Chapter 6

            Arson seemed to pause for a split second and looked down at Ash, who was still covered in blood, lying helplessly on the floor of his bedroom. Minako swallowed hard and somehow managed to force herself to keep her eyes away from the awesome and yet terrible sight that was Arson's demon form. Arson gave vent to a low snarl. The sound was much softer than before. Ash sensed the demon's uncertainty and tried again, trying to make her voice sound less disgusted with herself and more loving and gentle.

            'Arson, I love you,' she whispered, repeating those three dreaded words again. Arson suddenly snarled again and lunged at her. Ash shrieked, causing Minako to turn violently, just as the doors swung open. Rayne stepped inside quickly and took in the situation at a glance.

            His face fell as he saw Arson's state. Arson whirled away from Ash at the last moment, his leathery black wings spreading out as he roared out the hate that constantly rose as memories of his past flashed through his vision. He rushed at Rayne, who neatly side stepped, but turned quickly, making sure that he was caught unawares.

            Arson turned swiftly his voice a low growl. Ash shakily got up. Arson looked towards her, his attention diverted by her movement. Minako's eyes hardened. After getting over her initial fear, she now felt ready to act if need be. Arson's eyes locked with Ash, who instead of looking away, mirrored the glare. Rayne felt as though he could cut through the tension with a knife. Something electric seemed to hang in the air, ready to shock anyone who made a false move.

            Arson shifted restlessly, impatient for action. His leathery wings spread out again, flapped once and twice, and then folded over his back neatly. Rayne glanced sideways at Ash, who stood there not knowing what to do.

            'Say something to him, Ash. You calmed him down a little.' Ash was feeling dizzier and weaker as she lost more blood. Her body began to sway slightly as blood leaked out of her wounds. Her vision began to swim.

            'Arson,' she croaked. She fell to her knees shaking her head to show Rayne that she could do no more. This pitiful display on her part seemed to bring Arson back to his senses. The dark red aura that had been previously surrounding him now faded away to nothing. His deadened eyes returned to brown and his skin resumed its normal colour. He rushed to her side, pushing past Rayne and Minako.

            'Ash!' he yelled. He did not get any reply. He looked around wildly before his eyes settled on Rayne. 'What happened?'

            'She got wounded while fighting,' said Rayne easily. Arson's face seemed to cloud over, but then his face cleared as he remembered the fight between the Death Scythes.

            'Why didn't she heal?'

            'She had tried to. But their too deep and serious.' Minako looked at them both impatiently as she saw Ash's blood soaking into Arson's clothes.

            'Instead of wasting time, why don't we get her to the infirmary?' Rayne looked sheepish but then nodded, turning and walking out of the room. Arson looked down at Ash wonderingly before slipping his hands underneath her body and lifting her.

            'Why didn't you guys take her there before?'

            'Because you turned into your demon form and tried to attack us,' said Minako somewhat harshly. Arson looked as if he had just been slapped in the face.

            'What?'

            'You tried to kill her. But she stopped you.'

            'Stopped me? But how could she stop me in a state like this?' Rayne looked at Minako curiously as she continued.

            'Because she told you that she loved you.' Arson's eyes widened and all colour drained out of his face. Rayne too looked shocked. He looked at Ash quickly, to find that her eyes were clouding over slowly. She coughed weakly and clung onto Arson. Her eyes were confused and dim. Rayne saw that she didn't know what was going on, and that it was probably that she didn't even know that she was being moved elsewhere. Arson looked down at Ash, blinking, startled. He looked back up at Rayne, his eyes hardening slightly, and he quickened his pace, while trying to make sure he didn't put her through any pain. Ash closed her eyes and allowed her head to sink against his body, too weak to even protest.

            When she woke up, it was dark. She moved slightly and felt the bandages that had been wrapped around her chest. She moved again and was shocked to find that her top had been taken off her, leaving her only covered by the bandages. She snuggled deeper into the covers, embarrassed before she allowed her eyes to travel around the room, taking in her surroundings.

            Arson was sitting in a chair near the window, one arm on the window sill, his head resting on it. His other arm dangled off the edge. Ash smiled to herself. He looked as though he was absolutely exhausted. She wondered with a sudden stab of cold fear and dismay whether it had been him who had dressed her wounds. She heard a sudden sound and looked to see that a woman had come into the room, and was coming closer to the side of the bed.

            'So you're awake now, are you?' Ash blinked at her, and then her face lighted up as she recognised her.

            'Trish!' she smiled with joy but then grew pale as Trish's face suddenly changed into someone else's. Xyphos.

            'You've done well so far. But you have a lot more to go.'

            'W-what d'you mean? Xyphos?'

            'You are the one who will free this village, these people from terror.' Ash said nothing but stared up at Xyphos glassily. Xyphos only smiled down at her serenely before touching the top of her head.

            'Good luck, Arson,' she whispered. Ash felt tears come to her eyes as she heard her former name being used. She sat up quickly and got out of bed.

            'Xyphos wait!' she cried. She fell heavily to her knees, her body still too weak to endure violent movement.

            Ash sat up with a jolt back in bed. A thin layer of sweat lay on her forehead. She shivered and panted but then tensed as she looked around the room again. Everything was still the same. Arson was still asleep. A woman was walking towards her bedside. She tensed and tried to back away from her but then groaned softly as her body protested. It had all been a dream then? Everything had been a bad dream? Her eyes turned towards the woman, who had stopped when she saw that Ash was now fully awake.

            'I need to see your wounds. I need to check on whether they have started healing yet.' Ash frowned at her but said nothing, scowling at her. The woman forced her to lie back down, simply by pressing her shoulders down gently. Though Ash had tried to fight against it, her body had ached in sharp protest and she had been obliged to give in.

            'Were you the one who dressed my wounds?' she asked. The woman nodded and found to her relief that this made Ash relax slightly.

            'Why, were you worried?' Ash nodded without thinking. The woman chuckled slightly but then frowned as she saw the amulet that hung around Ash's neck. She looked at it closely but then turned away from Ash, drawing the curtains around the bed, so then they had their privacy.

            An hour later, Rayne walked into the infirmary, to see that Ash had fallen back into a deep sleep after having been given some sedatives. Arson was beginning to look troubled as he dreamt. He shifted his position slightly, coming dangerously close to letting his head fall off the window-sill. Rayne quickly shook him into wakefulness before he started getting deeper into his nightmares. Arson woke up with a shout and then looked around dazedly.

            'Are you okay?' asked Rayne. Arson nodded once before adroitly changing the subject.

            'I'm fine, but do you know anything about Ash?' Rayne looked towards the bed thoughtfully.

            'She looks as though she's sleeping peacefully enough.' He caught a sudden flash of light from Ash's direction and walked towards her curiously. Arson appeared not to notice and rested his head back on the arm that lay on the window-sill still. Rayne looked towards him swiftly before gently slipping Ash's amulet under the covers. Ash stirred slightly but did not wake. Rayne dragged the covers closer to her chin and then stepped away.

            'It's always the same…' said Arson suddenly.

            'Your dreams?'

            'Not dreams. Nightmares. And yes, they're always the same.' Arson fell silent at that point. Rayne frowned at him and then shrugged.

            'Whatever.' Arson made no reply but only sat there staring blankly at the wooden floor. Rayne took his leave after a few more moments of waiting about. His thoughts turned to Ash. She had to be more careful about that amulet of hers. If Arson saw it then he would remember Ash's attempt to tell him the truth. Rayne knew only a little about his past, thanks to Ash explaining some things to him. He had long ago realized that if Arson realized what was going on, then it would just about kill him.

            Arson slowly roused himself and walked over to Ash's bedside. It was hard for him to believe that he had attacked her. How could he have done such an awful thing? His demon was getting out of control. He needed to find a way to bring it back to a manageable condition. But the problem was, he didn't even know whether he could.

            Ash opened her eyes at that point to see Arson watching her. She tensed and snuggled into the covers again, feeling self-conscious. Arson looked at her pensively.

            'I'm sorry Ash. I didn't ever mean to try and harm you.' Ash looked at him, trying to think of something to say. She had no idea whether he even knew about what she had said. Of course, she didn't feel anything for him. She had used those three words as a way of protecting herself. She had never meant it at all. Arson looked at her sadly as she made no reply.

            '…it's okay…' she said at last, her voice barely above a whisper. She cursed inwardly. Why the hell did she feel so nervous around him? Maybe it was because when she had told Arson the truth, she had been rejected. She thought not. She knew almost with a clear certainty, and by the way that Arson was watching her that he knew about her claim.

            'Ash?'

            'Yes?'

            '…' Arson blushed but said nothing. Ash chuckled inwardly, finding the whole thing quite ironic. 'I know what you said to me.'

            'What of it?'

            '…never mind.' Watching Arson squirm like this made her feel somewhat superior, and smug. A thought entered her brain and wiped the smugness away from her in a flash. This is what she would look like if she had her old body back. This was what he looked like when he was caught in an embarrassing situation. It felt as though she was making fun of herself. She felt words tumbling out of her mouth, barely thinking about them as she lied and lied.

            'I meant it. You know that don't you? That I meant what I said?' Arson's eyes widened and Ash felt as though danger was rapidly approaching. She had to be careful about what she said now, unless she wanted to bring more trouble down upon her head. Like what? Arson suddenly bent down over her, and captured her lips in a kiss. Like that. Ash wanted to pull away. Her mind and her instincts told her to. For fuck's sake, she was kissing himself! She screwed her eyes shut and wailed inside. Arson pulled away, looking startled by his own actions.

            'I love you so much, Ash,' he whispered.

            '…'

'Ash?'

'…I'm feeling tired, Arson. I think I need to sleep some more.' Arson nodded and smiled, before kissing her lightly and leaving the room. And Ash wept.

So bored. So sadistic. So much in a bad mood because of exams. What a pity that my characters are on the receiving end of my wrath. (laughs maniacally)I think I'd make Mundus proud. I hate these exams. Maybe when these are all over I'll stop making "Ash" get herself into messes she can't escape.

You all know the drill. Arson, Rayne and "Ash" belong to me. No one else does. (sobs) Ah well…GCSEs (or Finals) are just about over and done with. Just another two more to go and then I'm free! Until September anyway. It seems that I can't really think of much to write for my other comedy fanfiction, Havoc in the House. Why? Simply because revising about the geezer* who wrote that freaky book Mein Kamph is not a particularly funny subject…(hmm we can all tell I'm going to pass can't you?)

            I'm also thinking of posting a fanfic telling the full story of Arson's past. It's already been written and is 16 chapters long, taking up 57 pages. If anyone would like me to post it, just say so in your review. The name of this maybe new fanfic is Damned Soul.

Anyways, I hope you guys like my sadistic side of things! Read and review! Please!!! Please? (makes cute chibi face)

*Hitler