Chapter Six:

Betrayals

Pebbles of cold sweat trailed down her face, her skin in a hot fever. Shivers ran through her body, each larger then the first. Though her eyelids lifted darkness remained in its dead silence. Silk, running down her body in a soft caress. And a hand, brushing her hair from a drenched forehead.

"My sweet little bird, you've been asleep too long. It's almost morning." A deep voice, nearby where she lay alone. She squinted, attempting to find the man's face. "It's time to get up."

Kaoru finally spotted something, brilliant violet eyes specked with amber fire. Each glinted with a soft concern foreign to themselves. Moving lazily Kaoru rose from the bed, the mattress creasing under the sudden shift of weight. Kiara, another victim of a tragic fate she had foreseen. Raising her eyes Kaoru stared straight ahead at her friend's murderer, Kenshin Himura.

"Where am I?" She had no motivation to panic, a certain death sentence to the less knowledgeable when it came to dealing with this creature.

"My home," a quick reply that had come without hesitation. "You've been out for a couple days; we were worried about your health."

Kaoru caught the word we, dispassion in her eyes as she asked who we was. And the response came as a surprise, because of who answered the question. The light from a candles fire allowed Kaoru to peer into familiar red eyes. "Me, Kaoru-chan." Kiara smiled, her blond curls shimmering in the candlelight.

Kaoru was speechless, staring at the dead. She didn't even notice the arms holding her up. Himura, choosing that time to interrupt, spoke in a demanding tone towards her would-be dead friend. "Leave." The blond did as demanded, not sparing a second glance back at Kaoru, but instead heading towards the door quicker then she'd arrived.

Lost within her own thoughts Kaoru didn't see him move. Kiara was supposed to be dead, wasn't she? Had Kaoru actually made a mistake in her assumption of the scene in the ballroom? Impossible. Staring at the creature before her, a smile on his wicked face.

"I have a lot to talk to you about, little bird. More then your friend has told me." As he spoke his fingers worked small knots from her hair, an intimate caress she had would not have usually allowed had her body been stronger. Lying beside her Kenshin smiled, his hand never stopped tracing her hair, brushing it with his fingers.

"You're probably wondering what happened to your friend? Kiara is now a servant in my quarter," As he spoke Kaoru could feel his hot breath upon her face. "You won't be made a servant. You are special and I don't want you mindless."

Kaoru stared up at him with questioning eyes; her body had suddenly become rigid with fear. Had Kiara, her only friend, revealed her deepest secret, her ability, her curse! To this creature before her?

"You see, like you I'm different, but I have the ability to pass my curse onto others." His words had answered her minds question, Kenshin knew. "I am an elder of my race, a race that has been feared by the thousands through the centuries. Humans call me by a simple name, the vampire."

His arm wrapped around her then, trapping Kaoru so she wouldn't move away from him. She didn't struggle, knowing very well it would only be an attempt made in vain against such power.

With forcefulness he moved close, lips pressing against the side of her face so she could feel them as he spoke each word. "You friend was a danger to us, she'd seen one of us take a prey. She'd known your secret. As my servant Kiara is prohibited to reveal information to the enemies. I knew that I had to either kill her, or make her a servant. The only reason she is not dead is because of you!"

Kenshin's sudden change of attitude, his feral smile, arm holding her in place. He was a predator and she the prey. Kaoru, finally finding some courage to speak up, spoke in only anger. "She is better off dead then a walking corpse!"

Both stubborn, both easily angered, both angry at a solution that Kenshin had chosen. But at the same time the difference between the two made the biggest change, Kaoru was on fire, struggling to move away, and Kenshin lay still, watching her with a grim look on his usually monotone face.

Finally, he stood up, leaving her alone on the bed. Staring down the amusement washed out of his face quickly, "Tomorrow we fly to the north." Her eyes widened at the announcement, and as Kaoru made a move to protest he put his hand up and stopped her, "Tomorrow I will turn you." The color immediately washed away from Kaoru's face, and she had could no longer speak.

Twisting around Kenshin headed towards the door, only to turn around to look at her one last time, "Get dressed Kaoru, tomorrow, you wed the Battousai." With those words, he left her alone.

Kaoru lay still, staring into the darkness with thoughtful redemption. If everything he said was true, how come Sanosuke had not been a mindless servant? And if what he'd spoken about Battousai was true, if he was Battousai, she had a real problem. As a child she'd often heard stories of an immortal killer, stalking the night for his next victim. A ruler of darkness and death. If Kaoru was going to get away from this, she'd have to do it during the day. If legends were correct, Battousai could not go after her into the sunlight.

Slowly rising to her feet Kaoru spotted the clothes that had been set out for her, and now looking down at herself she realized she was wearing the dress from the night before. Moving slowly across the cold marble floor Kaoru picked up the pants and the shirt. Each article of clothing was black, and it didn't take long for her to recognize the outfit as a man's.

After she put the clothes on Kaoru knew for sure that her observation had been correct, she wore mans clothing. It oversized her, not too badly, but enough where she had to role up the sleeves of the pants so she wouldn't trip, and the sleeves so she could use her hands. Staring at the room she'd been placed Kaoru was surprised to find that it didn't have as many dark colors as she'd first seen when she'd gone into Kenshin's house.

A white marble floor sparkled clean, black and white portraits hung all over the wall. The chairs were a soft yellow that would warm a guest when they saw it. The only thing that seemed to belong to Kenshin in any way was the large, gothic bed. The covers; a blood red as she'd seen in the first room.

Sitting down on one of the chairs Kaoru tried to clear her mind, Kenshin was a vampire, Kiara was a vampire, and she was going to be turned if she couldn't get away. Kenshin knew that she could see things that would occur in the future, and he planned on…

Kaoru froze, he'd said wed! He thought she was going to marry him! That had just been absurd. With sudden revulsion Kaoru ran towards the door, refusing to marry a creature that would kill innocents without a second's hesitation. If he thought that she'd willingly allow him to place a ring on her finger, well, she didn't even like jewelry! Kaoru was fuming.

The door, which had not come as a big shock to Kaoru, was locked. Kenshin was keeping her prisoner in the room, he'd left without a word. If the room had a window Kaoru would have opened it by now, apparently Kenshin had taken every precaution, except one.

A slow smile lifted to Kaoru's face, the furniture. As a child Kaoru had learned how to fight those who were bigger then her, one of the key elements being surprise. The chairs, although big, could easily be smashed against a person.

Testing the weight of the chair Kaoru smiled, the door swung out, and when he opened that door she'd hit him, and run. The vampire had told her vital information, mainly that it was going to be day soon. Daylight, Kaoru's only friend in the current situation. She wouldn't go to the police, they'd probably lock her up in an asylum, though it wasn't worse then being in her current situation.

Bending down on front of the door she waited, freezing when the knob began to turn. Kenshin was going to pay, and Kaoru would make sure to be a prey that would survive the wolves den. But what came next was not only a surprise for the person opening the door, but for Kaoru as well.

The sound of flesh and wood smacking against each other lasted an eternity as Kaoru stared into the brown eyes of the man she'd actually enjoyed. His hands had almost made a good defense stance, but unprepared Sanosuke was sent flying back against the wall.

No time to waste, without a whisper of 'sorry' Kaoru ran. She heard her name screamed, motivating her body to move faster then ever before. The halls were all dark, and soon Kaoru found herself searching blindly for an exit. The screams had stopped long ago, she'd lost them, and they'd lost her.

Groping for some type of door handle Kaoru contained a scream as a familiar voice spoke, sobs of regret making the way to her ears. "I don't know how long I have this conscious, please, Kaoru-chan, please leave." Kiara.

Trying to find her friend in the dark Kaoru heard the movements as Kiara distanced herself. She didn't want to be touched, she knew she'd lose her last piece of humanity soon, of self-thought. "Go to the left, the door to the outside is there. Follow the stairs down, it will lead you directly to sunlight."

Kaoru nodded, not knowing if she'd be able to see her in the darkness of the hall. Moving as told Kaoru felt the handle in her hand and smiled, friends forever. A whispered hurry brought her back, and Kaoru slipped inside. Compelled to say something before she closed the door on her friend, forever. "I love you, Kiara. And no matter what happens after today, you will remain my closest friend."

The sobs became louder, as did the voices of her pursuers. Kaoru looked up, now scared, they'd find her soon. "Hurry." Kiara stood in front of the door, "I'll hold them back as long as I can." She didn't want to leave her friend, but as she turned and ran down the lit stairway Kiara smiled, "Goodbye."

It hadn't been long until she found it, the door which led to the outside, Kaoru ran into the morning light. She would be safe until the moon rose, vampires could not appear in sunlight, nor their workers. Kaoru was safe.

Meanwhile, Kenshin flicked his blade, the droplets of blood spraying on the already mutilated body. The woman had gotten away, and Kiara had betrayed her master. She know lay dead, again. Flipping in the darkness of the hall he stared at his companions, he'd almost gotten the girl. Three men stood with him, staring at the body of the teenager. Kenshin faced two of them, the ones who could walk the daylight.

"Find her."

Sorry, I was gonna out of it for a while. Again. XD