A/N: Yay, my first fic for these books! This one takes place sometime during Demon in My View, and I changed some events a bit, but it combines elements from all of the series. When I was reading In the Forests of the Night, I just really felt that whole "we hate each other" thing between Aubrey and Risika meant something else, Heheh. Also, "*" indicate telepathic communication. Before I forget disclaimers (again): all characters, places, events and such belong to Amelia Atwater-Rhodes. I didn't come up with them. So, here it goes…
Risika stared silently and coldly through one of the windows of Las Noches. She didn't really need to look; she could sense what she wanted to know. In her mind, she watched him and Fala talking, and heard every word they said. So, he had a weakness. Perhaps the greatest of her kind was not all-powerful after all.
*Risika* she heard him in her mind. *Leave her out of this. If you want to fight me, then fight me. Don't be a coward.*
Risika shook with rage, but knew Aubrey was right. Killing this human girl he apparently loved would not destroy him, but probably make him stronger. She could still feel him in her mind. His overbearing aura of power could be unnerving, so she changed to a tiger and ran to the woods outside of New Mayhem for some time to herself.
She sat thinking in the cold night under a tree. The moon was dull, and to any human she would be near invisible. Vampires, however, would sense her instantly. But, what with her being one of the most powerful of their kind, they usually didn't try to fight her. Only one had ever done so. Both times she had lost, once recently, once centuries ago. She refused to lose the next. And it would be soon. Very soon.
Her thoughts traveled to him. How could Aubrey, the most feared and admired of her kind, lose his heart to a pathetic mortal? This frightened Risika, simply because she knew that if Aubrey had emotions still in him, she did too. She had tried to dispense of them long ago. Emotions only hindered vampires, made them weak. She had hoped long ago that the last traces of feeling were gone from her.
*You will never fully be rid of them. No one is THAT powerful* she heard in her mind. Aubrey had appeared behind her, and at once his powerful aura surrounded her. "You obviously aren't," she spoke aloud once she had changed back to a human.
"Love for a human, Aubrey? So, the almighty begins his downfall," she sneered. She was preparing herself for a fight, the fight that would finally destroy one of them.
"I wouldn't call it love, Risika. More like…infatuation. She is practically already one of our kind, and she fascinates me."
Risika spun on him and snarled, "Our kind? OUR kind? You are a disgrace to our kind, Aubrey, and I will never be like you. I don't allow feelings to get in my way."
Aubrey laughed, a dark, haunting sound. "Don't you? Isn't that why you keep fighting me? You want to avenge what I did to your brother so many years ago. You let your love for him get in the way, yet…" Aubrey searched her mind. "Even he fears you now. So, Risika, you have lost the last one who ever cared about you. Good job."
Risika glared at him. Again, he was right. Alexander was now terrified of her, as he had seen what she had become. Replaying the scene where she met him again after hundreds of years in her mind, she again tried to convince herself she was not a killer, and still had some morals.
"Aren't you?" asked Aubrey, with a glint of amusement in his black eyes. "Isn't all of our kind?"
She never left his gaze. "Not like you. You kill…you killed my brother…for no reason. Like life doesn't matter at all to you."
"Listen to yourself, Risika," he nearly shouted. "You insult me for caring for a human, but imply that you still care about life. Are you that weak that you still try to convince yourself? Life doesn't matter, you know that as well as I and any other vampire. You've seen enough years to know how insignificant each small person is!"
He was holding her by the shoulders, shaking her slightly. "And Risika…you kill too."
She screamed in his face, knocking his hands off her. She was filled with anger and other emotions she wished she didn't have. "YOU'RE THE ONE WHO KILLED MY BROTHER!"
Aubrey for once looked surprised. "I didn't kill him…he was already dead." There was an expression of confusion, but then understanding, that Risika had never seen on his face before. "True, I hurt him. But you would have done the same thing to anyone else. And now, he's become such a stranger to you that you believe I killed him. Think about it, Risika. He was already one of our kind, before Ather changed you. You've become so obsessed with destroying me that you don't even know your reasons anymore."
"Why are you telling me this?" She almost cried. Risika was embarrassed to be seen so emotional in front of so strong a creature, but she couldn't help herself. She felt more vulnerable than ever.
He looked straight at her, and something in his dark eyes told her for once to listen to him. "Because this has to stop. We can't spend all of eternity hunting each other down, and hating each other. We're both much too powerful, and this fighting will never accomplish anything."
Quite suddenly, his eyes glazed over, and Risika recognized the look. He had just sensed something, or someone nearby that caught his attention.
He changed to a wolf, and said to Risika's mind *Fala's got Jessica. I have to go. I'll speak to you later.*
In the instant before he ran to presumably search for the girl, Risika noticed his knife on the ground. This could be her chance. She picked it up. It would be so easy. As she watched his fur glisten as he ran, she pulled back her arm to throw. But she didn't, something inside her stopped her.
Sheathing the knife in her boot, Risika headed down the path and past the black rose bush. She didn't want to be there when Aubrey found his human girl.
Risika stared silently and coldly through one of the windows of Las Noches. She didn't really need to look; she could sense what she wanted to know. In her mind, she watched him and Fala talking, and heard every word they said. So, he had a weakness. Perhaps the greatest of her kind was not all-powerful after all.
*Risika* she heard him in her mind. *Leave her out of this. If you want to fight me, then fight me. Don't be a coward.*
Risika shook with rage, but knew Aubrey was right. Killing this human girl he apparently loved would not destroy him, but probably make him stronger. She could still feel him in her mind. His overbearing aura of power could be unnerving, so she changed to a tiger and ran to the woods outside of New Mayhem for some time to herself.
She sat thinking in the cold night under a tree. The moon was dull, and to any human she would be near invisible. Vampires, however, would sense her instantly. But, what with her being one of the most powerful of their kind, they usually didn't try to fight her. Only one had ever done so. Both times she had lost, once recently, once centuries ago. She refused to lose the next. And it would be soon. Very soon.
Her thoughts traveled to him. How could Aubrey, the most feared and admired of her kind, lose his heart to a pathetic mortal? This frightened Risika, simply because she knew that if Aubrey had emotions still in him, she did too. She had tried to dispense of them long ago. Emotions only hindered vampires, made them weak. She had hoped long ago that the last traces of feeling were gone from her.
*You will never fully be rid of them. No one is THAT powerful* she heard in her mind. Aubrey had appeared behind her, and at once his powerful aura surrounded her. "You obviously aren't," she spoke aloud once she had changed back to a human.
"Love for a human, Aubrey? So, the almighty begins his downfall," she sneered. She was preparing herself for a fight, the fight that would finally destroy one of them.
"I wouldn't call it love, Risika. More like…infatuation. She is practically already one of our kind, and she fascinates me."
Risika spun on him and snarled, "Our kind? OUR kind? You are a disgrace to our kind, Aubrey, and I will never be like you. I don't allow feelings to get in my way."
Aubrey laughed, a dark, haunting sound. "Don't you? Isn't that why you keep fighting me? You want to avenge what I did to your brother so many years ago. You let your love for him get in the way, yet…" Aubrey searched her mind. "Even he fears you now. So, Risika, you have lost the last one who ever cared about you. Good job."
Risika glared at him. Again, he was right. Alexander was now terrified of her, as he had seen what she had become. Replaying the scene where she met him again after hundreds of years in her mind, she again tried to convince herself she was not a killer, and still had some morals.
"Aren't you?" asked Aubrey, with a glint of amusement in his black eyes. "Isn't all of our kind?"
She never left his gaze. "Not like you. You kill…you killed my brother…for no reason. Like life doesn't matter at all to you."
"Listen to yourself, Risika," he nearly shouted. "You insult me for caring for a human, but imply that you still care about life. Are you that weak that you still try to convince yourself? Life doesn't matter, you know that as well as I and any other vampire. You've seen enough years to know how insignificant each small person is!"
He was holding her by the shoulders, shaking her slightly. "And Risika…you kill too."
She screamed in his face, knocking his hands off her. She was filled with anger and other emotions she wished she didn't have. "YOU'RE THE ONE WHO KILLED MY BROTHER!"
Aubrey for once looked surprised. "I didn't kill him…he was already dead." There was an expression of confusion, but then understanding, that Risika had never seen on his face before. "True, I hurt him. But you would have done the same thing to anyone else. And now, he's become such a stranger to you that you believe I killed him. Think about it, Risika. He was already one of our kind, before Ather changed you. You've become so obsessed with destroying me that you don't even know your reasons anymore."
"Why are you telling me this?" She almost cried. Risika was embarrassed to be seen so emotional in front of so strong a creature, but she couldn't help herself. She felt more vulnerable than ever.
He looked straight at her, and something in his dark eyes told her for once to listen to him. "Because this has to stop. We can't spend all of eternity hunting each other down, and hating each other. We're both much too powerful, and this fighting will never accomplish anything."
Quite suddenly, his eyes glazed over, and Risika recognized the look. He had just sensed something, or someone nearby that caught his attention.
He changed to a wolf, and said to Risika's mind *Fala's got Jessica. I have to go. I'll speak to you later.*
In the instant before he ran to presumably search for the girl, Risika noticed his knife on the ground. This could be her chance. She picked it up. It would be so easy. As she watched his fur glisten as he ran, she pulled back her arm to throw. But she didn't, something inside her stopped her.
Sheathing the knife in her boot, Risika headed down the path and past the black rose bush. She didn't want to be there when Aubrey found his human girl.