You come out at night
That's when the energy comes
And the dark side's light
And the vampires roam
Struts your rasta wear
And your suicide poem
And a cross from a faith
That died before Jesus came
You're building a mystery
~Building a Mystery by Sarah McLaughlin
Sakura felt like she was weightless. There was nothing holding her in place and yet she was there. All she had to do to move was will herself in one direction or the other and she was there. Not that it did her any good. She was surrounded in kind of monotonous black that stretched as far as she could see. It was odd though because she could make out her hand and other limbs despite the fact that it was pitch black. Vaguely, she wondered if this was what being dead was like. The thought scared her as she moved to pinch herself only to feel nothing. There was no pain. Did that make her dead or this an odd dream?
Panic began to set in as she clawed at herself desperate to feel something, anything that would tell her that she was alive. Sobs escaped her throat, but she could not feel the tears making their way down her face, nor could she taste them. There was no sensation of burning as she choked on the knot in her throat. There was nothing. She curled in on herself, realizing for the first time that she could not see anything of herself. If this was death, than surely she was in hell. The knowledge was hardly comforting, but it sparked something inside her. If she was dead, did that not mean that she had been murdered? For her last memory before waking up in this nightmare was of fighting against Sasori. His name was like a vile poison in her mind. If she had been killed by him, if she had been sent to this hell by him, then she would make sure he suffered the same. For if there was one thing she had learned while being with Sasuke it was that the dead had power. Now, all she had to do was find someone to help her.
Sasuke felt that he had never been happier to see his house than he was in that moment. Kakashi and Iruka, after a rather lengthy lecture on making sure to list them as next of kin on his records so that they would be notified if something like this happened again, had just dropped both him and Naruto off in front of his home. Sasuke walked to the door and opened it with the key that the hospital had retrieved from the mangled mess that they had made of his clothes. They had also been nice enough to give him back every weapon that had been on his person originally. It seemed that they had learned from the last time he had to trapeze across the hospital in search of what belonged to him. Naruto was hovering next to him just in case he had trouble walking as he walked into the house. Frankly, it was irritating in all sense of the world. So what if he had nearly blacked out when he had first tried to stand up. He had had more drugs than a crack whore running through his system. He had the right to need a moment to catch his balance.
Naruto watched Sasuke put his keys on the table directly across from the door and head to the kitchen. Naruto was enjoying the fact that while most of the objects Sasuke had had with him had been returned intact his clothes had not. Kakashi had conveniently forgotten to stop by the house and pick up some clothes so Sasuke had been forced to 'borrow' a pair of sweat pants from the hospital. This meant that Naruto was getting a rather pleasing eyeful of Sasuke's top half. Naruto found himself oddly content to just watch as Sasuke went about the process of making a pot of coffee. He frowned as he realized that was what the other was doing.
"Sunshine," Naruto began as Sasuke began dumping coffee beans into the grinder sitting on his kitchen counter, "the doctor said that you need to get some rest. Somehow I think drinking coffee is not what she had in mind." Naruto felt Sasuke's irritation spike as he turned around to glare at him.
"Between being pursued by the vampire equivalent of the bogeyman, trying to figure out what could possibly kill an entire coven of vampires, and finding someone to run said coven I don't think that sleep is exactly an option," Sasuke said flatly before closing his eyes and inhaling as the scent of freshly ground coffee hit his nose. "Besides I want to get started on that second mark before I do anything else." Naruto inhaled sharply at the reminder. He was still waiting for Sasuke to back out of that one. He could almost taste the trepidation of the other on his tongue. Sasuke distracted himself by removing the freshly ground coffee and putting in into the coffee maker. He had to do this before he lost his nerve. The silence was thick between them as Sasuke watched the coffee maker begin putting out the black drink that would help him stay awake for the rest of the night. He was pleased to note that he had woken a little after the sun had set meaning that he could use the entire night to try to sort through everything.
"Are you sure that you want to do that tonight?" Naruto asked only to earn a glare that covered a flash of hurt. "Not that I don't want to. Believe me, I want to." Just the idea of Sasuke's blood, of bonding closer to him, was enough to try to stir things that couldn't come alive without blood. And thinking about blood reminded him that he hadn't fed properly for a while. Sasuke picked up on the fact as he raised an eyebrow at his companion. The other hadn't fed and the idea excited him because he knew that he was going to be that meal. Without thinking about it, Sasuke found himself moving so that he was inches away from Naruto.
"Naruto," Sasuke said tilting his head to the side so the long line of his neck could be seen. Naruto swallowed as his eyes zeroed in on the vein just under the skin. "Let's do this." He was going to get this over with before he thought just too much on what he was doing.
"Okay," the blonde whispered as he pulled Sasuke so that they were flush against one another. "Me first," he said raising his wrist to his lips. It was stopped millimeters from them by a pale hand and Naruto blinked. He could feel that Sasuke was determined about something but it was hard to tell what exactly.
"You trust me?" Sasuke asked as Naruto lowered his hand. Naruto didn't even have to think about the answer as he nodded his head. Sasuke produced a small knife from somewhere and leaned so that his breath was just above the other's neck. He had no clue where the idea of this had come from, but knew it had to do with the vague thought of trying to get Naruto to understand what it felt like for him. The brunette left a barely there kiss just before running the blade lightly across the skin. The blue eyed vampire shuddered and it was not entirely in pain. Sasuke ran his tongue over the wound as blood began to well up and it was like someone had connected him with a car battery. He latched onto the wound, barely conscious of the fact that Naruto had pulled him flush against him and had one hand preventing him from moving his head. The blood was thick as it slid down his throat, making him think of what it would be like to drink molten chocolate-rich, dark, forbidden. But something was coming with it. The sensation of it running down his throat was altogether different. Whereas Naruto's blood was smooth, this was not. It was closer to what he imagined trying to swallow a bag of pop rocks-electric and uncomfortable. But it filled him, making him aware of every last inch of himself. His clothes felt rough like sandpaper against him and he wondered vaguely how he had managed to stand it before.
Naruto had shared blood before, both willing and unwilling and it had never felt anything like this. It was like the other had reached down inside him and was yanking something out, something that was blooming and growing with each passing second. Naruto found himself grateful that he had offered his own blood first. If not, evidence of his own enjoyment would have manifested and he knew that it would immediately send Sasuke back into the shell he retreated to when something he had not planned on happened. Deciding that Sasuke had taken enough blood for the mark to take, he yanked him off the wound and groaned at sight before him. The hunter was dazed, pupils dilated in red irises and one line of blood trailing down the side of his mouth. He had never seen something so erotic in his life. Sasuke was only aware that the buzz had stopped and irritated he would not be allowed to have continued access to it. Grabbing Sasuke by his waist, Naruto sat him on the counter before licking the trail up and kissing him hungrily. He could feel the power sparking between them as he cleaned his own blood from the other's mouth, whimpering as he sliced Sasuke's lip with his fangs as he pulled away. They shared a look then, the smell of each others' blood in the air, and the look said one word: more.
Naruto ran the edge of his fangs down Sasuke's jawline and throat, careful not to cut and delighting in the shivers he created. He ran his hands up the other's thighs as he bit directly onto the thickly pulsing vein at the juncture of neck and shoulder. The rush of blood into his mouth was like drinking heaven. It was perfect. Vaguely, he heard Sasuke moan and grab onto him, one hand on the back of his head the other on his shoulder, thighs wrapping around his waist. The second the blood hit the back of his throat it was like someone threw a switch. Electricity spiked through his body before settling in his core like a living thing. All the power that the other had been pulling up and out, rushed in and under his skin. He could feel Sasuke's life, each breath he took, each contraction of his heart as it pumped blood throughout his body, he could feel his desire running parallel with his own.
"All you had to do was ask," the blonde whispered against the flesh of Sasuke's neck as he drew away before taking too much of the sweet nectar that kept the other alive. Gently, he ran his knuckles over the rigid flesh of the brunette hunter's cock. Power drunk, it took a moment for Sasuke to register the words and bite back the groan at the feeling of Naruto touching him.
"M..ah..ore," he moaned as the vampire ran his fingers up his chest while palming his hardened flesh. God, he sounded like a damn whore. The thought snapped through the haze of his drunkenness and he shoved Naruto off him. Unfortunately, he no longer knew his own strength and sent Naruto crashing into the granite island in the middle of his kitchen collapsing it in a cloud of rock dust and cooking utensils.
"Sunshine?" Naruto asked once he had managed to dig his way up out of the wreckage.
"Fuck," Sasuke swore not looking at him. He was panting like he had just run a damn marathon, and what was worse was the ache that was settling all over his damn body. There was almost a physical pull in the direction of the vampire and all his instincts fought against it. He would not go to the other just because of some damn metaphysics. He would go only if he wanted to. He was stronger than this. He had spent his entire life shoving his power back under his skin, he would not let it dictate his life.
"Sunshine, Sasuke, talk to me," Naruto said as worry began to replace desire. He could feel his servant's agony and his determination, but could think of no way to stop it. Naruto reached out to touch him only to have his hand slapped away.
"Don't touch me," the brunette snarled even though his body screamed in protest. He was looking at Naruto now, and it was like someone had set every nerve on fire. How could the other not feel this? The need to touch, to claim, to make sure everyone knew just who the blonde belonged to was overwhelming. The feeling was so foreign that all Sasuke could think was that the mark had put it there. Naruto had never seen a look such as the one on Sasuke's face. His eyes were filled with lust and longing, but also with such defiance. It was like he did not want to be with him. The thought was crushing and rushed between them. Sasuke froze as he met Naruto's eyes. "Naruto," he whispered as he desperately sought a way to explain, to take the pain from him. The pain that he had caused.
"It's alright," Naruto said softly, almost seeming to collapse in on himself. Moving with the speed of his kind, Naruto was out of the kitchen before Sasuke could react. The brunette stared at the spot where the vampire had been trying to understand just what had happened. The sound of the timer going off on his coffee was surreal and forced a strangled sound of laughter from his throat. He slid off the counter, only to find that his legs would not hold him so he landed on the floor with a thump. Things had been going so well. Hell, if he admitted it to himself, he had had the blonde just where he had wanted him. But then his need to control had kicked in, and now…now… I'm so sorry…
Shikamaru sat in his office pouring over a catalogue that the FBI had created of all known and rumored metaphysical creatures. The thing was pitifully inadequate, but it was the best that they had. The entire world of myth and magic had been shoved down their collective throats very fast and the police and FBI were forever playing catch up. It was frustrating to no end. There had to be something in the list that could take out an entire coven of vampires without leaving so much as a body. He was well aware that the older the vampire was the more likely it was to become nothing but literally ash once you killed it, but newer vampires still had their bodies after they were killed. All they had been able to find was blood from the newer ones and not even that from the older. The bodies had been nowhere to be seen. Which meant something had likely eaten them. The idea was frightening. As far as he knew there was nothing that could count as an actual predator to a vampire.
Sighing, he sat back in his chair and rubbed his eyes. Maybe he should hit the coffee pot up again. The black liquid was nasty as hell, but it would keep him awake. He grabbed the plain blue mug that had his name written on it in permanent marker as he rose, only to start as his cell phone rang. Frowning, he opened it to look at who was calling. The name Sakura flashed for a second before it disappeared. Holding his cell phone like it was something holy he ran from his office to the electronics department. Sakura was missing and had just tried to call him, there had to be some way to triangulate the call or something.
I'm so sorry. Naruto froze from where he had been in the process of attempting to leave via the single window in the room. His head whipped back as he expected to see Sasuke standing in the room, or the doorway at the very least. The words had practically been whispered into his ear. Shaking his head at the level to which his imagination was willing to go, he resumed trying to make his way through the window and cursing that he had not thought to go in the direction of the front door; this window was barely big enough to let light in. That was until he heard the phone ring and a resounding crash. He was out of the room and into the kitchen without thinking about it. How could he have been so stupid? Sasuke had just gotten out of the hospital and just been a blood donor; there was no way that he was going to be fully functional after that. He could have passed out right afterward for all he knew he had been in such haste to get out of the room.
Sasuke glared at the phone in his hands before raising it to his ear. That had been one of his favorite mugs; a deep rich blue with the Uchiha uchiwa stamped on it, it had been a gift from Kakashi and Iruka. But then it was his own fault for almost jumping out of his skin when the phone had rung. He had been too absorbed in his moping and fighting his craving to go after Naruto to remember even where he was. He didn't even notice Naruto come back into the room as he recognized Shikamaru's voice.
"This had better be good," the hunter said, his eyes watching as Naruto cleaned up the pieces of the mug and pulled another one out. He rolled his eyes at the vampire's choice. The mug was one Sakura had gotten him and had a picture of Grumpy from the seven dwarves on it along with the words before noon underneath.
"How much do you know about ghosts?" the other asked and Sasuke frowned.
"Not much. I deal with the living dead," the brunette reminded him. Not that Sasuke had ever so much as raised a zombie in his life, but he figured that was the closest descriptor for what a vampire was. "Why?"
"Because we think that Sakura may be haunting my cell," Shikamaru said in a bored tone. Sasuke felt like slapping himself in the face. What did they put in the coffee over there? Heroin? "Every five minutes or so my cell goes off saying that Sakura is calling me, but there is no phone number and electronics can't trace the call from anywhere. We ran it by one of my sensitives over here and she said she could pick out an abnormal feeling around it." Sasuke mouthed thank you as Naruto handed him the coffee and moved behind him so that he could lean on him. The brunette was not going to admit it, but he was having a little trouble standing. Then there was the fact that the contact eased the craving.
"It's great that you have a lead on Sakura, Shikamaru," Sasuke said pausing to sip the little bit of liquid heaven in his hands. He didn't mean to sound callous about anything having to do with Sakura, she had been a part of his life for a while now, but he was glad that he didn't have to deal with her on top of things at the moment, "but why are you calling me? I mean, doesn't the fact that she may be a ghost make her dead? Shouldn't you be looking for a body?"
"We need you to come down here and ask her where it is," Shikamaru said flatly. Sasuke sighed and unconsciously snuggled closer to Naruto, who was grinning like a Cheshire cat behind him. Gently, treating Sasuke much the same way he would treat a frightened animal, he eased his arms around the other's waist. This was nice, and since Sasuke had apologized, even if it had been a figment of his imagination, things were okay. Naruto had felt the lingering regret the moment that he had entered the kitchen again and that was as good as the imagined apology.
"Shikamaru, I'm a necromancer not a medium or a priest," the vampire hunter ground out. "Even if I could do that, I'd like to point out that I just got out of the hospital after having my lung punctured." The reminder had the proper affect and Shikamaru apologized before hanging up. Sasuke put the phone back into the cradle and moved so he could look at Naruto with a few inches separating them. Where was he supposed to begin? Sorry seemed inaccurate as he was not sorry for his actions, though he was for the response that Naruto had given him. When had his life gotten this damn confusing? He wished he could just blame it on the vampire watching him with a blank face and warm eyes. Finally, the blonde sighed and crossed the space between him to press their foreheads together.
"Where's the broom and dustpan?" Naruto asked finally and Sasuke, who had been enjoying the power circuit the two of them touching had completed and would never admit to it, blinked. That had not been the question he had expected the other to ask. Especially, since he did not seem the domestic type.
"Why?" Sasuke asked taking note of how odd it was to talk when he was this close to the other. He could practically breathe too hard and end up kissing him. Naruto gave him that big goofy grin he had seen somewhere though he couldn't place it. He pulled away from the contact and moved so Sasuke could see what was left of his kitchen island. All Sasuke think as he looked at the ruins of his island was that it was impossible for him to have done that with his own power. "Holy shit," Sasuke swore softly as he moved away from Naruto to take closer inspection of the damage. Copper cook wear and knives were strewn about haphazardly. "I think we might need something bigger than a broom and dustpan."
The five of them sat across the table, shaped like a horseshoe. It was clearly designed so that all of them would be able to see whoever had come before them. The wood was dark, stained not just with lacquer, but with age and blood that had been spilt upon it. The room was brightly lit, as was tradition; the origins of which had been lost to time. But an air of gloom pervaded despite it. The clothing of the figures was as varied as the figures themselves. A man in with slight blue skin and Goth club wear sat next to a woman who looked like she would be more at ease at the Hamptons than cramped into the room as she was. Next to her sat a man with more bandages than actual clothing, a cane hanging off the back of the highbacked chair he sat on. Another woman sat on his right, a bottle of tequila in front of her and the fumes coming from her strong enough to cause a wrinkling of the nose of the chic woman. A white haired man who looked like had been trapped in the sixties was to her right and drawing designs on the table with the condensation from the open bottle.
"You all know the facts," the bandaged man sat as he got tired of waiting for someone to react to the information he had catalogued. "You all know the law." This last statement gained a snort from the drunken woman. He glared down the table at her.
"Law? Danzo, if you wanted to be so all about the law you should've been a lawyer not a vampire slayer. It looks as though the change in careers would've been good for your health," she informed him before picking the bottle up and tossing back a large swallow. Danzo shot her an ugly look. No one in the room knew what was under his bandages, but they all assumed it was some kind of deformity. "Everyone knows the 'law', as you put it, is nothing more than a series of guidelines. Our goal is the annihilation of all predatory preternatural creatures."
"Besides," the other female began leaning back in her chair and smirking a little, "even with his compromising attachment to the vampire he managed to take out an entire kiss." Danzo frowned at her as she said this.
"We don't know that for a fact," he was quick to correct. "All we know is that on the same night, at roughly the same time as he was taking out the Lord of the City, every vampire save the ones he had ties to were killed. We're not even sure if they all are even really dead, let alone if he was the one responsible for the slaying." The woman waved her hand in dismissal of what he said.
"Nonetheless, the results are the same," she twirled a piece of her hair as she spoke. "If this is the kind of results we get from such partnerships, I'll advocate them. There would be a drastic drop in the vampire population, and when finally the ones that are left are the ones attached to slayers, we could just kill the slayers. A neat and precise answer to our recent problems." There was a thoughtful silence after she spoke. Indeed, slayers all over the world were having problems with the new 'citizenship' laws. Gone were the days when killing a vampire was not just a good deed, but perfectly legal. Now, slayers were being asked to provide proof that the vampire had done something wrong-as though attacking humans and killing them being part of their natures was not enough. No, now they wanted you to prove that they had attack someone. More and more of the old school, and better slayers were being carted off to jail for such things. Laws, which had once been on their side, were now being turned against them at an alarming rate.
"But not an answer to all of them," the white haired man said. "Assuming we could replicate what Sasuke and his vampire friend have managed to do, it does nothing to solve our issues with wer or other creatures. Not to mention that we could create a war within our own ranks once they figure out that we mean to kill them later."
"Which is why I say we kill them now," the one called Danzo said crossing his bandaged wrapped arms. "Take them out before they gain more power. Yes, they managed to kill the Lord of the City and have the potential to have killed the other vampires in the city. But one good deed does not negate the potential for many bad ones. One bad apple spoils the whole bunch and I have reason to believe that the other slayers in the area have been compromised by their own affection for Sasuke. Can you imagine slayers running about the country, or even the world, with no more allegiance to the Elders than to their friends? It would be chaos as our good name was dragged through the mud by them. No, we must nip this in the bud." By the time Danzo was done talking all of them were nodding grimly in agreement. All of them were good people, the very best slayers in the nation, and all of them enjoyed the privileges offered by their positions. That was the problem with what happened when you made it to the top, you gained a near lethal fear that you could fall. It was excellent motivation to do things that were not necessarily easy on your soul. Danzo was a master at using this fear to get what he wanted in the council. He had hated and envied both Sasuke and his family's powers and had been against him getting any kind of accreditation with them to begin with. He saw this as his chance to get rid of him for once and for all. He wondered if his speech would carry all the members of the council. Sometimes the good in one's soul could override the need for self-preservation that he had made this vote about. Danzo looked at them all grimly.
"Shall we vote?" Danzo and the others straightened themselves in their chairs in preparation for the vote. "All in favor?" he asked and four of the five hands shot into the air. He frowned at the lone dissenter, the blue tinged man. The man just grinned and showed rows of teeth sharpened to razor points.
"Don't get your knickers in a twist," he said holding his hands up as though to show he meant no harm. "I'm not voting no. As a matter of fact, I'm abstaining. I can see reasons to kill the kid and reasons not to. Hell, I'd like to go a few rounds with him myself and see which one of us would end up dead. But I sure as shit don't feel qualified to order up his death at the moment." Danzo nodded in acknowledgement something not feeling right about the other's wish to not vote. The man had been an odd one since he had worked his way onto the council, voting as often as he chose not to, but always being present. Nothing ill had ever come of his choosing not vote though, so he let it slide.
"Then the matter is settled. Tomorrow night when he comes before us, he'll not be leaving," Danzo said as he stood, leaning heavily on his cane in a dramatic gesture. He held in his joy at taking down one of his enemies. It would not do for the others to see just how biased he was in his own decision.
Sasuke wondered absently if it was normal for a person to have this many instances this close together of being aware he was dreaming. Perhaps they had some pills somewhere he could take. He was in the middle of the desert at night, a cool wind chilling him through the thin silk of his pajama pants. The place was barren, not even any of the normal hardy scrub or cacti were present in the fine, white sand. Gone too, was the rush of activity that he knew was present in the desert at night. Stars stretched for miles around, bright like someone lit millions of perfect diamonds and then hung them from above. Brightest of all, and almost mistaken for the sun save for the fact that it gave off no heat was the moon. He frowned as he noticed something off in the horizon. At first he thought that it might be clouds, heavy, thick and blocking off the starlight. But, as it came closer, he could make out the fact that it was touching the sand. As a matter of fact, when he switched on his sharingan (which was oddly functioning like some kind of binoculars, but then again this was dreamscape), he could see the grains of sand as they were churned up. It was a sandstorm, then.
But, something else was coming with it. It was like a scent almost; registering somewhere deep, dark, and hidden within his brain. It spoke a single word in translation: run. Fear, black and almost as cold the parts of death he touched, bloomed in his gut. He spun in the sand, barely registering the movement as he launched himself in the opposite direction. Sand, Sasuke was learning, was not made for fast movement; with each step he sunk, climbing sand dunes often meant moving on all fours for balance, and he would roll down the other side. He was afraid to look back as he ran, though that primal part of his brain told him with certainty that the storm was still behind him. So, he was unsurprised when the storm caught him-thrusting sand down his throat and nose, wind slinging it harshly across his skin making him wonder vaguely if he would be so much as bones after the pounding.
Seconds passed before he became aware that raw scraping of new pain was gone. His skin still stung, his throat feeling like he had swallowed glass and his nose burning. He opened his eyes to find himself floating in the cool black that his mind remembered with the fear that was returning. This was why he had been running. His mind had known that this was what lay at the other side of the storm and it had not wanted to end up back there again. This was also what that second mark Naruto had given him was supposed to prevent. Anger bloomed at the thought that the other was playing with him in an attempt to get more control out of him and he latched onto that like a lifeline. Anger was better than fear. Anger you could turn into something, anger you could use to fight. Fear was good for nothing but providing delight to your tormentor.
"Strange," the bell like voice was behind him and he flung himself around to see her. What he saw had him choking on the nonexistent air in his throat. She was not as she had been before. True, she gave off that 'other', that 'wrong' vibe, but now she wore a different body. It was like she had poured what made her, her into another's body and it was so wrong to see those red eyes looking out of Sakura's face. "Strange, how your subconscious was more willing to put you through pain than to let me see you." Sasuke was still wrapping his mind around the fact she wore Sakura's face and body. An idea was creeping through his mind and it made him sick to think it, but it also stroked that tenuous flame of rage he was using to keep himself from cowering.
"What have you done to Sakura?" he asked, proud of how steady his voice was when facing this woman. He was reminded of that memory he had of Naruto standing before his master. Was this how he felt? Fear shrieking from the darkest corner of your mind, but still you had to stand against it. The first vampire looked down at herself as she seemed to realize just what he was talking about.
"This shell?" her voice carried no emotion, nor her face, but something spoke to his mind to tell him that she was amused. "I've borrowed it with no intention of giving it back. Do you like it? Was she a friend? A lover?" She moved closer as she spoke, until the last was whispered centimeters from his lips. Sasuke recoiled from her. She smirked and Sasuke realized she had wanted to see how far she could push him. She laughed as she moved back, her power making it slide over his skin. He shivered, and it was not from disgust or even fear. He shivered as the same part of him that knew she was a threat told him just how good it would feel to have that power. He wondered how truly perverse he was to crave it, even knowing the monster it was coming from.
"But you want it from Naruto," she was close again as he became paralyzed from the truth she was speaking. He failed to notice the fact she was reading the thoughts in his head or that she sounded just like that little voice in his head that had been crying out against what the two of them had since the beginning. "You crave it from him. Hell, when he uses his power to roll your mind, you get harder than you've ever been in your life. I bet," she said one hand sliding into his pants, "that even thinking about it like this is enough to get you hard." Sasuke made a strangled noise in his throat as her hands, Sakura's hands, found his half hard cock. She began to stroke him to full hardness as her power poured over him, looking for a way in. This was wrong, completely, utterly wrong. And yet, he stood there and let her do it. Why? Because the words she spoke were utterly, positively, true. "And what about his touch? You know his power is what keeps him from being truly dead and lies just under his skin. Touching him is torture, the pleasure from feeling his power run along your skin barely contained by the thin layer that is his own skin. And that's just a platonic touch, a passing brush. Can you imagine if there was intent behind it? If he touched you with the intent of drowning you in that pleasure? You'd be lost-utterly and completely his. All he'd have to do is offer it to you again and you'd do anything." The imposter wearing Sakura's face punctuated the last with a hard jerk that forced him to thrust back into her hand in automatic response. She was voicing his fears, the ones half-buried into the back of his mind and not fully formed yet.
"But I can save you from that Sasuke," she was gentle as she played with the tip of him with her finger tips. He listened as she spoke from the layer of his fear and doubt that had fallen over him. "All you have to do is say my name. Say my name Sasuke, and you'll never have to worry about being consumed by the pleasure of his existence again." Those last words resonated with something hidden deep in memory. A voice, frail and quiet, echoed through his mind. Names have power. He choked as he forced down the name that had been halfway out of his mouth. No, he would not give her any power. He was afraid of just what would happen to him thanks to Naruto, and he was afraid of being consumed by the pleasure and power his body was craving, but he would not run into someone else's arms asking them to fix his problems. He had done that once, with only one person. He had a flash of red eyes and tomoe along with a wicked smirk. Fuck that shit. He summoned courage from somewhere and shoved her away from him. She shrieked as stumbled back a few feet. Her face was contorted in anger, the expression different that when he had seen it on Sakura's face.
"Get the fuck out of my head," Sasuke snarled, tomoe spinning wildly in his eyes. He reached for the part of him that never wanted to willingly touch; dipping mental fingers into the pool of his power. He had no clue what he planned to do with it. He had no training for something like this. There was no chapter entitled how to deal with a vampire trying to make you their human servant, let alone a section for the mother of them all. But still, he pulled it into him. Kushina hissed and flashed her fangs as she moved toward him.
"This will be the last time I ask nicely, child," she said like a threat. There was no hesitation in his reply.
"Fuck no," Sasuke said in barely above a whisper. He didn't bother to let his reply register before he thrust his power at her. It hit her and she screamed. She, for all her power, was a vampire, and vampires were still dead. Sasuke didn't want her here, therefore his power moved to force her out. But for all his command of the dead, his will was weakened by his doubt. He did not embrace his power; he did not have command of it. And thus, she could push back. Sasuke power began to splinter and she began laughing. She could see her goal: she would follow his own power back into him. Sasuke realized it too, and the fear of it shattered what was left of the force of his power. No, he thought and then suddenly he couldn't breathe.
His eyes flew open and the light from his ceiling fan nearly blinded him after the harshness of the pitch black he had been in. It took him a second to comprehend that he was no longer there, fighting her, and absorb the fact that he was being held down by three of the people he might have considered friends. Karen was holding his feet and a quick look above him revealed Juugo holding his clasped hands. Suigetsu was straddling his torso, one hand over his mouth, the thumb resting on the bridge of his nose. It occurred to him then just what had happened. They'd come into his room, found him having a nightmare. When they couldn't get him to wake up, they held him down and woke him up in one of the surest methods: Suigetsu had cut off his airway. Realizing he was awake they moved off him.
"That must have been one hell of a nightmare," Suigetsu said reaching down to retrieve his sword which he had left on the floor. Sasuke glared as he stood, absently noting the other figure in his bed. A shock of blonde hair was just visible under the blanket. A flick of his eyes to the right told him it was just after eleven in the morning. Naruto was still dead as far as the world was concerned. Sasuke squashed disgust at himself for bothering to check on the other even after what happened. He had been in Naruto's mind. There was nothing malicious towards him there. Nothing.
"Earth to Sasuke, come in Sasuke," Karen said sticking her hand in front of his face and blocking Naruto from his line of sight. Sasuke blinked and looked at her, while one hell of a headache hit. He groaned and clutched his head.
"Get with it, Sasuke," Juugo's steady voice had him looking over at the demon. "We've got a problem." You've got no idea, Sasuke thought.
"What now?" Sasuke asked sitting on the edge of his bed and choosing to ignore the fact that the three of them had likely broken in to his house in lieu of the fact that they had saved him from one very nasty vampire.
"The Elders have signed your death warrant," Suigetsu said bluntly.
"Wait a minute," Sasuke said as he brain began catching up to what was going on. Just how long had he been asleep? "Isn't the meeting tonight?"
"Yes," Juugo said gravely. "We learned from a source that they met last night in secret. Apparently, they think you had something to do with the slaughter of all the vampires in the city. That makes you a threat to their power." Sasuke held up his hand. He understood enough. Something else had just been dumped on his plate. He wondered if he would ever get some peace.
"Karen, can you put some coffee on? I need a shower before I deal with any more of this shit," Sasuke said standing up and making his way to the attached bathroom. The three slayers looked at one another briefly.
"Who wants to be the one to tell him that he has no coffee pot?" Karen asked. They had invited themselves in after knocking for fifteen minutes and not getting an answer. They had rushed in after seeing the messing in the kitchen. A mess that had been neatly stacked and also contained the remains of his coffee pot.
Reviews:
Kyorose: Glad you liked the chapter! As for whether or not Kushina passed that around as a rumor, we'll see.
cfox: I know it took forever to update this time too. Sorry about that...
Halskr: More twisty turns ahoy!
Kami Kaze: Glad my update made your day then. Maybe this one will too? I'm happy you like the way the relationship between Sasuke and Naruto is going. Sasuke has been headbangingly hard to write as of late.
Chronos Guardian: Naruto's power is being played down at this point, mostly because Sasuke has absorbed the role as main character. It should, however, gain some more promience when they face the Elders.
Astharoche: I'm prolly going to give you more of a reason to hate Tayuya soon...And as for Sasuke not excepting liking Naruto and such, I hope this chapter gives some insight.
2stupid: Kimimaro. I think. *sigh* I have to write the chapters with no internet and then transfer them over. So sometimes I can'y look up name spellings. So forgiveness?
A Single Fragile Rose: Glad you believe in my grammar. Most of the time it's pretty rough on my end. Thank you for the luck!
xRose Petalx: Here's your update!
xKurio: I'm honored you spent hours on reading this and even more houred that I had served some part in your inspiration. -bows humbly-
Soaha: I have no plans to turn Sasuke into a vampire. I like him being human. Gives him a little more desperation in his actions.
Yanita: Anita Blake was the inspiration for this piece. I love her works.
Broken Sexed Up Bloody Kitten: -coughs- Thank you for the spelling corrections. I'll fix them as soon as I have time.
Chibi-Chaaan: Glad you're enjoying the plot interweaving. Some days it makes me want to smack myself for putting those things in there.
shanayuijchan: Yep, I read her books. I would rec them except for the fact that mentioning her would likely pull me up on the bigbrother end of things on this site. lol. I can rec fastforward if you want a good naruto/vamp fic.
Momo: Bingo! Glad you caught them. Pick anything else out in this one?
kai: Kakashi knows what's going on to a certain extent. He's just treating everything like a novel his watching unfold. Don't worry, he has more to tell yet. Glad you got a comp back.
force majeur: I'll deal with the flames. That's why I stick them on the end. I figure this way I can talk to everyone without trying to use that review response button. Feels too much like email to me, and this keeps a record of the reviews. But glad you like the story.
moopad: Continuing~