Ugh. Colds suck and make it hard to write.
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Knives left Kiley behind and went over to Ace. He picked her up in a hug, and was pleased to feel her arms snake around his neck. He held her, shifting her to rest on his hip as he buried his face in her hair. He did feel different. This was easier for him then it had been, holding her and just letting his emotions be felt. Until he had woken up, until she pointed out that she had done something to him, he hadn't quite realized that he had locked his heart away. He had known that things had changed from when he was a child; he wasn't a simpleton. He just hadn't noticed how much things had begun to differ.
He knew how it had started. Humans were easy for him to kill; their deaths didn't bother his conscience one whit. Fighting against his brother had been hard. He knew that there was a chance that Vash would die. As long as they both fought, there was that chance. The humans didn't deserve his brother's protection, but as long as they battled, there was the possibility that his brother would die at his hand. Maybe not at his hand exactly, but perhaps in one of his schemes. A slim possibility, to be sure, but one that existed all the same. His brother's death, him causing his brother's death, that would destroy him. And if he could not continue the fight, the humans would win.
He couldn't fight his brother and love him at the same time. The forces of necessity that drove him, that moved him at cross-purposes with Vash, they pulled at his soul. The humans need to die. The plants must be saved. He couldn't fight his brother and love him at the same time. He just couldn't. Slowly, he just stopped feeling much of anything. Anything soft, anything that distracted him from his goal. He sent someone to watch over his brother, to keep him safe while he distracted him, but that was as far as he could go. Without the distraction of those feelings his resolve firmed. The humans would die.
Now? Now he remembered those emotions he had forgotten. His resolve was still firm; these emotions would not sway him from his goal. He was strong enough to deal with them now. His goals were worthy; he would not be swayed from his course by feelings. But it was nice to have them back. A small smile flitted across his lips. That woman had done him a favor, not that she thought so.
He dropped an absent kiss on Ace's head as he pondered the picture she had presented. She had looked so small, curled up in a ball at the base of the spire. The late afternoon sun had painted golden glints in her hair, and she had looked almost pretty in her misery. She was always so calm, collected. He had never seen her flustered before. It was almost cute, and actually comforting. She was merely human after all. For a while he had wondered if she ever did anything wrong.
He frowned. No human was ever perfect. He knew that her drive towards perfection was a part of her compensation for the sins of her past. Every time she failed, she must relive the feelings of shame that accompanied her memories of her youth. So right now, she must be feeling terrible.
Shifting Ace from one hip to the other, he grinned. Good. Guilt made people much more malleable. He walked back to where he had left her, and was comforted by the look of shame he caught on Kiley's face.
"Get up," he commanded, his voice cold. Ace looked at him oddly, and he turned his head slightly and dropped her a wink where Kiley couldn't see.
The woman looked at him mulishly, and he sighed. "Up," he said again, nudging her with his foot. She looked like she was contemplating dumping him on his rear, but dismissed the idea when she looked at Ace. Ah. Protected by her love for the child. He would have to remember that.
Instead her brows drew together, and she stood, glaring at him as she found her feet. She stood with her back pressed against the spire, and he couldn't tell if she was supporting herself or making sure her back was covered. Maybe it was both.
He looked at her, his expression giving nothing away. Her eyes met his, and he could see that she was daring him to do something, to say something. She must have used the time when he was picking up Ace to develop a few arguments. He wasn't going to let her use any of them.
A thought passed through his mind, and he decided to act upon it. He let his gaze travel down from her eyes, moving across her entire body, lingering on her chest and hips as he reached them. A small, cold smile flitted across his lips as his gaze moved back up her body, and as he reached her face again he saw that it was beet red. Good.
"That's payback for the hotel." He watched recognition cross her face her mouth open to protest, but not find words. He continued before she could say anything.
"And this is what you get for messing with my emotions." He leaned in close and kissed her, a deep, lingering kiss that took full advantage of her slightly parted mouth. She was tense at first, but relaxed into it before he finished. Heh. He was a good kisser. He lifted his lips from hers with a smile, pleased at her response. Then he draped his right arm over her shoulder, pulling her into a tight hug. Ace grabbed her other shoulder and kissed her cheek. She tensed, then relaxed slightly and tentatively responded to them both.
The look of shock on her face was priceless, fully worth the kiss. He chuckled, passed Ace into her arms, and walked back into the oasis.
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A/N: I have a little group thingie now. Come, join! Talk with other people who read this fic! Speculate on what I'm going to do next!! Theorize!! And stuff like that… Anyway, it's here: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CymberleahsFics/ Go!! Now!!