Chapter 23: Shielding

I tried my very best to hold back my sudden rage, and Edward let go of me to cross his arms. We walked closer to observe, but Kira and Daiyu didn't stir. Eventually we were close enough to hear their breathing, and in view to see both their faces.

Kira's fragile glass-like face, and Daiyu's malevolent smile.

"So is this what's it going to be?" his voice the same humorous tone.

"No." her voice was weak and tired.

"Ah. Then are you agreeing?"

"No."

His face twisted and he shook his head a bit. His fists clenched together.

"Interfering Edward?" His gaze shifted toward us.

"Maybe. You're really sick you know." Edward's voice was stabbing.

"And you're hopeless. What do you possibly see in this girl that you have to protect her so much?"

I was ready to brutally strangle him.

"More than you would possibly witness."

"Like what?" His voice was playful as he placed a finger under his chin.

"Hope. Something you stolen more than enough of."

"Oh, calling me a thief again? Is that all I am with you?"

"Would you rather me call you a demonic liar or something else? Because honestly you're worst than all of hell combined." Edward's glare was cutting. Kira was still looking at the ground with faint jade eyes.

"Hey, watch it there. There are ladies present." Then he moved his eyes toward Kira. "Are you okay dear?"

"Yes." Her lips barely moved and we all were soaking wet.

The tombstones were all tainted a blackish color, and the ground was lost of all color.

"I love you dear."

Silence.

"I said I love you!"

Silence.

"Kira…do I have to—"

"No!" Her head snapped up to him, her eyes blazing with green.

He smiled with his teeth shining in the darkness. She looked back down.

"If you stop resisting this would be so much easier Kira." His tone was softer.

"If I do, you'll hurt others. If I do as you say, I will be wasted."

His face twisted.

"What gave you that idea? You'll never be wasted dear." His smile was fake and shallow.

"Daiyu just her be. She suffered enough from you. Just go." Edward suggested.

"No!" Kira screamed involuntarily.

Daiyu's smile grew to reach the corners of his eyes.

"Apparently she disagrees, Edward."

"Against her will. She wants you to endure eternal fire." Edward's eyes were piercing, his tone harsh. My face was carved with stone.

"Kira I won't do anything regretful, I love you more than the world."

Her eyes were glassy and her body was frail. She didn't look up.

"Kira? Don't you—"

"Don't make me believe anything!" she managed to scream out of her low voice. "If I believe it'll make me think you care. Don't make me believe!" She slammed her hands over her ears.

"Why don't you want to believe?" He lightly kicked her foot. "Why don't you want to trust me? I never lied…I never gave you pain."

Her eyes flew open, the emeralds glistening. Edward smirked a bit and grabbed my hand.

"Don't say that…word…" her voice was losing stamina.

"What word dear? Lied or pain?" he was playing.

Her lip began to quiver; her hands loosen around her ears.

"I saved you from that you know, and the evidence is over there." He pointed to her parents' small graves, each with a single flower on top. "I saved you from all of that. I gave you new life, Kira. I gave you a sanctuary that humans wished for their entire lives for. I gave you something that your monster parents never considered Kira! The one thing you wanted, love!" his rants were still in the humor category; Kira stared helplessly at him, entranced and locked into him, her body shaking. "Aren't I right?"

She exhaled heavily.

"Kira."

No answer.

"Answer me!"

"No!"

He stared at her with a sudden cold expression.

"Repeat that please." His tone was sapped by all emotion.

"No…you gave me more agony. You gave my hell not heaven. You gave me nothing." She said softly, her tone dying.

"I gave you new life Kira!"

"You gave a new life of pain."

"I gave you sanctuary!"

"You gave me hell."

"I gave you love!"

"You gave me lies."

He stared at her with these intense eyes as she looked at him with these slowly shattering eyes. I was holding onto Edward's cold hand for dear life. I wanted him to die right now if I could help it.

"Then who do you suppose gave you these things? You never experienced it." Daiyu pointed it out harshly.

Silence.

"Tell me if you so called experienced this!"

"I don't know…but I know I've felt it." She clenched the part of jacket where her heart is.

"If you don't know, then why do you think you felt it!"

"Because I feel safe. Because I feel like I matter."

"How do you know if that's what love is!" his voice was masked by pure anger.

"Because I know! Because I've seen people! Because people tell me!"

"And that makes you think that's what love is?"

"Yes…" her voice was exhausted and pleading, the rain was making her skin glow, along with the rest of the vampires, their hair soaking wet amongst their faces.

"Just because someone tells you some description you think that's love? What the hell do you know!"

Edward looked away for a bit then looked back toward them and shook his head. He was probably thinking something.

Kira closed her eyes and focused toward the ground. Daiyu knelt down and was merely inches from her face, his eyes flaming with ravenous color.

"Tell me!" he whispered loudly.

She shook her head, her wet hair whipping him.

"Tell me!" he said louder.

She began to pant again.

"Kira tell me now!"

"Bella told me!" she screamed.

Daiyu stopped dead as we stared at them. Kira's panting ceased and managed to regain normal breaths. We all were staring at her with wide eyes, waiting for the answer. Her eyes were looked shot and broken, her body ready to topple over when called for.

"What? Tell me everything now!" he tone was rash.

She stared at him helplessly, like a hurt child…an abused child.

"Now!"

"No."

"Why not!"

"Because it's the only thing I know that's true!"

Daiyu stood over Kira's breaking body. His eyes nearly cutting everything in her, she was breathing unstably and staring at him with unfocused blank green eyes. Edward and I just stood there witnessing it all while grasping onto Edward's hand until my fingers turned purple, waiting for this to end. Waiting for the sun to come out and I can finally wake up and see Kira smile then say this was all a bad dream. But of course it isn't, it never was. Life never was that fair.

"Kira! You are to answer to me! I'm sick of waiting!"

She shook her head thrashing the water from her hair around.

"Kira!" He began to raise his hand in the air, his teeth bearing to the maximum.

She stared at it with wide eyes, her breathing reaching a dangerous level. She was shaking her head slightly so it was barely noticeable.

Then the hand came down and flew past her face and made her fall over into the ground, his smile reaching past his nose. She curled her legs and embraced it with her arms as she lied on the ground, her eyes wide open and barely moving except for her quivering lip.

Edward twitched a bit next me as I gazed in horror on what just happened within the five seconds. Daiyu towered over her lightly kicking her legs with a wild expression.

"I didn't want to resort to that Kira, but I need answers. So stop resisting, you aren't going to gain a thing."

"I don't want to gain anything…" her voice was shallow and frail.

"Then what are you doing!"

"Nothing…"

"Nonsense Kira! Tell me now!" He raised his hand again; her face went into immediate panic.

"I'm protecting what I can from you! I don't anyone else to suffer anymore!" she screamed out at once, unbinding her arms and held onto her head.

"Shielding what! Tell me!" His tone was demanding and cruel.

"Nothing!" She screamed louder almost piercing my ears though it stung a bit.

"Lies! Lies Kira!" Then it came down.

Within that second, before his hand touched her, I found Edward kneeling beside me with Kira cradled in his arms. She dug her face into his shirt while grabbing it with her delicate hands.

"Leave her be Daiyu. She never deserved this, she never deserved the life she had or the life you gave her. She by no means earned anything like this." His tone was stone like, solid.

"Why! She's holding back on me! She isn't obeying!" his voice was crazy and wild, his face sick and malicious.

"She's not your pet! She doesn't have to obey anything! She has her own life to overcome!"

While they were arguing I noticed Kira violently fidget around with Edward restraining her, he wasn't letting her get any closer to him. She was trying to scream but her face was stuffed into him so it was droned out. Edward was doing his best so she wouldn't move.

Then a high pitch screech sliced through my ears causing my mind to throb and I covered my ears. Edward swiftly put her down and did the same, yet still remained just as close. Daiyu embraced his ears and stepped a couple paces back. Kira was clasping her head with her hands and screamed hysterically in the wet ground.

I squatted toward the ground, still holding my ears, but the scream was still ringing clearly in them. I closed my eyes tightly letting random thoughts run through so I drone the screams out, but it was all I was able to focus on.

Then there was the silence again.

Everything seemed to have stopped once I opened my eyes. Edward was still in his protective stance next to Kira, and Daiyu was still a few steps farther. Both their eyes were still and stony; Edward's eyes were golden while Daiyu's was still ravening black.

She wasn't moving now, not even breathing on the ground. She lied on her side, her arms were wrapped around her chest and her eyes wide open with vivid unnatural bloody color…

Ready to shield herself from anything…

Even herself.