Dark Love

By: Padfoot-chan

Someone stop me please. How many chapters have I written today? It must have been three or two already and I have a feeling that I am going to try for a fourth chapter before I get off the computer to watch .hack. It must be because I am listening to Gackt-sama and Hyde-sama. Whatever it is, I cannot stop writing and my heart is pounding ::shakes head:: and I do not know why. I need water before I die.

Maniac-Miko: I think the reason I am typing so fast is because I try not to think too much about it until I am done, just get all my ideas out and worry about it later. This is the fastest I have ever updated a story. I swear, I am hyped up on sugar or something of the sort. I guess reading yaoi manga while listening to two of my favorite J-Rockers does that to me. Also, thanks for the review and keeping up with my quick updates XD

Disclaimer: I do not own the Golden Sun characters, they belong to Camelot.

Warning: Still shonen-ai. Don't like, don't read.

Read and review please! No flames please. Constructive criticism is always welcome.

Chapter 8: Misunderstanding

I turn over in my bed, grabbing onto my pillow and pulling it to my chest. This really is not working. I cannot get to sleep. I have gotten used to falling asleep next to Robin after an hour or more of talking, sometimes it is not even very important, just something random. Now, it is 12 in the morning and I am wide-awake. I kick off the blankets and turn again, throwing my pillow to the floor. I want to know what Robin is doing right now.

I sit up and look out the window. I could sneak out and run to his house…but I promised him that I would not leave the academy. He might be happy to see me at first but I know he would be mad at me for breaking my promise. I groan and fall back onto my bed, rolling over onto my stomach and beating my fists into the bed, screaming into my pillow. I slump my shoulders and try to concentrate on my breathing, evening it out. My mind keeps drifting to other things, mainly Robin. No matter how hard I try, I cannot get him off my mind.

I lift myself up off the bed slightly and pull the necklace he gave me from his shirt, which I am now wearing. It feels heavy and cool in my hand, there are intricate engravings on the front and back but the lighting is poor and I cannot study them. It is strange to think that only a couple of weeks ago I was in Hong Kong, worrying about the funeral preparations for my grandmother. Everything is moving so quickly. The time I spent with Robin helped a lot. I just needed to get away from all of this to collect my sanity again. Of course, now I know I am in love with him and I know Garcia hates him…maybe it made things a little worse than they already were.

I lay down on my bed again, my eyes traveling over the edges of the cross in my hand. It is a strange crucifix; almost like a key. I turn it over and hold it closer to my face. Milky light from the moon catches on the cross, the light bouncing off the metal and onto my face. I blink at it for a moment and then there is a knock on my door. "Ivan, are you still awake?" I drop the chain back into my shirt and turn around as the door opens and Picard walks in, wearing a long nightshirt and pajama pants going a little past his knees. "I thought I heard you scream."

"S-sorry, I didn't wake you and Garcia, did I?" He smiles and closes the door shut behind him before he walks over to me and sits on the edge of my bed.

"No, he is sound asleep. The only reason I heard you was because I have heightened senses…plus I could not sleep. I am a little worried about you, Ivan." I sigh and lay on my stomach next to him. He ruffles my hair, "I have never met Robin before but he is quite famous amongst the vampires. His master is one of the oldest vampires ever and before Robin, he never made a vampire before."

"Which means a lot of his power was transferred to Robin, right?"

"In a sense…" He smiles down at him, his golden eyes glowing in the darkened room, "So, you did spend the past two weeks at Robin's house." I nod, blushing, "I see. So did you two…"

"Picard! I don't think that that is any of your business!" I gasp, sitting up quickly and tossing my pillow at him. "That is personal information and I would like to keep it between Robin and me." He laughs, holding his hands up in defense.

"I am sorry, Ivan. I did not think that it would hurt to ask. Ah, so defensive…must have been really good then, eh?" I groan and bury my head in my bed. "Garcia is just worried about your safety, you know. He does not know Robin either and he has had some bad experiences with vampires. He was with your father when he died, you know?" I look up at Picard, blinking.

"H-he was with my father…when he died?" Picard nods and turns away, looking into the mirror for a second before looking back down at me. "I do not want to be like my father, Picard. I am not going to die on a mission. There are too many people in my life that would be hurt if I were to die. I do not want my mother to cry again. I do not think she could take something like that happening."

"She did fall ill when she heard about her mother being murdered by a vampire."

"Huh? How did she hear about that? The police told me that they only told me about the investigation on my grandmother's death. How did my mother hear about it?"

"It was a secret investigation made just after your grandmother died, no one in the academy heard about it from the people until just recently, six days after you left the academy for Fukui with Robin. We suspected that a vampire killed your grandmother when you told us about how she was murdered. There was no way for us to look into it and…there would be nothing we could do unless the vampire came to Japan so we just decided to let it go for the time being. Then…" He slides off my bed and moves towards to dresser, opening my laptop and turning it on, "A message arrived on your computer from someone in Hong Kong. It was one of the descendants of the very first vampire hunter, he was in China on the trail of one of the older vampires, and we have reason to believe that it might be Robin's master.

"Anyway, he told us all about your grandmother's death and said that whoever she was killed by was one of the older vampires. The bite was much more precise than others."

"So it could be Robin's master, right?"

"We do not know that for sure, Ivan. It could have been Robin himself." What is he saying…? I shake my head but he turns away, looking down at my computer. "He said he would be coming to Japan soon, on the trail of the vampire that killed your grandmother."

"It was not Robin." Picard lets out a sigh and turns around to face me again.

"I know how much you trust him, Ivan. You need to look at the facts, though. He just arrived in Japan recently and he could have possibly stopped in China before he came here. I just do not want you to get hurt. You need to be more careful now." He walks towards the door, "You are going to become a hunter soon and vampires will fear you…they will come after you if you stray too far. Get some rest, Ivan. We need to start your training in a couple of hours."

What is he saying? My eyes begin to water and I feel warm tears trailing down my cheek. I…I do not believe him. Robin would never do anything to hurt me. He does not know Robin. I…I…

I hold my hand to my chest and fall back onto my bed, tears still streaming from my eyes. He could not have killed my grandmother. Mother would have known about it…Robin would have told me if he had killed her or not. I know him. He would have told me. I know he would have told me. There is no way he would not have told me. My breathing becomes labored and the white light from my computer is beginning to irritate me. Damn. Damn all of this. I…I cannot take any of anymore. I grab my pillow and toss it at my laptop, knocking it off my dresser and onto the floor where it snaps in half, the light dying.

"Stupid Picard. I hate you. No one…says things like that about Robin."

I fell as if I am slipping. My head is spinning so fast but everything before me is standing still, nothing is moving except me. I do not like this feeling. I just want everything to stop. I want time to stand still. Why am I shaking? Why am I still crying? I wipe my tears on my pillow. When did life get so complicated? I…want to go back to when I did not know anything but…I do not want to go on without Robin.

I cannot say that. I have to be brave and strong. I will not lose. I cannot lose. I have things to fight for and I refuse to die.

It is strange to think that that would be my last conscious thought that passed through my mind before sleep took me.

Someone is shaking me and yelling for me to wake up. I roll over and bury my face into my pillow and try to go back to sleep only to have someone pick me up and drop me onto the floor. "Hey! What was that for?" I yell, rubbing my back as I sit up slowly. Garcia is standing in front of me, already dressed with his hair tied back in a loose ponytail, thrown over his shoulder. His russet eyes stare at me for a moment before he grabs my collar and drags me across the floor and to my closet, throwing me in.

"Now, when you come out of there, I want you dressed and ready to start training." I blink sleepily up at my clothes.

"Okay…so what you are saying is…when I come out of the closet you want me dressed and ready to go? Wow, I am coming out of the closet. Yeah, and to think, when I woke up, I was straight." I giggle at my stupid joke before lying down at the bottom of my closet and closing my eyes. "Too early for me to be getting up, Garcia."

"Up now, Ivan, or you are grounded."

"Big deal, it isn't like I can go anywhere without a bodyguard anyway." I grumble, standing up and slamming the closet door in his face. I undo the buttons to Robin's shirt; hugging it once before folding it up and setting it on the shelf.

Once I finish dressing, I step out of my closet, fix my bed, comb my hair and then run out of my room, bumping into Picard as soon as I turn to run down the rest of the corridor. I stumble back until the person I ran into grabs my arms and pulls me up. "Be more careful, Ivan." Picard. I glare up at him, yank my arms from his grasp and walk past him. I may be acting immature about this whole thing but I do not want someone talking about Robin like that. He would understand if someone said something bad about Garcia to him. I thought Picard would understand, he is the one I usually go to when I have something that I need to talk about.

I jump the last flight of stairs and am greeted by Garcia's mother, she pulls me to her chest, hugging my tightly. "Oh, Ivan, I was so worried about you. I thought for sure something nasty happened to you while you were gone." I wave my hand at her.

"I-I'm just fine. I should get going now, ma'am, Garcia is supposed to start my training today and I do not want to be late, you know…" I dash off as soon as she releases me. Garcia grabs my collar as I run past a doorway. I groan, "You seriously need to stop doing that."

"Whatever. Follow me. I am going to put you through your paces. First, Heaven's Light, it is a spell to summon fake sunlight at nighttime. It is only to be used as a last resort against powerful vampires. It does not last too long but it is very effective. The reason it is to be used as a last resort is that it takes a lot out of the user. The stronger you get, the more you can use it. I can only use it four or so times before I am completely drained." I nod. "Now, there are a few more things I need to explain to you before you can try your hand a this spell."

"Okay."

Fifteen hours later and twenty or more bruises, I stumble up the stairs and back to my room, flopping onto my bed and struggling to pull my shirt off to get into my nightclothes. I never imagined my whole body could hurt so much at once. "Shoot me down now, God, and get it over with."

"I told you it would be tough." I sit up quickly, regretting the quick movement soon. Robin is kneeling in my window, smiling at me with his elbow propped up on his knee. "Hey, kiddo, you okay?"

"No, I hurt all over." He shakes his head and drops down from the windowsill, closing the window shut behind him. He walks over to me and leans down, kissing my forehead. "I missed you."

"So did I…" He sits down on my bed next to me, studying me for a moment before shaking his head and pulling me up gently. "Lift your arms."

"Eh?"

"I'm taking off your shirt."

"R-Robin…not here." He smirks.

"No, I suppose not but I am merely going to get you into my pajamas…uh, you kids do where pajamas these days, don't you?" I smile and nod, flinching as I do so. "Take it easy." He pulls my shirt off and stands up, searching my room for pajamas.

"I…wore your shirt to bed last night."

"Did you now?" He sounds amused at this. "Do you want to do that again then?" He glances back at me and I nod, pointing to the closet. After a minute of searching, he pulls away again, holding his black shirt in his hand. "I am sure you can dress yourself."

I shake my head and lift my arms up, "Dress me." He laughs at me as he walks back to my bed and slips his shirt onto my arms and buttons it up for me. He sits down next to me again, wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling me down onto the bed next to him.

I am happy to see him. I really am. I lean forward, pressing my forehead against his chest. Something is holding me back, though. Was it what Picard said? Do I need to prove him wrong by asking Robin if he was in Hong Kong before he came to Sendai…

"R…Robin?" I feel him pull away from me, looking down at me.

"What's wrong? You sound scared. Ivan?"

"Were…you in Hong Kong before you came to Sendai?"

"Yes. I was following my creator…" Is it true…was he the one that…

I sit up, bowing my head as the tears flow from my eyes and down my cheeks. "Get out." It comes out as a harsh, barely audible whisper but I know he heard me, the hurt look in his ice-blue eyes tells me that easily enough. My shoulders shake at the look and I turn away.

"Ivan…what are you…"

"You killed my grandmother, didn't you? Picard said that an older vampire was the one who killed her and…and we do not even know if you maker is alive, you said so yourself." I shake my head.

"Ivan, don't do this. I never even met your grandmother, I left before she died. I…"

"Shut up! You did it! You did it! Stop lying to me and just admit it already!" I yell, covering my ears and continuing to shake my head. This is all too much. I am breaking. My whole world is shattering. If Robin killed her, what can I do? What can I say? I still love him, after this. My heart is…

"Admit it! Admit it!" Why was I screaming that over and over again? I am broken. It is all sleeping away. I cannot feel a thing. The earlier, numbing pain has left my body and I would give anything to have that back instead of this…this broken body, this broken mind. I want to scream 'fix me, fix me' not this stupid repeated phrase.

"Stop, Ivan." He pushes me down roughly, eyes narrowed and cold. "You want to know why I did not kill your grandmother, why you must believe me? It is because I love you, you idiot. Do not accuse me of doing something as stupid as killing a vampire supporter. If anyone did, I am sure it was my maker, who happens to still be alive." I blink up at him, the pain slowly returning as I feel his fingers bruise my shoulders from his tight grip.

"Wha…what did you just say?"

"My maker is still alive."

"Before that…you…you said you love me." The cold look leaves his eyes and he leans forward, brining his lips to mine. He pulls away before I can start to deepen it and he stands up, moving to the window and leaning against the wall. "I…"

"Look, it's okay. I suppose a lot is going on in your life right now…I should not expect you to trust me with all your being at the moment anyway. I am, after all just a vampire, right?" Such cold words…

"Would it be too hurtful of me to tell you that I love you?" He growls deep within his throat and I lower my gaze to the foot of my bed.

"You are going to have to make this up to me, Ivan." Was that…

I smile and nod as he turns to me, looking me over once before smiling as well. "I really want you to trust me. I never killed any member of your family, understand? If I had, I would have told you. I have no intention of killing any of them now."

"I'm sorry…I knew I should not have believe Picard…I just…" He returns to my side once more, kneeling next to my bed and placing his hand on my cheek, pulling me towards him.

"I don't care." He pulls me into another kiss, lowering me onto the bed again, this time much slower than before.

"I'm really sorry, Robin." I whisper as he pulls away, pressing his lips to my neck.

"If you don't shut up about that, I'm going to leave right now." I cover my mouth with my hands after smile down at him apologetically. He rolls his eyes and kisses my neck again. He pulls away again and rests his head on my chest, gazing up at me for a long moment. "You did not think that I loved you?"

"It isn't that…you just never said it to me before." His eyes leave mine and he stares at the wall.

"I see…so I have to say it for you to know. I understand." When he says it like that, it sounds like I have wronged him.

"It isn't that." I repeat, "I…well…I don't know. This is all new to me. You are the first person I have ever been with, the first person that I have ever loved and the first person that I ever told that I loved." He pulls himself up, leaning over me.

"This is new for me as well, Ivan. I have never made love to anyone before you, I have never been this in love with anyone before. I have never even been in love with anyone before you, not while I was alive and not in this damned life."

"Well…I thought that…since you were so good…I just assumed…" He sighs and falls onto the bed, rolling over to lie next to me.

"Never assume anything about anyone, Ivan."

"I know, I know…it just ends up making an ass out of u and me." He blinks at me before laughing. "Sorry, I heard Gerald say that once." He seems happy now. I should not have thought that he was the one to kill my grandmother…

"I didn't hurt you, did I?" He touches my shoulders tentatively. I take his hand, kissing his fingertips lightly.

"It's okay." He pulls me close, holding me tightly. "Robin…you said that your maker happens to be alive…how do you know? You said that you did not even know if he was still alive, that you only had a feeling." He does not release me but looks away, his gaze turning to the ceiling.

"I…he…he confronted me last night, after I returned home from dropping you off here. This was different from the last time we saw each other. He seems to have changed, but not but much. It is sort of an on-off kind of thing, like he is confused about how he should act now." He sighs, "I keep wanting it to just be a dream or my eyes playing tricks on me but I felt him standing there in my room, I heard him breathing…every little thing. His movements have not changed one bit. The sad thing is, I have a very strong feeling that he is going to be back again. I wonder what this changes…"

"As far as I am concerned, this changes nothing for the moment. He did not want to fight you, did he?" He returns his gaze to me and shakes his head, "Then you should not try to fight him, Robin. I do not want you to get hurt. I have hurt you enough already." I lay my head down on his chest and I feel him laughing silently. He strokes my hair and kisses my hair.

"As long as he behaves…I will leave him alone but if he does anything to provoke me, I have no other choice but to fight him."

"Very well, but I will fight alongside you. Garcia says that I have learned a lot for just my first day of training."

"You certainly are a fast learner." I feel my cheeks warm at his statement and I bury my face in his chest, trying to hide the blush. "Uh…so, how long do you want me to stay?"

"For as long as you can." I whisper, relaxing again. "I just want to stay here in your arms for as long as I possibly can. I truly do love you."

"As do I, Ivan. I will stay with you until you fall asleep." I nod, trying to fight against fatigue. I must not fall asleep. It is too early. There is still more time.

"Leave…an hour before sunrise…" I whisper to him just as I fall asleep.

"Very well. Good night."

-TBC-

I apologize if this went too fast but I needed Ivan to think that Robin killed his grandmother so I could force Robin to tell Ivan that he loved him at least once before…before something happens.

Alex: Don't tell.

I know, I won't give anything away no matter how much everyone begs me. Besides, it would ruin things for people and make me cry to even talk about it…even though I know what is going to happen. About the cross looking like a key…I have a fetish for keys and I have no idea why. My friends think it is because of Sora and the whole Kingdom Hearts thing but it is not. I have had a fetish for keys long before Kingdom Hearts was even made…I just do not know why. I am sure I can fit it in somewhere. Hope this did not go too fast! If it did…tell me and I will try to fix it. Read and review please!