Chapter 4

The food was simple but delicious. They ate in silence for a couple of minutes. Kain didn't know how hungry he had been until the first bite was in his mouth. The meal soothed his fuzzy mind, his thoughts going over the mission that was laying ahead of them. Obviously, since time was an issue, they had to move quickly. They were two vampires against a building full of vampire hunters, not knowing what exactly was waiting for them behind the brick walls. He had to admit that it worried him a little, having no idea about how skilled Akane was in combat, besides the fact that they were outnumbered. Well, it couldn't be helped, they had to find a way. He cleared his throat, the sudden noise made her looking up from her plate.

"So what's the plan then?" Kain asked. " I assume since we don't have much time, we have to move as soon as possible, don't we?"

"Yes, it is crucial that we take action as soon as possible," Akane confirmed. "I suggest that we are going to go to the site tomorrow night so you can see for yourself. After that, we will need to determine our next move. Preferably, this will mean to enter the building complex and extract the woman." Well, couldn't be that hard, could it? Putting the sarcastic thought aside, he asked: "Have you been there before? What can you tell me about the building?" He didn't like to go there unprepared so he needed to find out everything.

"No, I have not approached the boarders of the town yet but rest assured that I got skilled spies," she said with a smirk and her eyes trailed to the door. "You already met them earlier." Kain followed her gaze and realization hit him. "The two wolves?" His voice sounded a bit incredulous.

"My noble ability allows me to bond with animals in a very special way. By forming a mental connection I can see thru their eyes, it also works over a certain distance." Akane explained, looking right into his eyes. Kain instantly wondered if she was able to do this with humans or other vampires, too. She must have read his mind because the next moment she said: "I have never tried to do this with other persons, human or vampire, so you can relax, Kain."

"Would you be able to do it, though?" He was openly curious now, not understanding why she hadn't had tried at least - or she was pulling the wool over his face in which case he needed to act more carefully around her than he had been so far. But her ability could turn the tide if the situation got out of hand.

Still looking at him, she mulled his question over. "Well…," she hesitated, her eyes flickering briefly. "I do not know." She was saying the truth, Kain could see it written all over her face. Interestingly, she didn't seem to be aware of the fact that her noble ability was quite powerful and, if he was reading the situation correctly, she had only established a mature connection to the two wolves outside. Under other circumstances, he would have pursued this topic but as it was they were running out of time so instead, he concentrated on the matter lying before them, making a note to himself to catch up on this with her later though.

"So why don't you just tell me what you have found out so far?" Relief was displayed on her face at his words, confirming Kain's surmise that she had being uncomfortable with him bringing up the question.

"As you already know, the complex is in the middle of town, surrounded by other blocks, except for the east side which faces a park. The park offers a lot of hiding possibilities, providing trees and bushes. There is, however, a 50 yards wide stripe of plain lawn between the wall and the trees which we will have to cross first in order to enter the building. The side which borders to the park has a brick wall, behind this wall is a small space for the sentinels guarding the gate as well as the back of the complex. There are two from all what I could see so far, being replaced every three hours. It takes about two minutes to change the guards. Also, this gate is being used for deliveries since the other entrance at the west side of the building opens into a narrow street. Deliveries have been so far erratic, happening most of the time in the early morning but there is really no pattern to it." She crossed her arms in front of her chest as a sign that her report had ended. Kain nodded in response.

"So it's decided then, we're going on a hike tomorrow night." He stood up and brought his empty plate back to the kitchen, being watched by Akane. It wasn't that she was openly staring but he felt her gaze on his back. Kain came back to get her plate, meeting her eyes. So black. So deep. Framed by beautifully thick lashes. Geez, he had to stop this!

"Let me get this for you," he murmured, taking her plate.

The kitchen wasn't equipped with a dishwasher so Kain turned on the hot tap water, plugged the sink and let the water run until it was half full. He didn't mind at all doing this kind of work at all, it was kind of relaxing. His mind wandered back to the events of the day that lied past him. Leaving the mansion had been a good decision after all, the situation being unbearable at times with an always moody Kaname and the fact that Ruka wasn't able to let go of her crush for their gang leader. Sometimes, he had wanted to grab and shake her, asking her why she kept torturing herself. Even though he acknowledged the possibility that she would never consider him as a mate, he didn't want to see her suffering from a broken heart. She meant everything to him, for her he would do anything if it meant for her to be happy. But as truly as he was missing Ruka at the very moment, he also needed a break. He could see that now. It had been eating on him for so long that he feared nothing would be left of him to protect her. The image of her, smiling at him over her shoulder, honey brown cascades of hair falling down her back, made his heart ache.

"Can you use some help?" Softly, Akane's voice floated towards him and Kain turned around, only to find her standing next to him. In a moment of awe, he got lost in her black eyes. How did she do this? The small voice in the back of his head fell silent the next second, Akane's eyes becoming black pools of gravity. Like a sailor, he couldn't withstand the dead water, soon his head was under water and he struggled to get air. Desperately, he tried to get back to the surface but everything around him was pitch black, not being able to tell no longer where up and where down was. With his body going limp, he surrendered himself completely to the darkness. One last breath escaped his lips. Ruka…

"Kain!"

The darkness was ripped open by a bell like voice, frantic. He blinked as the light hit his eyes.

"Are you alright?" Again, the voice. Akane? He blinked again, this time being able to keep his eyes open. Why was he lying on the floor? Oh… he remembered drowning in black waters, struggling for air. Well, he must have imagined this because he clearly was alive. Wait a second - Akane! Quickly checking his body by moving his hands and feet, he sat up, putting a hand over his face, slightly moaning from the head spin. As he lowered his hand, his gaze fell on Akane's shape, hunkering at the wall a few yards from him, shivering all over. What -

"Are you alright?" Her voice was even more frantic now, with high pitches. He thought about it shortly before he answered.

"Yes, I think I'm ok." He got to his knees, his heart pounding in his ears. "Are you alright?" She didn't look as if she was though. Eyes wide open, she looked scared to the bones, her hair falling in wild strands around her crouched shape. Trembling with shock, she wasn't able to answer, her mouth opened but all he heard was only a whimper. He slowly moved closer to her.

"It's ok. See? I'm fine," he soothed and reached out for her. The moment she saw his hand she flinched.

"No!" Panic was all over her voice. "Don't touch me!" she panted and plain fear was displayed on her face. Petrified, she pressed her back against the wall, sobbing heavily now. Kain put his arm down but didn't back up. The state she was currently in could let her instincts completely take over any second and she would be beyond reach for him then. Since he had no clue what she was capable of he preferred to see her calming down. Damn Kaname, why hadn't he said anything? He must have known about this, she was a danger for others and for herself. He needed to think faster! He believed her words that she didn't know what her true powers were. Could it be that they had been manifesting themselves just recently? As he was watching her how scared she looked, he was inclined to follow his conclusion. What made it even more inevitable to quiet her quickly. Usually, vampires developed their skills early in adolescence and once they had shown, a continuous training ensured that the bearer became adept in them. Vampires with untrained abilities on the loose would be the death of the society they all knew. Let's face it, vampires are ferocious animals driven by instinct, only the strict rules of their society made it possible for them to coexist with each other peacefully, at least most of the time. Jesus, she was a ticking time bomb and he had to get her under control.

"Akane, please listen to me." He inched closer to her. She was still shaking, he could smell her fear. "I promise, everything will be fine but you have to listen to me." He spoke as calmly as he could muster, trying not to scare her more than she already was. "Everything will be fine. Just try to breathe normally and it will go away." He watched her breath becoming more even and her body gradually releasing the tension. Though it seemed to work, he never stopped speaking to her, while moving closer inch by inch. "Yes, that's right. Just relax."

When he was about a foot away from here, he said softly: "Akane, look at me." She shook her head, hiding her face behind a curtain of dark reddish hair. "It will be ok," he tried to sound utterly confident, though his pounding heart gave him away. He took a deep breath, steadying his heartbeat. "Look at me, please," he tried one more time, this time more firmly. Slowly, she lifted her head and looked at him, her eyes glistening with tears.

"I am so sorry," she whispered. Kain let out a breath, he hadn't known he had been holding. She seemed have calmed down, choked up still but she had responded to him which was a good sign.

"I know." He wasn't going to blame her right now. Maybe he shouldn't do it at all since it really wasn't her fault. Well, he would decide on that later but for now, it had priority to restore her confidence and prepare her for what was going to come. Though he had no idea what to do next, he asked tentatively: "Can you stand up?"

After a short time of consideration, she said: "Yes, I think so." Her voice was still a bit shaky but the panic in it was gone. He smiled at her reassuringly, standing up, too.

A couple of seconds later, she stood next to him. Again, Kain noticed that she was almost as tall as he was. Her tuft of dark brown reddish hair ended right under the tip of his nose. She went past him over to the kitchen sink and turned on the cold water to splash it into her face. She covered her face for a long moment, before she ran her wet hands over her hair.

"That is much better," she sighed, turning off the water. Kain watched her closely. She would turn to him any second and he mentally braced himself. Three, two, one - here she goes. She looked unbelievably cute with a wet face and slightly damp hair. When did she unbraid her hair? Geez, he really needed to get a hold on himself. He cleared his throat.

"You are ok?" She definitely looked better.

"Yes, thank you." Embarrassed, she lowered her head, her eyes scanning the kitchen floor. "I did not know what I was doing." She paused, obviously looking for an explanation. "I never thought that I would have the capability of doing… THIS." Kneading her hands, she still looked down. Seeing her like this, how she came apart before his eyes, Kain felt a wave of sympathy rushing over him and he felt the strong desire to take her into his arms. He couldn't possibly do this, could he?

"We should talk about this," he said instead, being ever so rational and calm. She visibly flinched at his words, her hands started trembling slightly.

"Yes, we should." Her voice was small and he mentally slapped himself for being so cold-hearted. But there was no way around it. If they were going to hike to the association's quarters tomorrow night, he would need to know what's going on here. He couldn't afford to put her in danger if she was unstable. Yet, he hesitated - why couldn't he just go to her first, hold her close and stroke her hair. She looked so lonely… An impatient scratching and yowling at the door pulled him out of his thoughts. Obviously, the wolves wanted to check on their master. The yowling got louder and Akane went to open the door. The next moment, both wolves circled Akane, anxiously whining. Mollifyingly, she whispered words of affection and got down on her knees. Both wolves became quiet almost immediately while she kept stroking their fur. To Kain, it seemed as if they were sharing a secret conversation and after a minute or so, both animals vanished where they had came from. Akane stood up and shut the door.

"They are able to sense my constitution as I am able to sense theirs so they came here to assure that everything is well," she explained apologetically.

"So the connection goes both ways?" Kain let it sound more than a confirmation than a question.

"Yes," she answered, her face taking on an uncertain expression. "At least… I can only speak for this bond… I do not know…" Her voice ebbed away. Oh for Pete's sake, just go to her! He could hear his cousin's voice clearly in his head. He blinked. Before he could form another thought, his legs started moving on their own and he found himself standing close to her the next second. Not being able to stop himself, he inhaled her feminine scent, well knowing that this only would make things worse but he didn't care. Smelling her confusion, her anxiety and her loneliness woke up the protective part in him, the urge to console her quickly became unbearable.

"Akatsuki," she whispered, the sound of his name coming from her lips made his heart skip a beat. He was even closer now, only a few inches between them. He raised a hand to put a strand of her hair behind her ear. She didn't shy away, only looking at him with eyes wide open. Her breath was a bit uneven and he could hear her heartbeat going faster. His hand rested on her shoulder with his fingertips ever so slightly caressing the side of her neck.

He tried his voice. "I'm sorry." It was a bit husky and he wasn't sure if he could bring out another coherent sentence so he concentrated instead on her lips. What exactly was he doing here again? The small voice of reason sounded distant. Kain knew that he should allow reason to prevail but his body betrayed him. He couldn't say if it was her feminine appeal or the helplessness radiating from her or simply the fact that he also needed some comfort, he was completely unable to pull away. One hand still on her neck, he touched her cheek with the other. Her skin had a silky texture and, God, it was incredibly smooth. She gasped, standing utterly still and letting him touch her. Amazed by her reaction, Kain caressed her lips with his thump, causing her to stop breathing altogether. He feared that she would draw back any second but to his astonishment, she leaned into his touch. He really wanted to kiss her but he held back. It would be bold, wouldn't it? He kept silently debating the pros and cons of kissing her when she suddenly moved and rested her head on his shoulder, her warm breath against his neck. Instinctively, Kain wrapped his arms tightly around her, holding her close. She felt amazing and it took him every ounce of his self-restraint not to trail his hands down to her hips or even lower, though his mind was totally occupied by this fantasy. Concentrating really hard on to keep his breath going, he simply held her, wishing this moment wouldn't end.