Lalin
I have all the characteristics of a human being; blood, flesh, skin, hair; but not a single clear, identifiable emotion, except for greed and disgust. Something horrible is happening inside of me and I don't know why. My nightly blood lust has overflown into my days. I feel lethal, on the verge of frenzy. I think my mask of sanity is about to slip.
- Patrick Bateman
Phase II
Part I
Red eyes went wide as the ghost appeared in front of him.
"Do you feel that?" It whispered, and he realized it was not a ghost but a woman in white, the hood of her cloak hanging over her face. She grabbed his hand as the wolf behind her growled, placing it on her chest.
"What! I didn't even sense her!"
"Feel what?" he was nervous, but he did not stutter. He looked down at his hand, placed firmly over the crest that held the cloak together. What was underneath it, he wondered, what symbol could justly represent such a haunting being?
"The beat of my heart."
And then she let go of his hand and hers wrapped around his neck.
"Sasuke!"
"What -" he gasped but he could not make out the rest of his words.
"You know what they say, you can tell a lot about a woman by her hands," she laughed, and he could practically hear the grin. "For instance, if they're wrapped around your neck, "tightening. "She's probably upset." More. "Just maybe, though. You can never be too sure."
Sasuke coughed, but he did not struggle. If Ai wanted to kill him, he would have been dead long ago.
"What d-"
"Did you do? Hm, I don't know. I thought we were friends. I thought we had a deal. But you never once came looking for me, did you? I may be crazy, but the one thing I honor is agreements between people. It's noble. It's just. It's right. And not only that, now you're trying to kill my Sun! What could I do to deserve this!?" She cocked her head back, her face twisting into an expression he assumed was supposed to be hurt, but she just look horrified instead. "You're gonna kill my Sun so you can kidnap me and bring me back to him. Tell me, Sas-oo-kay, what makes you think the Earth is strong enough to defeat the Moon?"
And then he was flying.
"Sasuke!"
Sasuke managed to catch himself before he hit his red haired partner, landing on both feet. He stared at the woman in white, katana drawn. Ai's hood had fallen down thanks to the wind, and he noticed the scar that ran down her eye. It was old, but not aged, and he assumed it must have came from Orochimaru. Her normally black lips were painted a dark red, but they did not look unnatural. We're they bruised? Or were they stained with blood?
"Who the hell are you!?" Karin spat, narrowed her eyes and stepping in front of the raven haired man. "And what do you think you're doing to Sasuke!?"
The raven haired boy grabbed her shoulder, pulling her back.
"This is our objective, Karin," he scowled. Karin shook her shoulder away from his hand, her eyes never leaving Ai's body. Was this really who Orochimaru had sent them for? Some strange looking woman who spoke in riddles? What could be so important about her?
The wolf behind them growled but it soon turned into a yelp as a kunai embedded itself in her shoulder. Ai materialized in front of her, kicking her in the jaw with her bare feet. The wolf whimpered, bowing it's head as it backed up away from the girl.
"Shut up, mutt," the white haired woman growled. "You'll get your chance at me."
Sora spat, blood flying from her mouth as she snarled and lifted her back. Ai vanished away as soon as she pounced, reappearing behind Sasuke and the irritating woman next to him. Karin jumped away as Sasuke ducked, swinging his sword in her direction but she managed to evade him by less than a centimeter.
"I should rip another hole in your stomach. I know it hurts, it's the perfect torture and the perfect retribution - to sit here and watch you bleed out," like he watched me bleed out, but she would not say it.
Sasuke narrowed his eyes.
"Why did you come here?" If she knew Sasuke was looking for her - that Orochimaru was looking for her - why would she come straight to him? Why would she walk into a trap?
Ai cocked her hips to the side, her sinister grin returning. "To knock down that ego of yours, big boy."
He charged, and for a moment - with his hair flying behind him and his sharigan bared - he reminded her of Itachi.
How ironic was it that he looked exactly like the man he detested, yet didn't carry a single familiar trait in his personality?
Ai sighed, flipping her cloak back and holding her arms out to the side. She bit the bottom of her lip to prevent herself from smiling, but there was no use in that.
"Come get me, big boy," she said as the tips of her fingers began to glow. "I've been waiting for this."
The room was pitch black, the only source of light being the moon shining through the window.
The young girl sat on her bed, a discomforting look on her face as she stared out the window. She had two days before the New Moon came, two days before her body was ripped from the world and her soul was torn apart more than it already had been. '
She looked down at her hands, glove-less and bare, and sighed. They were bloodied and scarred and absolutely a disgusting sight to look at, but they were hers and hers alone. Just like her body was hers and hers alone; she belonged to no one, and once the Moon was gone she would be free.
She grinned, white teeth bared as she grabbed the black and red cloak from the bottom of her bed and throwing it over her stained white dress. She had washed her clothes, but by then the blood had already worked it's way into the fabrics. It was a constant reminder of what she'd done - a constant reminder of the rights she now had.
"Where do you think you're going?"
The girl squeaked, the door slamming behind her as she stared at the yellow-eyed man in front of her.
"What's it to you?" she said, regaining her composure. "And why are you in my section of the base? I thought Pein reserved this section for the people who like to rip out the hearts of their families. Unless there's something you're not telling me, hm?"
Orochimaru let out an awkward laugh.
"I was just stopping by to see Itachi," he said, and had it not been for Ai's constant knowledge of everything around her, she would have accused him of lying.
"You're a fucking weirdo, you know that, right?" she said, her grin never faltering. "I can't wait to see how this plays out."
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes as the girl walked past, confusion lingering on the tip of his tongue. Who was this girl and what did she know? And how the hell did she know it?
She made it outside without another interruption, stopping at the edge of the forest with fists clenched, staring up at the moon.
"I'll destroy you," she whispered. "That I promise."
Moments passed before the girl looked over her shoulder, her gray eyes scanning the area behind her.
"I know you're there," she said. "You can come out now. He's not looking for you out here, anyway."
The shadow emerged from the side of the base, his matching black and red cloak laying peacefully over his shoulders even with the slight breeze. How did this man manage to be so put together in a place like this? A place full of people ready to tear each other's head off?
"What, you can't speak, pretty-boy?"
Itachi looked up at the moon.
"I don't waste my breath on unnecessary words."
It was then the young girl belted out a laugh, grabbing her stomach in attempt to prevent from doubling over. Itachi watched as the girl shook, her laughter loud and cackling as it echoed around them.
What could be so dangerous about a child like this - so dangerous that Pein would personally send his angel to retrieve her?
Karin charged first, which meant she was the first to feel the shock that radiated off of Ai's fingertips. It took less than a second to put the woman on the ground, her fingers placed sloppily at the base of her neck.
"She's not dead, Sas-oo-kay. Just sleeping," Ai said, kicking her body to the side. "This is between me and you. Your girlfriend will get over it."
"Did you really only come here to fight me?"
She shrugged.
"Maybe. Why does it matter? You were about to kill my Sun to find me. Why not feed on to some entertainment for a while? All this hiding is getting so boring, and I'm going crazy! Did you know that I've actually started helping people this past year. Well, actually, I've tried to help people, and they only called me names. Said I was sick in the head. That I needed help. How nice is that!? They wouldn't accept my help, but they were willing to give me theirs!"
"Your form of help is death," he deadpanned.
"And your point is?"
He had to resist the urge to slap himself on the forehead. He had almost forgotten how paranormal this woman was, both in her appearance and in her personality.
"Let's just get this over with," he through his sword to the side, his red eyes swirling. "I'm done with these games."
"That's what they all say," she replied, holding up her hand, the tips of her fingers glowing white once more. "But they always come back to play."