She hadn't wanted that, not in a millennia. The feeling of being complete had been overwhelming but she had managed to regain her emotional feet thanks to some stalling from Ruby. She suspected that the petulance hadn't been completely faked, but it had helped enormously. Now she stared at him from across the room, eyes flaring a crystalline blue that was only slightly marred with brown.
"Are you happy now?" it wasn't quite her voice but there was less of Ruby in it than before. Bran looked slightly stunned and that gave her the edge as she moved forward her eyes narrow slits. Then to her surprise he looked her full in the face and nodded once "I'm satisfied" her mouth twisted into a sneer "I expect you are, never above using whores at your convenience" she watched the slight whiteness appear around his mouth, and jubilant as well as sorrowful; at this evidence of mortality and original sin in the man she had once seen as the light to her darkness she laughed.
She was slightly startled at the sanity in the sound, her inner turmoil almost needed to hear a cracked cackle not her own low sarcastic chuckle. He acknowledged her with Shakespeare though, taunting her onwards "A hit, a very palpable hit" he mock bowed, snake quick, and backed into the study; reverting as he went to the tones of his younger years "But come lady, want's thee not thine revenge?" his eyes sparked emerald splinters as he disappeared.
Lynx couldn't remember ever being driven so hard or torn so much by her own emotions, and Ruby was oddly silent; as if her glimpse of the soulmate bond had her thinking. The Night Blade however remained fired up to its most deadly and she went blade first through the door.
He was standing by a half finished portrait of a young blonde woman who clutched a black dahlia in one hand and what appeared to be a wand in the other. He blocked the other portrait from view as she came unwaveringly on, he even stood still as she swung in a one handed graceful moment directly for his throat.
Everything slowed, her revenge was on her and she felt sick. She would not, could not, turn aside now. And then out of what seemed like nowhere he swung up a beautiful crystal fencers epee set in gold. The opposite entirely of the Night Blade and he caught her mid swing "en guard, milady, the tables are turned I fear" she made no sound, noise showed thoughts early, like muscular movement. It diverted the brain from fighting, and it was a more balanced fight now. Bran had thousands of years life experience. She only had her skill. It was a big only.
She saw within moments his problem, he wasn't used to the blade he wielded with lightning speed. She and the Night Blade moved as one being, of course they had the advantage of actually being one soul. But Lynx had never minded having the advantage it gave her an edge over her opponent and now she was fighting her own fight for the first time in years. She had a razor sharp edge.
They could have been fighting in broad daylight for all the gloom bothered them, but he was tiring. That much the soulmate potential told her while she remained fresh. His breathing was beginning to give him away as much as the sweat stains on his clothes "Getting old mon ami?" she flashed him a pair of gleaming fangs as she leapt backwards over a chair to avoid a darting thrust. He laughed, for all as if they were a pair of friends sparring not a vampire assassin and an ancient dragon hell bent on destroying each other. "Oh yes" it was laughed out "I love you my lady" then his eyes flashed bleak.
She was fighting without thought at all now, parrying and feinting in an almost mechanical rhythm "The why try to kill me? Not really a loving gesture" she forced him back into the chair she had leapt earlier "That" he made a gesture with his chin towards the Night Blade as he dodged her blow swiftly and lunged forward. "Why? You're the one who does harm, you made it" she whirled in a complete circle and went for a hamstring which he dodged with a light jump. "Bonding not as complete as you thought, hmm?" and at that moment Ruby as if acting under orders showed her the path that the Blade had wended to get to Hunters hands. Self service, greed and evil all to gain revenge.
Shock should have given Bran the edge, but Lynx had been an assassin too long to be beaten by her own inadequacies. Even as he moved she performed a stop thrust and disarmed him. Then she wondered why she bothered, in this if nothing else she couldn't hide behind her own coolness, her own capacity for evil was great. But could she kill her own soulmate for a crime forced from him? She herself had done worse deeds than he, and for less of a reason.
Bran had found a defence though while he groped for his weapon, and if she hadn't been dead to all external emotions now she would have laughed. For she could ask for no better proof that he loved her than the portrait he now used to defend himself. Ruby it seemed couldn't force her at the last; both were too tired, too war weary, and, most damningly, too alike to blame him for a crime that was theirs alone.
As he regained his sword she looked at him with flat dull hazel eyes, and dropped the Night Blade at his feet even as the flames extinguished. She met shadowed emerald eyes with a bleakness that caught right to the soul and nodded even as his blade touched the hollow of her throat. She suspected, as the Night Blade could, his golden sword would have no trouble killing even a vampire. "Do it Bran, no remorse, no pity, do it as I would." And she held his eyes as the blade slipped home.
"Are you happy now?" it wasn't quite her voice but there was less of Ruby in it than before. Bran looked slightly stunned and that gave her the edge as she moved forward her eyes narrow slits. Then to her surprise he looked her full in the face and nodded once "I'm satisfied" her mouth twisted into a sneer "I expect you are, never above using whores at your convenience" she watched the slight whiteness appear around his mouth, and jubilant as well as sorrowful; at this evidence of mortality and original sin in the man she had once seen as the light to her darkness she laughed.
She was slightly startled at the sanity in the sound, her inner turmoil almost needed to hear a cracked cackle not her own low sarcastic chuckle. He acknowledged her with Shakespeare though, taunting her onwards "A hit, a very palpable hit" he mock bowed, snake quick, and backed into the study; reverting as he went to the tones of his younger years "But come lady, want's thee not thine revenge?" his eyes sparked emerald splinters as he disappeared.
Lynx couldn't remember ever being driven so hard or torn so much by her own emotions, and Ruby was oddly silent; as if her glimpse of the soulmate bond had her thinking. The Night Blade however remained fired up to its most deadly and she went blade first through the door.
He was standing by a half finished portrait of a young blonde woman who clutched a black dahlia in one hand and what appeared to be a wand in the other. He blocked the other portrait from view as she came unwaveringly on, he even stood still as she swung in a one handed graceful moment directly for his throat.
Everything slowed, her revenge was on her and she felt sick. She would not, could not, turn aside now. And then out of what seemed like nowhere he swung up a beautiful crystal fencers epee set in gold. The opposite entirely of the Night Blade and he caught her mid swing "en guard, milady, the tables are turned I fear" she made no sound, noise showed thoughts early, like muscular movement. It diverted the brain from fighting, and it was a more balanced fight now. Bran had thousands of years life experience. She only had her skill. It was a big only.
She saw within moments his problem, he wasn't used to the blade he wielded with lightning speed. She and the Night Blade moved as one being, of course they had the advantage of actually being one soul. But Lynx had never minded having the advantage it gave her an edge over her opponent and now she was fighting her own fight for the first time in years. She had a razor sharp edge.
They could have been fighting in broad daylight for all the gloom bothered them, but he was tiring. That much the soulmate potential told her while she remained fresh. His breathing was beginning to give him away as much as the sweat stains on his clothes "Getting old mon ami?" she flashed him a pair of gleaming fangs as she leapt backwards over a chair to avoid a darting thrust. He laughed, for all as if they were a pair of friends sparring not a vampire assassin and an ancient dragon hell bent on destroying each other. "Oh yes" it was laughed out "I love you my lady" then his eyes flashed bleak.
She was fighting without thought at all now, parrying and feinting in an almost mechanical rhythm "The why try to kill me? Not really a loving gesture" she forced him back into the chair she had leapt earlier "That" he made a gesture with his chin towards the Night Blade as he dodged her blow swiftly and lunged forward. "Why? You're the one who does harm, you made it" she whirled in a complete circle and went for a hamstring which he dodged with a light jump. "Bonding not as complete as you thought, hmm?" and at that moment Ruby as if acting under orders showed her the path that the Blade had wended to get to Hunters hands. Self service, greed and evil all to gain revenge.
Shock should have given Bran the edge, but Lynx had been an assassin too long to be beaten by her own inadequacies. Even as he moved she performed a stop thrust and disarmed him. Then she wondered why she bothered, in this if nothing else she couldn't hide behind her own coolness, her own capacity for evil was great. But could she kill her own soulmate for a crime forced from him? She herself had done worse deeds than he, and for less of a reason.
Bran had found a defence though while he groped for his weapon, and if she hadn't been dead to all external emotions now she would have laughed. For she could ask for no better proof that he loved her than the portrait he now used to defend himself. Ruby it seemed couldn't force her at the last; both were too tired, too war weary, and, most damningly, too alike to blame him for a crime that was theirs alone.
As he regained his sword she looked at him with flat dull hazel eyes, and dropped the Night Blade at his feet even as the flames extinguished. She met shadowed emerald eyes with a bleakness that caught right to the soul and nodded even as his blade touched the hollow of her throat. She suspected, as the Night Blade could, his golden sword would have no trouble killing even a vampire. "Do it Bran, no remorse, no pity, do it as I would." And she held his eyes as the blade slipped home.