Well guys, after careful consideration I've decided not to continue with this story.
JUST KIDDING! :P But I'm sure it might have appeared that way after weeks without a post. I am very sorry for that. I had finals week to contend with, then Graduation (I now have the first of my 3 degrees, big deal) and then of course there was the party my friends through me, and the inevitable hang over afterwards. All of which is good fun, but the day of my Graduation my dog died! Oldest story in the book I know, but this time it's true. So that really just through me off, and to top it all off writers block hit me quite hard.
However, the block seems to have melted because I've been writing like a fiend for the past two days, and I have to give personal thanks to AngryTolkienPurist for that. You unwittingly freed me of my block. I was rereading the reviews and your comment about wanting to know Michael's reason behind the blood oath triggered something for me. I had been having a tough time getting started, and for some reason that comment blasted me off. So thank you for taking the time to say something! There might not even be a chapter if you hadn't posted that review.
And I extend that to all of my reviewers. You guys are surly the reason I still find the time and strength to finish this. Thank you, thank you, thank you. :)
So without further ado, I hope you all enjoy. It's a rough filler chapter, but the next one is better. ;)
Chapter Fifteen: Connections
Lily followed Selene and Michael through the main door to their quarters. She plopped herself upon the bed and watched as Michael stormed through the adjoining door and shut it fiercely behind him.
By the intensity of Selene's gaze Lily guessed she was trying to melt the door with her eyes. "Stay here." The vampiress growled through clenched fangs. Lily gulped as Selene opened the door and stepped through.
"Now is not a good time Selene." Michael's harsh voice came from across the room.
"I don't care if it's a good time. We have to talk. Now." She hissed her last command, and managed to get Michael to look at her.
They locked eyes for a moment, a battle of wills raging in each. As he always did, Michael lowered his eyes in submission.
Selene pounced. "Do you have any idea what you did?"
Michael's eyes looked up in surprise. He'd been waiting to hear her yell about his irresponsibility in following her, or about how she was more than capable of handling things on her own. The usual reminder about just how little she needed him. Now, he had no idea what she was talking about. "What I did?" He thought for a moment. "You mean the blood oath?"
"Of course I mean the blood oath! Do you understand what you committed to?" There was something more than anger in her voice.
Michael looked her directly in the eye. "I swore my life to Kraven." He answered her next question. "Tyran told me how to do it some time ago." He kept his eyes locked on her. "I had to be sure Selene. I couldn't trust him otherwise."
She gawked at him. He did this knowingly! She wasn't sure if it was fury or awe she felt. He had sworn himself for a pack of lycans. The act hit her hard. She stepped back and sat down on the floor, placing her head in her hands. "Do you realize you've surrendered your life for a promise you might not be able to give?"
Michael paused and stared unblinking at her. "You think the lycan's won't follow me?"
Selene raised her eyes. She knew what he needed her to answer, his eyes pleaded with her. "I don't care about the lycans Michael." She muttered softly.
He looked at her, brown eyes piercing. "I do." He said flatly. "Maybe it's the lycan in me, but you cannot know what it feels like to have an entire pack counting on you. They expect me to put an end to this war. I thought that was what you wanted too."
Held by his gaze Selene could not bring herself to answer. She shrugged his arms off and stood.
Michael followed her and blocked her movement towards the door. "Why did you bite me Selene?" His eyes begged the answer, imploring her to not hold him in limbo any longer.
A loud bang resounded from the other room.
The door rumbled with knocking, then Tyran's voice rang out. "Michael. Sorry to disturb, but the council wants to know what's going on. I think we should get down there."
Selene took the moment of distraction to slip from Michael's grip and move to the adjoining bedroom, leaving a bewildered Michael staring at the door. When he followed a moment later, he saw the light beneath the bathroom door shining in the darkness. Closing his eyes and setting his nerves he answered the main door, prepared to inform the council of the latest developments.
Having been dismissed from the meeting, Mark calmly stepped outside of the room. He gave the door behind him a curious look. He wasn't sure he fully understood the necessity for his departure. He had been introduced, his background explained, and his present reason for being here presented. All of which created quite a stir amongst the group. Once it had been decided on what he'd tell Kraven, he was not so politely asked to leave.
Shaking his head and shrugging it off, he kept his hands respectably crossed behind his back. His posture implied neither fear nor superiority as he made his way down the halls of the lycanthrope home. When he rounded the corner his eyes were captured by a magnificent beauty leaning against a wall defensively. She was cornered by a rather large male with dark curls and beady eyes.
His undead heart stopped. His breath became shallow as he gawked at the female. Her face was turned to her companion, but her profile was stunning. His eyes danced as they roamed the shapely curves of her body, stopping to admire her raven locks, and delicate legs. Through her simple attire of jeans and a skin tight tank top he had a vision of her in elegant gowns of silk and lace. He imagined her back to the time of his turning, and was breathless.
As if sensing she was being watched, Kendra halted her conversation with Flar and glanced in the vampire's direction. She scoffed at his rather plain appearance. He was too tall and skinny for her taste. He looks like an underfed orphan. She snickered and redirected her attention. Michael was one thing, but a pure blood vampire was quite another.
"Kendra are you listening to me?"
The female lycan shook her head. "Yes Flar I am, and I'm as mad as you are, but I don't see what we can do about it. Kraven betrayed you. That's it. You're out of allies."
"Don't you think I know that!" He roared loudly.
Kendra glanced nervously around them, but the halls were empty. Even the staring vampire had left. "I suggest you keep your voice down." She spoke through clenched teeth.
"And I suggest you watch your tone." Pushing her up against the wall, he leaned in and threatened very quietly. "Dare you quit on me now?"
She looked at his forever changing eyes. A purple storm raged inside them, and she felt the prickle of fear in the bottom of her stomach. "No Flar, but I know the value of being patient."
"I've been patient!" He smacked his fist into the wall above her head. "I watched Lucien piddle away centuries in search of some ridiculous human, and to what end? The hybrid is nothing more than a defect! An imperfect blending of the purest strains. Lucien died trying to create it, and I'll die trying to destroy it!"
"Excuse me." The delicate voice drifted across the room to the conversing lycans.
Kendra's wild eyes turned to find the skinny vampire she'd seen moments ago standing with his hands clasped softly behind his back.
"What?" Flar growled at him, still keeping Kendra penned between his arms and the wall.
Mark smiled ever so slightly. "Well sir, I couldn't help but hear all the yelling. I just wanted to see what the commotion was."
"None of your business blood, now get out of here."
"Blood?" Mark asked confused. "I'm not sure I know what that means."
Kendra looked first at Flar, then at Mark. Is he crazy?
"What do you think it means bloodsucker? Now I asked you to leave." Flar's eyes blazed.
Mark chuckled softly. "With all do respect sir, but as a lycanthrope you eat raw meat, do you not consume the blood that surrounds it as well?"
Flar stared at him.
"Would that not also make you a 'bloodsucker'?" Mark grinned innocently.
Flar let out a low deep rumble. "Enough of your banter." He released Kendra, took two large steps towards the vampire, brought his fist back, and rammed it into Mark's face.
Only, his fist hit nothing but air. He felt a tap on his shoulder. Turning around swiftly he saw the boy's plain brown eyes sparkle with mischief. "Care to try again." Mark replied, hands still clasped tightly behind his back.
Flar growled at him. He took another step toward the vampire when he heard the sound of a few lycan's approaching. A quick glance to his left and he knew now was not the time. "Will continue this later blood." His lip curled and he stormed off in the opposite direction.
Mark followed him with his eyes till his entire form was swallowed by the darkness, then he turned to Kendra. "Are you alright my lady?"
Kendra stared at him with curious eyes. There was absolutely nothing about this boy that attracted her except... as she surveyed him from head to toe she was able to see his eyes. They were plain and simple, nothing more than ordinary brown, but something about their depth caught her. Not once had a vampire ever looked at her with anything but distain. She saw none of that in Mark's eyes. They may have been plain, but they were pure.
"Do you have some sort of a strange death wish?" She asked, throwing herself out of her reverie.
Mark shook his head. "No my lady. Why would you think that?"
Kendra gave him a look. "You're a vampire, in the middle of a lycan den. Figure it out."
"I do not understand my lady. I was brought here as an ally not an enemy. Why would I be in any danger here?"
His tone was so honest, so truly ignorant. This kid really has no idea. She thought to herself, then realized how odd that was. "Vampires and lycans are at war kid! We're sworn enemies and you're picking a fight with a male lycan. Not a bright idea."
"Pardon me My Lady, but I am hardly a child."
Again Kendra stared at him. "What? I didn't... Oh." She lowered her head and couldn't help the smile that crossed her face. "What is your name?" She asked suddenly.
With a wide grin he replied, "Mark, and you would be?"
"Kendra." She said softly.
With a swoop of his hand he picked her wrist up and brought the top of her hand to his lips. "A pleasure to meet you Kendra."
An almost silent sigh escaped her lips.
"Kendra." Mark asked timidly. "Might I ask you, what did your friend mean when he called me a 'blood'?"
Worry flooded back into her eyes. "He's not my friend Mark, and what he called you is a term we use for vampires. It's not a very nice one." She said a little shamefully.
"Oh." He nodded. "I apologize for my ignorance, but until now I've never participate in the war you and your cousins rage. I find it to be rather tiresome." He admitted freely.
Kendra stared at him for a moment, not quite sure what to say.
Shaking his head from darker thoughts the brown haired vampire turned towards her. "Might I have the pleasure of escorting you to your destination?"
Kendra laughed at his formal tone. "I suppose." She tried to sound like it was a burden, but failed miserable when Mark's face lit up like the sky. He kept his hands curiously behind his back as he walked beside her to her quarters. She turned around to say goodbye but...
"If he's not your friend, what is he?" The vampire looked as if he was holding his breath.
Kendra thought about her answer for a moment. "Just a business partner Mark. Nothing more."
The vampire's face lit up once again. "I'm most glad to hear that. I shall see you again I hope." He knelt down and kissed her hand goodbye.
She watched him walk away and shook her head. Charming...even for a vampire. She shrugged and headed off to bed.
Selene stepped out of the shower, clothed in a simple pair of black sweat pants and black tank top. The wet strands of hair clung about her face, and dark circles plagued her eyes. She checked Lily's bed before turning to the couch, but turned back as she heard a small whine from the girl. Stepping closer she watched as Lily's teeth ground in anxiety. It was a sound Selene was used to, for the girl often dreamt.
Selene sighed. She remembered the nightmares. When she had first been brought to Ordoghaz, she would scream herself awake, only to find that no one was there. She awoke each time, sweating and shaken, to nothing but the curtains that surrounded her bed. In time, she just stopped screaming, the sounds of her nightmares becoming so constant they almost disappeared.
And then I found Michael.
It was a striking truth. One she had already admitted to, but didn't yet understand. She closed her eyes and unconsciously took Lily's hand in her own. She felt the girl calm immediately.
A memory flashed before Selene's eyes. She was 20, back in her niece's room sitting quietly on the bed while she rocked both girls slowly back and forth. She had been awoken by their crying and, like she had done since the day they were born, she comforted them back to sleep. It had seemed so natural, she loved them.
When she opened her eyes tears fell. She had forgotten how much she loved her family. She'd been so consumed by losing it she forgot what it was to have it, to feel it.
Michael had given her that memory back.
Squeezing Lily's hand she knelt down and moved a piece of hair from the girl's eyes. It was damp with sweat and clung easily behind the ear. Selene's eyes caught the black stone lying softly upon Lily's neck.
Viktor's brand, his cage for me. And I wore it proudly. Shame washed over her as she flashed on the thousands of lycan's killed in his name. Her hate had made her blind.
"Why did you bite me Selene?"
His words came roaring back into her mind. Glancing back down at Lily she focused in on the girl, trying to remember why she had given the necklace to her in the first place. "Did I doom you from the start, or set myself free?" She barley whispered.
She heard the steady pace of Michael's footsteps as he returned from his meeting. Then she knew. Squeezing Lily's hand she smiled. "Sleep better Lily." I'll come if you scream. She vowed silently. Then, steeling her nerve, she stepped into Michael's room.
Jacen's fingers flew over the keys at a blinding rate. His eyes remained intent and focused, playing God as he maneuvered his characters into position. This was his realm, his world, and nothing touched him here. He licked his lips, typed his last line, then leaned back in his chair and stared at his ancient computer screen.
Reaching down with his right hand he pulled the cigarette smoldering beside him to his lips. He blew a large puff of smoke into his screen. Stretching, he extinguished the cigarette, and shook his head.
"If Lily knew this was how I spent my time without her she'd never let me live it down." He chuckled to himself. In all the years he'd known her and her brother, not once did he let them know that he could write. He had made that mistake once, and had paid for it dearly. Since then, he'd kept his passion a secret even from his most trusted friends.
"It's not like it matters anyway. It will never go anywhere." He spoke aloud, taking comfort in the sound of his own voice. His habit of talking to himself had increased dramatically since Lily's absence. He hadn't fully realized how much he relied on her. I always thought I was the one taking care of her.
He sighed heavily and closed his eyes. He missed her terribly, but deep down he knew he had done the right thing. He had to let her go sometime. "I just wish she would have called me." He muttered bitterly under his breath.
Sighing once more he brought his head down to nest in his arms upon the table. He closed his eyes for just a moment.
Jacen opened his eyes to see Lily standing next to him. Her face glowed like the sun, her eyes were alight with fire.
"Nice to see you again Jace." She muttered quietly.
"You say that like I've been gone."
"You have." The glowing grin she had been wearing moments ago dropped. A darkness washed over her and her eyes that had once burned with passion seemed to cool and became a hazy, electric blue. She pursed her lips and walked away from him.
"Lily! Where are you going?" He followed behind her.
"I have to go Jacen. You have to let me."
He came up behind her and forcefully made her turn around and look at him. Her expression was getting darker by the moment, until he barely recognized the woman standing before him. "I already let you!" He yelled at her.
For the first time she looked him directly in the eye. Fear was reflected back to him. "Will you come Jacen? Will you be there when I need you?"
He looked at her with confusion. "Of course, Lily, but I don't understand." He blinked and she was gone. He suddenly became aware that he was standing in the middle of a large hall. Elegant pillars of polished granite supported the ceiling, while the marble tile beneath his feet gleaned with thick polish. Upon three of the four walls there were strange markings of what appeared to be a V, M, and A.
Where am I? While turning around slowly, his ears began to burn as the sound of a girl screaming invaded them. He knew, with out a doubt, who it was.
Without hesitating he ran for the room that was behind him. He encountered what appeared to be a steel door, but did not stop. Bursting through with a searing rage he'd never felt before, he dropped to his knees in horror.
He watched as Lily's body was thrown from across the room and crumpled to the floor. He stared in disbelief as blood poured from a wound in her stomach.
KNOCK, KNOCK.
Jacen flew his body back in his chair causing him to fall backwards and bang his head on the ground. "Ow." He muttered and quickly checked his surroundings. I'm home.
KNOCK, KNOCK.
Jacen's gaze flew to the door. Quickly he got up, and nervously checked the peep hole. A rather large, dark face stared back at him. Recognizing the face he crinkled his brow and opened the door.
"Odin?" he asked. "What are you doing here?"
Odin smiled, his teeth shining brightly amidst his midnight face. His green eyes sparkled with mischief. "Hey Jacen. Man you look like someone just ran over your dog! You all right?"
Jacen rubbed his face with his hand. "Yeah, I just fell asleep at my desk."
Odin nodded. "All right man, but you should get some sleep!"
"What can I help you with Odin?"
"Oh yeah! Sorry about that. I know it's late and all, but I just closed the restaurant." He checked behind him. "Um...Anyways. Lily hasn't been to work in three weeks so I was just checking on her. Wanted to make sure she's all right." He took another quick glance over his shoulder.
Jacen followed his gaze and slightly rose upon his toes to look behind the rather large man. He saw nothing and redirected his attention. "Um...She had a bit of a family emergency. I can't honestly say when she'll be back."
Odin gave him a funny look. "I though you were the only family she had."
"I uh..."
Odin smiled again. "Look man, don't worry about it. I just wanted to make sure she was alive and well. We got plenty of people to cover her shifts. Just tell her to come by when she gets back."
Jace let out a relieved sigh. "Thanks Odin. Sorry about her just disappearing."
"Oh, no problem. I knew that girl would have to leave eventually. She had that look."
"What look?" Jacen asked, not understanding.
"Like she was searching for something. You know, hadn't found her niche or something like that. Whatever. I know she'll be back." Again, the man who looked like he could crush bulldozers nervously checked over his shoulder again. "You know," he said quietly. "You got a real creepy feel about this place. Ever since I pulled up here I feel like I've been being watched. I'm gonna get out of here. You take care now." He reached out and shook Jacen's hand.
Jacen stared blankly at him. "You too Odin. Thanks for coming by."
"Not at all." He smiled and turned around to head towards his car, glancing cautiously to his left and right.
"Very strange." Jacen observed. He glanced at Lily's house across the street as he moved to close the door when something caught his eye. He saw a small dark figure crouched upon the roof. It stood still for a moment, then ducked behind the cooling unit atop the building.
"What the hell is that?" He quickly shut the door and continued to observe Lily's house through the peephole. "What have you gotten yourself into Lils?"
Meghan: Hello again! Sorry to hear your computer busted. :( I go nuts when that happens, but thanks for coming back to this. So your vote is for Lily to be Lycan? Nods Well I can't say anything without giving it away, but I hope you like what I end up doing with her.
Morrgaine: Well I'm glad the plot twist worked! I was hesitant about bringing Kraven into this, but what can I say I need him for something. ;) And Selene, well at the end of this chapter she's realized a few things and hopefully will finally act on them! Hee hee. As always, cannot thank you enough for reviewing.
Thiana: blush Thanks for the compliment! I'm trying to remember that this IS a fanfiction and therefore should relate to the first movie on some level. As far as heat between Selene and Michael...Well I'll just say chapter 16 should be interesting. ;)
vampirehuntr00: LOL! Your review made me laugh. I can almost hear an announcer like voice, maybe they should give you your own show. ;) And you were VERY right about the cursing. Actually, before I even read your review I had been rereading and was changing some of that. I think I was pissed that day. Kind of came through. And as far as Mark goes, well he wasn't supposed to be a big character, but then my beta reader LOVED him. I mean, the man says like three lines and she flipped out. So, I gave him something to do, which was sort of revealed in this chapter, but not quite.
Adalon Ithilriel: Woo! Someone like Lily kicking Kraven's ass! I'm happy to hear that my slightly OC Kraven wasn't too much of an inconvenience. I'm not a Kraven fan, but I don't think he's quite as bad as some do. :)
Redd: Well, I didn't quite update soon, but I tried. ;) Thanks for reviewing, always keeps me writing.
Pantheraleo: claps So glad to see your still reading, of course I haven't given you anything to read recently, but that is all about to change. Cannot thank you enough for your reviews and I hope you continue to be pleased with where I take this. Thanks again!
AquariousF5: Kill Kraven? Now why would I do a thing like that...Oh wait, because he's Kraven!
Thanks again guys! I'll be back soon!