pain. The pick was still embedded into his side when he landed in front of Kaoru to take his original form.
He was about 6 feet tall, a staggering ten inches taller than Kaoru, but even still she remained calm and didn't move even one inch in retreat. He gripped the ice and shattered it. The hole in his body was trying to close up but given the thickness of the shaft it would take at least one rising before the hole properly healed, which he wouldn't get. His skin was translucent almost except for the sickly yellow brownness of it, and was pulled tightly against his body. His once white perfect teeth were now black, and jagged.
"I had heard that you didn't fight fair, but I didn't believe it until now. Hitting a man while he is resting is low even for you." His beady eyes for a moment bored into hers.
"I waited a whole ten seconds before attacking and you weren't resting; you knew from the moment we landed in this park, so don't give me that. You were scared, but don't worry I intend to send your putrid rotten soul straight to Hell without delay. Prepare yourself, belly crawler!" She slid into a battle stance and pulled out her sword.
His eyes slid to the person behind her and recognition lit his black eyes. "Battousia, I thought you were dead? Well it seems that it's just your pride. Letting a weak woman fight in battle? Pfft. You're even more pathetic than this woman!"
The gold eyes that met his made him flinch and take a step back, "Where's your spine Jehni?" Kenshin laughed without humor, "I would be paying more attention to your current battle, than trying to pick one with me. When you get to Hell you'll tell your brother that I said hi won't you? I did so enjoy sending him where you're going." The smirk he wore on his face said it all.
Jenhi turned to Kaoru in time to see her launch herself in the air, sword raised high above her head. Kenshin watched with an almost boredom in his eyes as she sliced straight through the Vampire.
As he tried in vain to not fall, Kaoru continued to slice him into a hundred pieces and then she thrust her hand forward where his middle would have been and the fires of hell seemed to shoot forth, and incinerated every crumb of him. When she turned to Kenshin she saw the look of surprise in his eyes.
"That was mage power. But how? I've never seen anyone that wielded that type of power before." He had seen her use it before in the dojo and again with the ice pick; but how was she doing it?
"His eyes are blue now but before they were—" Before she could finish her train of thought or answer his question, Sano came running into the clearing.
"Where is he!" He looked from side to side, searching. Not finding what he thought he would, Sano looked from Kaoru to Kenshin, "Huh?" Kenshin was staring dumbfounded at him and pointing to the ground where nothing but a dark spot remained, "Aw man I missed the fight! UHG!"
"Well, where were you bird brain!" Kaoru was back to her old self. Kenshin smiled at the two. His life would never again be full of silence.
"Well, you see, I got a little lost. I must be having an off day or something." Sano looked away, not wanting to see the look in her eyes.
"You are so hopeless! You aren't having an off day, you're having an off life!"
"Hey that hurts you know!" Remembering his new friend he turned to Kenshin, "Hey man was this the guy you were thinking it was?"
Kenshin looked down and shook his head no, "No, this was not him. The one I'm after is named Enishiand when the time comes I will be the one to send his corrupt soul to the afterlife."
"Not alone you won't! We're friends now and that means we're gonna help you no matter what you say!" Sano looked like he was looking forward to this future fight. Kenshin gave him a fake smile in return but didn't say anything in reply.
The water in the pond started to become a dark blue. With the evil gone from it, the pond would soon be able to harbor life once more. The sky became clear again and the wind had died down soon after the battle had ended. All is as it should be.
A/N: So what do you think? Sorry it took me so long to write this chapter but I couldn't decide who I was going to make the bad vampire in this chapter. I knew it wasn't going to be Enishi (The main antagonist) but I didn't know just who I was going to make the mini bad guy. More questions will be answered in the next chapter as KK really need to have some sit down and talk time hehe. Also my year anniversary for being married for a full year was on the 3rd so I was busy making all kinds of sweets for my honey-bunny ^-^
Special thanks to:
lilj9900 (and I looooooved your review!),
Brit02 (Don't worry Aoshi will be here soon! A few more chapters though), SRAS9,
nma5(Misco will be in either the next chapter or the one following it and I may even do a drabble of her story more fully when this one is finished),
Cosmic-lover (Thanks for the AWESOME review! I think Kenshin got the point (hehe get my joke? Ok I know I'm lame ~_^)),
Mini-woo (Thanks for sticking with me thus far! I will explain more on the Carpathian/Vampire thing soon but yes Kaoru is VERY special hehe),
Dark Angel Winry Rockbell (Thanks for the review! I'm glad that I blended them well ),
NiciGold (Your Beta is freakn' awesome! She accepted me! Can you believe it! Well I can't haha! Anyway yes Kenshin is in his rurouni mode at the moment because he has newly discovered his emotions and happiness but yes Battousia mode is very important in this story),
6Poppy (yes Sano is part of the supernatural club ^-^ He even has a stubborn mate but don't tell anyone ~-^)
Please leave me a review!
