Raised in the Shadows

Disclaimer:…(sits there awkwardly for a second, sniffs armpit) Yeah, we still don't own it.

A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews. And don't worry; Vicente shall find love soon enough. Be patient!

456

Two years later…

Kira jumped quickly out of the way as the vampire charged at her. Her sword had been knocked to the other side of the room and under a bench. She had no other weapons. Lucien was trying to break free of a paralysis spell the vampire had used on him.

The vampire growled and turned to face her again. Its eyes were glowing a bright and its fangs were bared. It slashed its hand at Kira who moved away quickly. Kira moved closer swiftly and punched at the vampire. She tried her best but the vampire was strong.

It snarled and knocked her to the ground. It hovered over her with its fangs bared. Suddenly Lucien charged forward and tackled the vampire. They rolled away and landed in a tangled heap. Kira got up quickly. The vampire dragged Lucien to his feet and tossed him across the room.

It knocked Kira to the ground again and hovered over her. Its fangs were centimeters from her neck. It snarled again. Kira closed her eyes and gulped. She opened her eyes again.

"What? Why are you giving me that look?" She raised one eyebrow.

"You actually thought I was going to bite you." Vicente said.

"No I didn't!" Kira said. Vicente stood up and helped her to her feet. Lucien groaned and sat up, rubbing the back of his head.

"Yes you did. You looked terrified." Vicente laughed a bit.

"I know you'd never bite me, Vicente. I'm insulted you think I'd think that." Kira tilted her head and looked at him.

"I'm insulted you'd think I'd bite you." Vicente looked away, pretending to sound insulted.

"I did not think that!" Kira practically growled. Vicente smiled at her and ruffled her hair. He walked over to Lucien and gripped his arm and not so subtly yanked him to his feet. Lucien walked quickly to stand on the other side of Kira. Kira shook her head and laughed a bit.

"Hey Vicente, if your skilled enough to beat the two of us together, how come you're not a Speaker or even the Listener yourself?" Kira asked.

"Because I have always made it known to the Black Hand that I don't want to be a Speaker. I find my talents are put to better use in the Sanctuary then for the Black Hand." Vicente replied. Suddenly Jet ran into the room.

"Hey guys, Rain's back!" He said excitedly. Everyone rushed from the room but of course Vicente still managed to look proper and fancy while rushing out. They hurried into the front room where Rain was talking happily to Ocheeva.

"Rain, what the hell took you so long to come back?!" Kira yelled. She hugged her sister quickly.

"I've got some explaining to do, don't I?" Rain asked after she hugged Vicente. Truthfully, she was afraid to hug Lucien in fear that either he or Kira would attack her.

"Yes, you have explaining to do!" Kira said.

"But that can wait until later. I'm sure you're tired. You should rest." Ocheeva said.

"It is a rather long journey from Bruma." Vicente added.

"I am tired. But I have my own house here in Cheydinhal now. I will rest there. I wanted to speak to Kira privately first. If you'll excuse us." Rain grabbed Kira's elbow and dragged her all the way to Kira's room.

"What is it?" Kira asked.

"William asked me to marry him!" Rain said excitedly. Kira grinned at her sister.

"Rain that's wonderful. When's the wedding?" Kira asked.

"In a week. We are going to get married during the full moon outside. Oh Kira, I'm so happy." Rain grinned. Kira smiled back at her but then grew serious.

"Does William know about the Dark Brotherhood?" She asked.

"Not yet. I promised you I'd only tell him if I was sure he could be trusted. I'll tell him tomorrow when he gets here from Bruma." Rain said.

"Alright, but be careful about it. I'm sure it'll be a shock." Kira said.

"I know, I know. I'm just so happy and excited about everything. But I don't know anything about how you've been doing. What have you and Lucien been up to?" Rain raised her eyebrows. Kira grinned.

"Things are wonderful between me and Lucien. I'm his Silencer so I take contracts only from him and travel with him on most of his duties for the Black Hand. We should go and tell everyone your wonderful news. And you have to meet the new members; Antoinetta Marie, Telaendril and Kaylee." Kira said.

"I want to wait to tell everyone. Could you tell them after I go home? But I will meet the new members." Rain said. Kira nodded and led her back into the main room. She introduced Rain to Marie and Telaendril. Rain was delighted that Telaendril was an Elf like her, even if she was a different kind. She thought Marie looked at her oddly but shrugged it off.

"Hey Vicente, where'd Kaylee go off to?" Kira asked.

"I believe she's out feeding at the moment. She should return soon." Vicente said.

"Wait; 'out feeding?' She's a vampire?" Rain asked.

"Yeah, Lucien and I found her near Bravil about a year ago. She's pretty tough. We watched her slaughter a group of four or five guards at once." Kira said. They heard the entrance door open and an Imperial vampire walked in. She had short black hair and was a little shorter than Kira.

"Hey Kaylee, this is my sister Rain. She's been living in Bruma for the past two years." Kira said.

"Well hello Rain. It's nice to meet you." Kaylee said. (For comic relief you can be like us and imagine Kaylee with a heavy Texan or British accent.)

"It's nice to meet you too. Now if you all don't mind I'm very tired. I'm going to go to my house. But I'll stop by tomorrow." Rain walked out of the Sanctuary.

"She seemed to be in a very good mood. Kira, is something going on?" Vicente asked. Kira gulped. Vicente was the last person she wanted to tell.

"Uh yeah…Rain's getting married." Kira said. She thought she something flash in Vicente's eyes but she couldn't tell.

"That's wonderful. Do you know the man she's marrying?" Vicente asked.

"His name is William. We met him in Bruma. He's an alchemist. The wedding is in one week, during the full moon." Kira said. Vicente smiled lightly.

"Well, if you'll both excuse me there is some work I need to take care of." Vicente walked away to his room. Kira turned to Kaylee.

"Would you mind telling everyone else the news about Rain? I need to find Lucien and leave. I'm not feeling well all of a sudden." Kira said. Kaylee nodded and walked away.

"Hmm, now where did Lucien go?" Kira looked around. She walked into the main room of the living quarters to find him eating an apple.

"C'mon Lucien, we're leaving." Kira grabbed his hand and tried to drag him away.

"But I'm hungry." He said simply. Kira glared at him.

"Isaac Lucien Lachance, we are leaving. I don't feel good." Kira said. Jet, who was sitting next to Lucien, looked up surprised.

"Your first name isn't really Lucien? It's Isaac?" Jet looked like he might die right there. Lucien sighed.

"Yes, Isaac is my real first name."

"I don't know if I can deal with this man. It thought you and I were brothers! We tell each other everything! But you've been lying to me the whole time! What if my whole life is a lie? What if Vicente's name isn't really Vicente? What if it's really Copernicus Flapdoodle McGiggles?! What if my name isn't really Jet?" Jet was panicking and waving his hands around.

"You're name isn't really Jet. You refuse to tell anyone what your name really is." Lucien said calmly. Jet continued to panic and grabbed the front of Lucien's shirt, shaking him.

"Why didn't you tell me?!" He practically sobbed. Lucien punched Jet.

"Alright, let's go." Lucien grabbed Kira and left the Sanctuary.

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The next day…

Lucien stood under a waterfall, trying to wash off all of the dirt and blood stains from his body and clothes. He was wearing only an old pair of black shorts. He tried to scrub a blood stain off of his abs. It just refused to come off. Finally he cleaned it off and walked up the hill to Fort Farragut. He climbed the ladder down into the main chamber. Kira was lying in the bed, curled up in a ball.

"Hey Kira, are you feeling any better?" Lucien asked as he used a spell to dry off. He started to pull on a shirt and some pants

"No, I feel horrible. I've vomited two times." Kira said. She was trying to count the days in her head. She was at least five days late. She groaned. Lucien walked over to her. He felt her forehead.

"At least you don't have a fever. Come on, let's go down to the Sanctuary and have Telaendril check you out." Lucien helped Kira get up and they left for the Sanctuary. At the Sanctuary they found Telaendril who agreed to examine Kira but Lucien had to wait outside the room.

"Hmm, here Kira drink this potion and tell me if it makes you feel any better, any worse, or the same." Telaendril handed Kira a blue potion. Kira drank it and waited a moment.

"I don't feel any different. What does that mean?" Kira asked. Telaendril smiled at her.

"You're pregnant sister." She said. Kira stared in shock for a moment and then smiled a bit.

"I'm pregnant." She said.

"Would you like me to get Lucien for you?" Telaendril asked. Kira nodded and Telaendril brought Lucien in.

"I'll leave you two alone." She said and left.

"Are you alright Kira?" Lucien asked. Kira smiled at him.

"Lucien…I'm pregnant." She said. Lucien stared down at her. He gave a weak laugh and grinned at her.

"You're pregnant." He repeated. He leaned down and kissed Kira.

"You're not at all worried about this? You're happy?" Kira asked worriedly.

"Of course I'm happy. I'm not going to be like my deadbeat father." He smiled down at Kira. She kissed him again.

"Come on, we should go tell Vicente." Kira said after a moment. Lucien now had a pained expression on his face.

"I'm afraid of what he's going to do to me…" Lucien said worriedly. Kira laughed.

"He's not going to hurt you. Relax, Lucien." Kira almost dragged Lucien down to Vicente's room. Vicente, as usual, was sitting at his table, looking over several contracts.

"Hello Kira, is something going on?" Vicente asked, taking in her excited expression.

"Vicente, I'm pregnant." She said happily. Vicente smiled and stood up to hug her.

"That's wonderful Kira, congratulations. Only one thing though." Vicente said seriously.

"What?" Kira asked.

"You child may not call me grandpa. I will not stand for that." The vampire said. Kira laughed a bit.

"Alright, we won't let our child call you grandpa." Kira said. Vicente smiled at her and Lucien both.

"We should go tell Rain. We'll be back in the Sanctuary later today or tomorrow." Kira said. Vicente nodded and Kira and Lucien left the Sanctuary for where Rain said her house was.

Rain answered when they knocked. She looked rather surprised.

"What are you two doing in here?" She asked.

"We've got some good news." Kira said. Rain led them to her living room and they all sat down.

"I'm pregnant." Kira said happily. Rain practically squealed with joy. Lucien just kind of sat there. For once in his life Lucien was completely oblivious to the world around him. He was honestly afraid to witness a girly squealing moment between Kira and Rain.

"That's so great Kira!" Rain sat back and thought for a moment.

"You two aren't married, right?" She asked. Kira and Lucien turned to look at each other.

"No, we're not married." Kira said.

"I have a deep hatred for priests and monks and all that. We're happy just the way we are." Lucien shrugged. Rain smiled and rolled her eyes a bit. They heard the front door open and William walked in.

"Hey Rain, I'm here!" He said happily. Rain smiled.

"We're in the living room." She shouted back. William walked in.

"Hey, William." Kira waved. William smiled at her and then looked oddly at Lucien who was giving William his best official Speaker for the Black Hand look. William was somewhat afraid and sat down next to Rain.

"William this is Lucien, he's Kira's….uh….What is Lucien to you Kira? You're not married but boyfriend doesn't sound right." Rain asked. Kira raised her eyebrows and looked at Lucien.

"I don't know. He's just…Lucien. He's never been anything else. He's just…mine I guess." Kira shrugged.

"When did I suddenly become a possession?" Lucien asked.

"When were you ever not a possession? You have no free will Lucien." Kira pointed out. Lucien simply glared at her and Rain laughed.

"Well, we should probably leave. I want to celebrate with Kira." Lucien said, standing up. He and Kira left quickly for Fort Farragut.

"What are they celebrating?" William asked after kissing Rain quickly.

"Kira's pregnant." Rain said.

"And she's with that Lucien guy? He doesn't seem like the father type to me." William said.

"Oh you'd be surprised what Lucien can be like when no one else is around except Kira. I'm sure he'll be a great father." Rain said. William smiled at Rain.

"If you say so. Well we should plan the wedding. Have you found a priest to do the ceremony?" He asked.

"Yes I have. And I've already got my dress picked out." Rain said.

"Well then all we need is the guest list. I don't have any family or really close friends so all that we need is whoever you want to be there." William said.

"All I need is Kira, Lucien and Vicente." Rain said.

"Who's Vicente?"

"He's the man who has practically raised Kira and me our whole lives. And uh we need to talk about him actually." Rain said nervously.

"Why?" William asked.

"Vicente is a vampire. You don't have any problem with that do you?" Rain asked.

"If he raised you then he's perfectly fine in my book." William said. Rain smiled.

"That's not all. I've got to explain something about Kira and Lucien and Vicente and everyone else I've grown up around…Have you ever heard of the Dark Brotherhood?" Rain asked. William stared at her.

"They're assassins, aren't they?"

"Yes." Rain quickly explained to William everything about her past. From the time when her and Kira's parents were murdered right up to their lives in the Dark Brotherhood. Once she finished she stared at William nervously.

"Wow, that's a lot to take in. But…you're not officially one of them, right?" He asked.

"No, I don't take contracts. I was just raised there. They're my family William, you've got to understand that." Rain said.

"I do. But please don't judge me when I say that I never want to meet them or know any more of the secrets. I love you and that's enough for me. We won't worry about the Dark Brotherhood at all." William said. Rain smiled.

"Thank you for understanding." Rain said. William nodded and smiled at her.

"Come on, it's getting late. We should get to bed." William smirked at Rain. Together they walked upstairs to her bedroom.

456

That night...

"Do you think we'll have a boy or a girl?" Kira asked Lucien as they lay in bed together. Lucien's expression grew dark with an old memory.

"I hope it's a girl. Then she would have to learn the most important things in life from you. I didn't have the greatest dad." Lucien said darkly. Kira rolled onto her side and looked at him.

"What did you father do, Lucien?" She asked. Lucien sighed.

"He was an abusive drunk who was always on scooma. My mother died because of him." He said.

"Oh Lucien, that's horrible. Do you know what happened to him?" Kira asked.

"I killed him. On my 15th birthday I tracked him down. He was living in Skingrad." Lucien tightened his grip around Kira's waist.

"Well, I'm sure you won't be like that. Don't worry, Luke." Kira kissed Lucien. He sighed.

"I know. Don't let it bother you Kira. Just be happy. We're having a baby." Lucien grinned at Kira. She kissed him again.

456

One week later, the night of the wedding…

"I'm so nervous." Rain said as she looked in the mirror at herself wearing her wedding dress. Kira sighed.

"You have nothing to be worried about."

"You look beautiful." Vicente added. Rain smiled.

"Thank you, Vicente. And I know I have nothing to be worried about." Rain said.

"You're just overly excited is all. Everyone is like that on their wedding." Vicente said.

"Do you remember your wedding Vicente?" Kira asked.

"Of course I remember. It was one of the happiest days of my long life."

"Were you as nervous as me?" Rain asked hopefully.

"Oh yes, I was terrified. Wedding days are always harder on the man than the woman. Just relax Rain." Vicente stood behind Rain, his reflection just barely visible.

"Hey Vicente, how come it's almost impossible to see you in a mirror? I thought that was just a myth about vampires." Rain asked.

"It's really not a myth. It just takes centuries for it to take affect. When I first became a vampire I could see myself in mirrors as if I was a normal person. I've never been able to figure out why." Vicente said. Suddenly the door to Rain's room opened.

"Alright Rain, time to go." Lucien said.

"You make it sound like I'm going to be executed. What did you just talk to William about?" Rain asked suspiciously.

"I was just warning him about how painful life is when the woman you live with becomes pregnant." Lucien said. Kira had just started having odd cravings and severe mood swings though he wasn't sure whether Kira was really suffering from these symptoms or just torturing him. Kira punched Lucien's arm.

"If you'll excuse me, I must go speak with William now." Vicente said.

"Please don't scare him, Vicente." Rain begged.

"No promises." Vicente said before walking out of the room. Rain stared fearfully after the vampire.

"William, will be fine right?" Rain asked.

"If Vicente says to William whatever it was he said to Lucien years ago then I'd be very worried." Kira said.

"Vicente has a very colorful vocabulary when he threatens people." Lucien said, remembering that horrible day. They all waited nervously. Finally Vicente walked back into the Rain.

"Well let's go. It's dark out and the moon is full. Time to get married, Rain." Vicente said.

456

Yes, things are still a bowl of fancy assorted cashews.

But you will always find that one cashew that tastes BAD.

That's the next chapter.

If you want to you can guess what will happen but I doubt you'll get it right.

Muahahaha.

Review because Wantaco79 feels sick and wants to get better.