A/N: Haha, didn't I tell you guys this story would update fast :P Hope you like it!
"I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night."
-Galileo
Chapter 4- To the Edge of the Stars
The pureblood gave an annoyed sigh as the girl startled awake, immediately scanning her surroundings in a blind haze. Fear was present in her topaz orbs, muscles stiffened. She visibly calmed down when she noticed Rido's presence, however, relaxing her shoulders.
"Do not worry. We are at an inn— and no, I haven't killed everyone... yet." The hint of a smirk flitted across the pureblood's handsome face.
Itzel scoffed. "Well, that's a step in the right direction."
She stretched out her arms, the aches and pains of the day prior finally catching up to her. "I'm going to take a bath." The girl pulled the sheets off of her lithe form as she sleepily walked to the bathroom.
"Want me to join you?" The vampire called out teasingly, chuckling as the girl slammed the door shut behind her.
"What do you think?!" She muttered, ignoring the pureblood's jibes. He was too infuriating for his own good... yet, a small smile passed her lips.
Perhaps there was more to the monster than the facade he gave the world. Perhaps... he wasn't completely evil. She shook her head at the thought. Rido was right. She was being a complete fool.
When the girl walked out of the bathroom, a roll of steam behind her, she found that the vampire was asleep in the bed.
Peering through the curtains she could see that morning was just beginning to break, the sun peeking over the horizon. Like clockwork, Rido had fallen asleep, turned away from the source of light and buried under the heavy blankets.
Itzel rolled her eyes, looking for her boots. Slipping them on, she gave herself one more look in the mirror.
Her hair was a mess of wet curls, but her face was void of dirt. Her clothes, however, were still covered in dirt and sand, and she wrinkled her nose slightly.
Reaching into her back pocket, she was surprised to find her wallet still in place. The kidnappers didn't search her thoroughly, and only took what was visibly on her person, explaining why her coat was missing, but her wallet was still intact.
She took a sideward glance at Rido's coat. It rested innocently enough on the back of a chair, sparking an idea in her head. Despite the messy way he killed his victims, he kept his coat clean, barely a hint of dirt or blood on it. Making a split-second decision, Itzel grabbed the coat before slipping her arms through the sleeves.
The dark trench-coat nearly swallowed her petite form, the edge of the sleeves falling to her knuckles. But, the fabric was soft, and she clasped the buttons together as she walked out of the room. The door clicked softly behind her, careful to not alert the vampire of her leaving.
The first thing she needed to do was get some new clothes. With that thought in mind, she entered the main lobby of the inn, relieved to see the smiling faces of other patrons. Rido hadn't done anything drastic this time, to her relief, and she continued to walk happily out of the building.
The streets were relatively empty, with only a few early patrons shuffling around the stalls. The girl smiled to herself as she traversed the small village, watching as two children ran in front of her.
"Sorry, miss!" A blonde boy blurted out, bowing. The red-haired girl beside him followed suit, clenching the hem of her dress nervously.
Itzel laughed lightly, ruffling the two children's hair. "It's alright. Just be careful next time. You could get hurt."
The children nodded eagerly, waving goodbye as they disappeared around the street corner.
The bronze-skinned girl continued her stroll, stopping in front of a stall with an array of clothes. The man greeted her warmly, immediately pointing her in the direction of his finer fabric.
"I was looking for a coat, actually."
The man nodded eagerly. "I can give you a fairly reasonable price for this one," He paused to pick up a tan long-coat, handing it to the girl.
Itzel quickly pulled off Rido's coat to try on the new one, enjoying the leather lining on the inside. There were deep pockets on the inside to her glee. It will definitely make a better holder for Nephthys than just my pants loop.
After a brief exchange, Itzel left the shop with a lighter wallet, but a bag in her left hand. She had already kept on the new coat and folded Rido's into the shopping bag.
Just as she made her way towards the inn, a dark figure brushed into her.
"Sorry—" She started, only to freeze immediately.
The man's amber eyes were narrowed in anger, fingers curled around a metal object. His gaze immediately softened as he gave a quick apology, walking in the opposite direction of the inn.
It wasn't until a few moments later that she came to a startling revelation. That man... was a vampire hunter.
"Rido... Rido, wake up." Itzel called out softly, shaking the vampire's shoulders.
He woke immediately, eyes a dark crimson at his rude awakening. Still disoriented, he did the first thing that came naturally to him and attacked, pinning the girl under him.
"C-calm down! It's just me!"
He immediately stilled at her voice, but made no motion to get off of her. "Didn't I warn you about waking me? Especially during the day?"
Rido's curls brushed against her shoulder as he brought his mouth to her neck. Hot puffs of breath escaped his lips as he teasingly breathed against the shell of her ear. "...I may just eat you someday, if you're not careful."
She pushed lightly against his bare chest, looking anywhere but directly at the vampire. "I woke you for a reason, Rido. There are vampire hunters here." Her voice wavered slightly as her cheeks flushed pink.
The man's wicked grin slipped to a frown as he pulled away, allowing the girl to sit up. She sat on the edge of the bed, shooting the vampire one more glare as he went to sit beside her.
"This place seemed so peaceful and ordinary that I didn't think to check around. Tell me, how do you know there are hunters here?"
She glared at the arrogant pureblood, sitting beside him on the edge of the bed. "I went into town and literally ran into one. It was for a moment, but I saw a blade under his coat."
Rido raised an eyebrow. "So, he had a sword. Big deal. He could be just another cutthroat."
She shook her head. "Even though the streets were empty he didn't try to rob me. He seemed really angry at first when he bumped into me, but apologized once he got a good look at my face. When he realized I was a human. He was walking away from the inn... like he had already been here."
A knock suddenly resounded in the small room, both occupants' eyes darting to the door.
Rido retrieved his shirt from the floor and slipped it on, stalking towards the door in a languid motion. Not missing a beat, he swung the door open, fingers clenched at his sides.
Two familiar children poked their heads into the room, both moving back slightly at the sight of the imposing man.
"What do you kids want?" He growled irritably, the light of the hallway further dampening his mood.
The two children fidgeted nervously, faces cast to the floor. Rido let out an annoyed sigh, opening the door wider to reveal Itzel.
"There better be a good reason you two brats are here. I'm feeling a bit... peckish, after all." He then proceeded to give a lopsided grin, exposing his fangs.
The girl backed behind who appeared to be her brother, only for her eyes to lighten up at the sight of Itzel.
"Brother, see, she's in there. The lady wasn't lying to us!" She pointed in the raven-haired woman's direction, bouncing excitedly. The boy's eyes also brightened as he realized Itzel was there, any prior fear of the frightening man in front of them gone.
The pair rushed by the surprised brunette, hopping eagerly towards Itzel.
"Miss, when you bumped into us you dropped this from your pocket!" The boy proceeded to pull out a metal tin, fishing out a copper coin. Itzel stared at it quizzically, but took it anyway.
"Thanks you two, I was definitely... looking for this." She gave a warm smile as the two children skipped towards the door.
"Bye miss... bye sir!" They added later, waving more at Itzel than Rido as they walked into the hallway.
Rido slammed the door shut behind him, giving the girl an annoyed glare. "Explain."
"I don't know. I did run into those kids, but this isn't mine. I didn't want to offend them, but it has someone else's initials on it. KC."
"So what, they found some random coin on the street and decided to give it to you?" He replied lazily, returning to the comforts of the bed.
"I guess. Something about this isn't right, though. I can feel it."
"It's fine. We'll leave the village tonight."
Itzel cast her eyes to the ground, deep in thought. Those two, although they were looking for me, didn't seem all that fazed by Rido. As if they were warned about him beforehand. Ah, what am I thinking, they're just kids!
She smiled at her own foolishness. She was just being paranoid, was all. And who knew, Rido could be right. The man she ran into before was probably just a bounty hunter or a thief.
A few hours later, the pair took off from the inn, night settling in around them. The stars were as beautiful as before, twinkling brightly in the absence of other light. On Rido's behalf, they continued heading north, towards what he deemed as home. Somehow, the words seemed to sour when on his tongue, making the girl wonder about his family.
Neither talked much about their past, but Itzel could not recall a time in which Rido spoke of his family, whether it be good or bad. I wonder what his home is like. He never mentions it and then all of a sudden he wants to go there. I hope it isn't some gothic-style mansion with a bunch of torture chambers or something. Although, I wouldn't be surprised if it was...
"Say... Rido, I've been meaning to ask—"
He suddenly brought a hand to his lips, his usual care-free, narcissistic smile turned to a frown. Itzel stilled immediately, hand reflexively traveling to her dagger.
A sudden gust of wind enveloped the pair, sending a wave of sand towards them. The raven-haired girl shut her eyes as grains of sand cut into her skin, causing her to wince slightly. Eventually the sandstorm around them subsided, as a dark figure appeared from afar.
"Rido Kuran, it has been a long time." A smooth voice smoke in a whirlwind of sand. A sword rested in the man's hand, clearly the cause of the tornado of sand that had surrounded the pair.
"Vampire hunter... Kaien Cross. I should have known it was you. Are you now exploiting children to do your dirty work? I thought that was my job!" He sneered, taking long strides toward the hunter.
"I was just 'helping' them protect their village. That woman smells just like you; it was easy to track her and sure enough, she led me to you. I don't know what sort of charade you're playing, Rido, but I will not let you kill another human. Miss, you must know he'll betray you, someday. You're human now, but one day he'll turn you into a monster."
Itzel stepped forward, holding up her hands in a sign of peace. "Kaien, was it? I understand why you are going after Rido— there are times when I want to kill him too— but, we have a... truce of sorts. A test of philosophies, if you will."
The amber-eyed man furrowed his brow. "What could you possibly learn from a monster? What philosophy, could a monster have?"
She gave a small smile. "You'd be surprised. I won't quit until I prove humans and vampires can coexist. Perhaps one day you'll see that too."
He chuckled darkly, brandishing his blade. "This banter has been fun, but I came here for a reason. Vampires and humans will never live together in peace without one race destroying the other. That is why, Rido Kuran... this will be the last night you terrorize humanity!"
The hunter charged, bringing the sword over his head. Rido grinned wickedly, eyes shining a bright crimson in the heavy dark. "You're arrogance is for folly, friend… but that doesn't mean I won't enjoy a little snack!"
A/N: ...And I can't believe I made a story where Kaien is an antagonist and Rido is a protagonist XD As usual, please drop a review and tell me what you think! Thanks again!
-Isis
