Ebony Bliss

Rating: Gahh...It was supposed to be R by now but I'm still deciding whether I want to tone down the lemony goodness later on or just give you all some rather explicate NC-17 scenes and just call them R to make this site happy. So far it's just been PG-13 and I've called it R, so let me know what you think.

Spoilers: WARNING! IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE SAMURAI X OVAs AND YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THEM, STOP READING AND WAIT FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER!!!! I had to make that big enough so people can't say they weren't forewarned.

Other Warnings: It's definitely AU with a few original characters, a somewhat original plot…if it's been done before then yell at me because I haven't read much of the Kenshin fanfiction that's lying around. It may be OOC but I'll try as hard as I can to avoid that.

Archives: None yet…ask me nicely and I might let you have it

Feedback: Please! Just email me at Dark_Izunami@dangerous-minds.com, I'd love to hear what you have to say!



Blah blah blah…Kenshin is not mine…if he was…you wouldn't be seeing too much of him because he'd be locked up in my room with me for quite some time. He belongs to some really lucky person in Japan who has a lot more money then I do.



Chapter 5



Toss and turn, right side, left side, flip, spin. Kenshin sighed and flopped onto his back. It was the most comfortable bed he had ever slept in and he couldn't get any rest for the life of him. The bonds that held him to Ebony weren't a problem, they were long enough so he could practice his late night acrobatics without disturbing her. "You know, for a girl who was worried about my leaving, you really are a sound sleeper." He sat up and gazed down at her. "You really are something else. I haven't met a girl like you since the revolution." He noticed a strand of her loose hair down by her mouth and reached down to move it away. "Pure silk." He murmured, stroking the strands with his callused fingers. "You try to act so hard but everything about you screams out innocence and vulnerability, that it does."

She turned further into her pillow, mumbling unconsciously. "What was that? I couldn't quite here you?" Kenshin was answered by her light, even breathing and shook his head. "Beautiful." He whispered before he realized what he was thinking.

He shook his head, trying to rid himself of the ideas "No more. Never again." He looked down at her again "I can't do this again."

She mumbled again, rolling over, her face now facing him. "Didn't hear that time either." He smiled and gazed down at her freely "It's no wonder you're a demi-goddess even though I wouldn't have thought you to be evil. Beauty, love, passion, those are the things that you represent."

She shrieked suddenly, crawling up against his body and slamming her small fists against his chest "Daddy, don't do this! Just leave her alone! Bliss, don't leave me." Tears started running down her cheeks to dampen the blankets "We promised to stay together forever. You can't leave me now! Stop being so stupid!"

"I heard you that time." He frowned "I can't say I understood anything though." He sighed again and settled down, letting her curl up against him, some tension leaving her body. "I've missed this more then I thought." He draped an arm over her and forced himself to get some sleep.

Warm sunshine, a light woodsy scent and pure masculinity rolled up together. Ebony snuggled closer to Kenshin, breathing in deeply. "Just another hour or so." She murmured "I don't want to get up right now." She opened her eyes to find herself staring at the chest of the man she had taken captive. Her eyes widened, glancing up and hoping to find him still soundly asleep.

There was no such luck for her. "Good evening." His eyes were twinkling brighter then the stars that specked the midnight blue sheet of the night sky.

She backed away quickly, nearly falling off of the bed in the process. "I'm sorry." She stammered "I don't know what got into me."

"Do you usually talk in your sleep?" He asked, sitting up as well and letting her unbind them.

Her face went even paler then normal "Could you make out what I was saying?" She asked nervously

He nodded "I can't say I understood anything but I heard you the third time you cried out. Those must be some vicious demons you carry with you."

"Just forget everything." She hopped out of the bed, the pillow falling to the floor after her, leaving the photo in the silver frame lying against the mattress. Kenshin's eyes scanned it quickly "Is one of these girls named Bliss?" He asked

"I told you to forget it!" She blinked back her tears, feeling more vulnerable then she had in any recent time.

"Sometimes it's easier to deal with the past when you have someone who understands what you've gone through." He spoke softly, keeping his eyes fixed on her back

"The past belongs buried and forgotten." She replied, running her fingertips over the picture

"You're carrying around the ghosts inside of you. They'll never leave until you let them."

"What do you know?" She spun around and jammed the pillow back in its place. "You've been staying with friends that adore you and treat you like a God. Your ghosts have already traveled to the afterlife."

"Are you sure about that?" His small smiled faded "You're a warrior, you can tell fighting styles and you watched my interactions with my friends. You probably know about my history or you would not have come after me. However, don't be so quick to assume you know all about me. I'm human and I carry about the same burdens and pains as the other people in this world."

"That's the problem." She finally turned back around to face him "You're human. Even if I was to trust you, you wouldn't be able to understand most of it."

"Try me." Kenshin gave her another small smile "Even if I don't understand, it will give you a chance to get it out in the open. It's nice to have someone know what you're going through so you don't feel as alone."

She hesitated "Himura, are you sure you want to have all my problems thrown on you?"

"If it's any help to you in the end, I'll gladly listen to your story."

"Alright." She sighed and settled back on the bed, making sure there were several inches of space between the two of them "Maybe it's time to tell everything." She gave another sigh and began to speak, quietly, as if forming a vision spell in front of him.

"I guess all of this started because of my mother. She was brought up in a decent middle class family and was educated in the ways of women by the other females in her family. They prepared her for a life of a good wife and mother and saw no need for any other skills or knowledge. She and her husband were married when she was around sixteen. They had been friends for quite some time and it was a good match for both families involved. They settled into a home on the side of a hill, a mile or so away from the nearest village. He was a teacher there and she was anxious to have the children she had longed for since her mother and grandmother had instructed her in child care and mothering skills."

"It was never supposed to be. She proved to be barren and was heartbroken because of it. Her husband wasn't quite as upset, he had the children he taught to tend to. Mother began to wilt away, unable to accept a life without the babies she craved. She started bargaining with the Gods, trying to get one of them to give her a child, not caring about the cost."

"My father heard her pleas and slithered into her life, promising her the perfect daughter she had always wanted would be planted inside of her by her husband if she agreed to carry another child, his child of darkness along with the other. He was to come back when his child was of a proper age and take her back with him. She was desperate and agreed to his terms, just thinking about her own selfish desires."

"A little over nine months later, my sister, Bliss, and I were born. She was everything I never could be. Happiness, beauty, kindness, love, and virtue seemed to radiate from her in waves. All she had to do was fix her smile on a miserable stranger and they would smile back in spite of themselves. Mother used to tell her that she could make a day turn sunny just by stepping outside. The sun wanted to see her bathing in his light so badly that he would force the clouds aside. Bliss really was the perfect child, the child she had always dreamed about."

"Those aren't names you hear on a regular basis." Kenshin remarked

Ebony frowned at his interruption "Mother had a love for the English language that my father taught to his more advanced pupils. Bliss is another word for happiness and Ebony just means black, darkness. It was just another way she reminded us of who we were."

"As soon as she set eyes on me, Mother held me in much lower regard. I was always a quiet child and since she knew I wouldn't remain there forever, she treated me like an unwanted guest. Whatever food I received was left over from the regular family meals or whatever Bliss gave to me. I was given the chores that a son would have had in our house while Bliss was given an abundance of free time. When she was sent off to a school down in the village to learn women-tasks like Mother had, I was shipped off to an old master of a nearly dead form of swordsmanship to keep me occupied. It didn't suit me and I went through a half a dozen other styles before I started making up my own. Mother never cared, she just didn't want me at home. She managed to have another baby several years after the two of us, giving her husband the he was hoping for but had given up wishing for. Kinaiji was a sweet little brother, although I was never permitted to spend much time with him. Mother always acted like my father had placed a curse on me from the day I was born and she was afraid it would spread to her perfect children. She never realized how right that thought was."

"Bliss was the only one who seemed to care about me. She loved me more then what she should have and took care of me when no one else bothered. We were closer then any other siblings I knew, we had a special bond that kept us connected, even when Mother tried to keep us apart. I could always feel her pain when she was hurt and when my stomach was growling and she was at her school in the village, she would know to bring back food for me. We were complete opposites in personality and appearance but we had a connection that could never be broken. Love kept the two of us together."

"That's the way my life was until I was about fifteen. That's when he came back."

"My father came back looking for me, he had decided that fifteen years would be enough time to build up my basic strength and knowledge so that I would be useful to him. He came back and found me a gaunt frame of pasty skin and matted hair. I had power in my body from my training but he couldn't see it. He was disgusted with how my Mother had treated her own child, just because the father was evil. He was infuriated and for a few moments, I thought he would kill her for spite. That's when he looked outside and saw Bliss hanging up the laundry."

"Her black hair gleamed like it had just been washed as the sun shone over her. She was full of that youthful strength that comes from plenty of love, good food, and inner joy. Compared to me at that point, there was no contest. He took back what he gave and decided Bliss would be better suited for his purposes. He gave her time to say goodbye to me and she did so with no resentment, she wouldn't show any fear. Our mother was kept away, he wouldn't even let them say goodbye before he vanished with my only friend."

"She killed herself a few days later, unable to go on living without her darling daughter. She couldn't even make herself live for the man who loved her and for her son. I didn't expect her to want to live for me. Oddly enough, the death of my mother was the real beginning of my life. Without her around, I was doing most of the housework and as a result, I was eating much better, getting stronger by the day. I had a decent relationship with the man who had played father to me all my life and my little brother adored me. Eventually, an orphaned girl from the village came to stay and do the housework, leaving me to seek out my first master in swordsmanship and have him teach me everything about his style. I knew that in my current state, I would never be able to find my sister. I needed more power, I needed to be stronger."

"It took almost three years for me to achieve my goals. My master passed away after telling me I was the new master of his techniques. I bid farewell to my family, knowing very well that there was a chance I wouldn't be returning and then set off to search for Bliss."

"It took over a year of wandering before I found her. I was wandering around this area and heard stories about the forbidden forest. They were all tales of an eternal night that overcame the souls of whoever set foot inside. My soul was already corrupted so I figured I'd take a closer look."

"You weren't awake when I brought you here so you wouldn't know what the entrance looks like. It's all foliage, and looks impossible to pass through. I had my sword and cut through some of the lower underbrush and found the two paths. A glimmer of light from the village distracted me and I followed it, only to find a much smaller, much more thriving version of what is down there today. The vampires were all over the streets, bartering, talking, it almost seemed like a normal human village until two of them attacked me, seeing that my neck was unscarred."

"It was easy enough to fight them off since they were unarmed but I started running, knowing very well I couldn't take them all on. It was then I spotted this castle up on the hill. I felt my insides tearing, knotting, and it was then I knew that I had found her."

"The doors were unlocked so I ran frantically from room to room, begging her to tell me where she was but her voice was too small, too weak for me to hear. I ran up and down the stairs, looking in every room, every corner but she wasn't there. It was then that I felt drawn to a room I had entered twice before only this time, I took a closer look at the closet. There was a second wall in there, hiding a narrow spiral staircase that I ran up."

"She was there at the top, lying in a small circular room on a blood stained rug. "'Ebony.'" She sighed, barely able to hold her hand out for me to grasp."

"'Bliss, what has he done to you?'" I held onto her, finding her bone thin and frailer then I was as a child.

"'It doesn't matter right now.'" She gave me one of her sunny sweet smiles "'All that matters to me is that you're here and I don't have to be alone anymore.'"

The light was gone from her eyes, devoid of hope and the life she had embraced all her life. "'Nothing is ever going to tear apart again.'" I swore "'Nothing, not even Death will be able to split us up again.'"

"'Ebony, look at me, I'm not the sister you used to love.'" She opened her mouth, revealing two ivory sharp fangs. "'He turned me into one of them, he wants me to be the head of his army.'"

"I had never hated anyone so deeply, so completely, so absolutely as I did him that very moment and for every moment after. I couldn't believe what he had done to my precious sister, draining her of the light and joy that made her such a perfect being. Even as a vampire, Bliss didn't have a speck of evil or darkness in her. She wasn't able to make herself feed on humans so the little nourishment she was getting was coming from the rats. We lived on them for weeks, not caring about anything other then just being with each other."

"That's when he came back. He wanted to know if she was still hiding away from her forced destiny. When he found me there, he was shocked to say the least and even more surprised at how much I had changed since he last saw me. I begged for him to let her go, pleaded for her life and tried everything I could think of to make him release her."

"That's when she made her stand, swore that if he didn't let me leave, she'd kill herself and he'd be left without a leader for his people. Every bit of strength in her body went into that final threat."

"He laughed at her and asked if she knew why she was even still here. It turns out the bastard had connected her to his life energy, to his body and he was forcing her to stay alive in a world that was destroying her very soul. Just to prove his point, he took in a breath of air and held it, making her fall back to the ground, gasping for air.'"

"'Stop it!'" I screamed, lunging at him with my sword, making him take another breath "Just leave her alone! She was never the one you wanted, I'm your child and the one that should be cursed with this life. Just release her and I'll take her place.'"

"I'll never forget that smirk he gave me, it could have froze the fires of hell."

"'You fool.'" He laughed "'Did you ever truly think I would let you leave this place after showing me your capabilities with the sword. You've filled out, become much stronger then I thought possible. You will take your place at the head of my army. However, there is only one way out of this world and that is death. There is no return to the human world to those who cross over. Now join me, daughter!'"

"He lunged at me, fangs barred. However, his size reduced his speed and I was easily able to avoid all of his attacks, making my own with my sword until he slapped it out of my hand. "'Bid your mortal life farewell, Ebony.'" He pinned me down to the ground and lowered his mouth."

"I had shut my eyes, just like every human would when it comes to facing the end of their lives. I heard his fangs sink into flesh, but I felt no pain. I forced open my eyes, only to find that Bliss had thrown herself between the two of us and he was sucking out what remained of her blood."

"I screamed, the first and the last time I ever remember doing so. He was killing her in front of my eyes and all because she tried to save me. He got up and spat at her limp body "'Filled me up too much to deal with this brat.'" He growled "Don't try to run, Ebony, the eyes of a God see all.'" And with that, he was gone."

"I held her in my arms, sobbing for her sacrifice only to feel a slight pressure on my shoulder and the hiss of breath in my ear. "'Ebony, don't cry.'" She whispered

"'I thought you were dead.'" I was overjoyed to hear her voice, hoping that there would be some way to save her."

"She just smiled again and shook her head "'I'll never be alive again, not here. I'm actually ready to go, leave all of this behind. I'm just hoping that there's some sunlight wherever I'm going. I've missed lying in the grass and staring up at it, even though Mama kept telling me it would burn holes in my eyes.'"

"'Bliss, he's never going to stop hunting me, is he?'"

"'I'm afraid not. You're so much stronger then I am and you're what he really wants. He'll never let you settle anywhere else.'"

"I just sighed, knowing that there was nothing else to do. "Bliss, I want you to bring me over.'"

"'Ebony darling, I could never do that. I have never drank from a human and I refuse to take a life and condemn it to this hell.'"

"'Bliss, if you don't then he will. I could bare the scars if they came from you, knowing that what you did, you did out of love and respect for my wishes. Now please, just drink!'"

"'Ebony, you'll survive, you'll find a way to save everyone here. It would be just like you to save all these people from a God.'" She ran a finger down the side of my neck and sank her small fangs into the vein. It was just a sharp pinch and then a slow throbbing...as if I was connected to the veins that were feeding her. I couldn't feel the fangs growing, but I knew it was happening. One life was leaving me and the emptiness was replacing it, waiting to be filled with moments from this new world."

"'At least we're together here." I sighed, "He can't tear us apart again.'"

"'He already has.'" She smiled "'I'm sorry Ebony, but I'm going to be leaving you soon. The only reason I'm here right now is because of your blood and my heart is rejecting it. You've made my life more of a joy then the sun, the stars, and every other moment combined. You were never just a sister to me, Ebony-dear, you were everything. I'm sorry I've got to leave you now but I know you'll be able to get through this and move on. Just please don't forget me sister, I'll always be hiding somewhere inside of you, there to comfort you when you need me.'" She died then, falling back into my embrace."

"'Bliss, don't leave me.'" My body started shaking with sobs "'We promised to stay together forever. You can't leave me now! Stop being so stupid! You can't go...not now.'"

"She was the last soul my father allowed to escape from this hell to go into the afterlife. He took her body away from me when I feel asleep, exhausted from the emotional and mental pain that the past weeks had caused me. I don't know what he did with the body and he'll never tell me."

"It was after I woke that I finally realized what I had to do. I was not going to let him keep hurting people, I wasn't going to let any more people end up like Bliss. I've spent the past six years plotting, planning and trying to fix up a plan to destroy his hold on this village and eventually the world. Bliss was right when she said I'd find the strength to try to overthrow him. I have to or her death and the lives of all these other people will be in vain."

She kept forcing back the tears, throwing all of her anger and frustration into her voice. If he wanted to listen to her, then she was going to take advantage of the situation and get everything out. "I've been here ever since, trying to get enough people to rebel against him and praying to the other Gods to find a way to lead them free. It was another reason why I brought you here." She admitted "I told Ryote it was to have another hunter but I knew you'd be able to help me in my personal quest more then anything else."

"So instead of killing mortals for food, you want me to kill a God for revenge." Kenshin looked down to find her leaning up against him slightly, not moving, not wanting to break the light contact.

"You have this whole honor code that makes you want to protect people. Well the people here may not be living, but they still need someone to help them. If you won't do it for me, at least think about doing it for their sakes." She rested a little more firmly against his shoulder "I believe it's your turn. If we're telling life stories...I want to hear yours."

His mouth dropped a bit "It's not that interesting."

"Whatever happened to that whole thing you were telling me about freeing internal demons?" She tilted her head back and looked up at him "It might be wise for you to take your own advice."

"It's not that great of a story. My parents died when I was very young and I was tossed into the slave trade business as another piece of merchandise. There were three women there that were very kind to me since I was the only child there but they were slaughtered along with everyone else by bandits. Hiko Seijuurou showed up and disposed of them quickly, telling me to find something to do with my life since he had avenged their deaths for me. I wanted to move on but first, I had to come to some closure about the entire event. I ended up burying every body, including the thieves and the traders. He came back and found me there, eventually taking me on as his student. He changed my name from Shinta to Kenshin, saying that my original name wasn't proper for a swordsman."

"Eventually I got caught up in the revolution, wanting to fight for what I thought was right, wanting to protect people by the blade of my sword and while doing that, I took more lives then any single person should. It was during those blood stained years of the revolution when I met Tomoe."

"She was the only one who seemed to understand me and cared for me anyways. I feel in love with her quickly but wouldn't allow myself to show it. A manslayer like myself should have been able to have soft emotions. I was drawn to her, she seemed like the perfect woman. Quiet, polite, she cooked and cleaned and gardened. More importantly, she was a companion for me, she knew about the pain that was tearing me apart and she helped me to deal with it, by making me see the possibility for a new future."

"What happened to her?" Ebony asked as he paused, his eyes filled with old memories and opening wounds.

Kenshin gave her a small smile and touched the lock of hair that had fallen against her cheek, brushing it back with the other ebony strands. "It turns out her family had been hunting me down and she was just a pawn. I had slain her intended husband during the revolution, he was the one who gave me the first scar on my face. They wanted me dead, they wanted to avenge his death. I ended up in a battle with her father and she made a choice. She decided I was worth more to her then her own family and she jumped into the middle of us and killed him herself. I had my eyes closed, was expecting to kill him and I didn't know she had stepped in the middle of us. I ended up killing the only woman I have been able to love. Right before she died in my arms, she took her knife and gave me the other part of the cross. I don't even want those scars to heal, they're reminders of the atonement I must preform before I die. I spent ten years of my life as a wanderer before Kaoru found me and gave me a home and a new family. I've been there ever since, trying to help people to make up for the pain I've caused in my past. That's why there is no possible way I can allow myself to kill, even to feed your people."

"We're more alike then either one of us wanted to admit." She muttered "Both losing the women that meant the world to us and carrying around the guilt of their deaths and trying to make up for it by helping others."

Kenshin said nothing, but reached out and closed his hand over hers. Ebony didn't resist or pull away.



*There you go, that's Ebony's story. I've been working on this and thinking about it for weeks now and just within the past few nights, everything came together and I was able to write it down. Probably because my sister is gone for the week and I didn't have her nagging me to take her places and I was able to sit down and just type. I really hope that I didn't turn her into a Mary Sue, if I did, please let me know and what I can do to fix her because that's not the kind of character I'm going for with her. Oh well, I'm going to bed and actually sleeping for once. Keep reviewing and I'll have the next chapter up, hopefully soon!*