Title: Darkness of Companions
Based on: Companions of the Night by Vivian Vande Velde
Summary: A sequel to Companions of the Night. Kerry's life is
threatened by an unidentifiable source Ethan/Michel seems to understand.
He becomes her champion as she recedes farther into the darkness.
Rated: PG13
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A dull glow embraced the room and cut through the otherwise darkened house. Kerry curled her legs under her and watched another monotonous program trying to appease the audience. For a change she even picked a program with a theme similar to the reason her life turned upside-down but she still couldn't help feeling something crucial was missing from her life. It was dark calm nights like this, when she was completely alone, that she felt herself drawn towards death. Her therapist said it was guilt from killing a man; her therapist was a dim-witted fool. The only reason she told him about how the dark affects her mental state was she needed something substantial to get him off the topic of Ethan's disappearance. He was probably working for the cops; they always thought there was something erroneous with her story about the guy who was kidnapped with her. (They wanted errors. they should have checked for fingerprints in the rooms she claimed she was in because there weren't any.)
"Oh yes officer, I know he's fine. You see, Ethan is really a vampire." Hell they would have thought she was crazy- she was starting to think she was crazy. Sane people didn't go to psychotherapists for two years did they? It was all Ethan's- or should she say Michel's- fault. It had been exactly two years tomorrow night and the black haired, blue (or was it green) eyed hottie's features had started to haze in her mind. She couldn't even remember his eye colour! People change in two years. well vampires don't change, but she surely had. A person can only take so much of being called a murderer and vampire lover, as well as the crueler names and un-needed sympathetic glances in school before they became cynical. It was all Michel's fault. She was pretty sure this affinity towards death was his fault somehow too.
She shouldn't say she wanted to die; death was not really part of it, more like immortal life. The body was the only thing that died when becoming a vampire right? The whole thing was very misleading. She didn't want to become like Michel, leave and outlive her family, and drink blood. Yet, she could almost feel its tentacled grasp slowly encircling her mind like a noose hanging her by her neck. (Neck- wonderful irony)
If given the choice again she still wouldn't go for vampirism despite the compellation to. It must be another vampire thing or something, maybe it meant Michel was thinking of her. That thought amused her. The man was a night crawling, blood drinking vampire who would never give another thought to the little girl who rejected his kind.
Her life was completely and irrevocably screwed.
Winged shaped shadows developed in the doorway of the living room and she could sense them without turning around. She was pretty sure they were in her mind. The phenomenon had started a few weeks before and only lasted a few seconds before the shadows always revoked back through the door. This time the wings unfurled in an angry snap and started to coldly embrace the walls of the room. Her eyes, accustomed to the dimness of the house, couldn't make out any shapes. The TV screen slowly and torturously became dark with what looked like black ink running over the glass.
Kerry screamed and lunged towards the lamp she knew was a few feet away on a coffee table. Her movements were quicker than usual and the lamp crashed to the floor just as the last of the soft TV light disappeared. She surged to her feet while the overhead light snapped on.
She turned to thankfully lie to her father about the reason she screamed. Her mouth gaped open as her eyes met Michel's glaring ones. They were definitely blue and shooting ice in her direction.
"What the hell is going on here, Kerry?" His voice wasn't much warmer than his eyes. She stared at him in shock. He had changed his hair- it was now curling on his shoulders in little black waves. She looked at his hair apprehensively.
"Why don't you tell me? What are you doing here, and are you the one causing the wings?" His face relaxed into his usual almost-amused-at- life look. This was worse than the rage because no one could ever read his facade. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her roughly into the hallway and up the stairs. He pushed into her bedroom and grabbed the suitcase from under her bed and commanded her to pack.
She grabbed stuff blindly out of her drawer as she fumed. This was just too much- she was probably hallucinating again. She rubbed her arm distractedly and noticed faint bruises were forming under the skin. She grabbed another handful of cloth and stuffed it into her suitcase and yanked the zipper closed.
"I want answers before I go anywhere." She turned to face him enraged. "What's going on? I don't see you for two years then you show up out of no where and try to abduct me."
"They are trying to kill you. I didn't think they would dare. Now pack."
"I am packed."
"As much as I appreciate the thought I think you should pack some clothes as well." He opened her suitcase to reveal her entire underwear drawer. She blushed and started to take lingerie out by the handful, and she didn't even own that much. He grabbed a cute little nightgown out of her hand and put it back into the luggage. As he was rummaging through her closet for who knew what she put it back in her dresser. He emerged from her closet carrying a tiny black dress, heels and his leather jacket.
"Humans are so predictable." He muttered as he put on the jacket and shoved the dress and shoes into her bag. She snarled.
"That's my jacket." He fixed the lapels and watched her stuff a pair of jeans into the suitcase. "Where are you taking me?" He continued to watch her with that soulless blue gaze. "I just wanted to know what to pack." She trailed off.
"My house for now. Until I find out how far they have gotten with their plan." He snapped her case shut and headed out the door.
"Who are they?" Curiosity had finally gotten the better of her and yet she knew before she inquired that he wouldn't answer. His boots stomped down the stairs as she hurried after him. "What about my dad and brother? They'll think it's weird that I leave three days after I get home from university."
"You can visit during the day."
"But what will they think?" She wailed.
"Your brother is too young to think anything of the sort. Leave a note if you're worried."
She stopped in front of the living room door and glared back at him. She was vaguely aware of the TV on in the background. He looked behind her in disgust.
"Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I'm wounded."
"What?"
"After all I've told you about us you still watch shit like that." He gestured at the TV with his shoulder and grabbed her arm again as he moved to the door. Before he could reach the knob it swung open. She briefly thought it was another vampiric power she didn't know about. Framed by the streetlight stood her father and little brother back from the newest Disney movie.
Stephan quickly bared the way so they couldn't get by, as Ian looked at Kerry wide-eyed.
"Let go of my daughter you. fiend." Kerry cringed. She didn't need this.
She put herself between Michel and her father. "Daddy, Daniel and I are going to be late for our ride. I told you about my ski trip last night remember?" She knew damn well her father wouldn't remember even if she had told him. he had gotten a little too into the eggnog.
"Uh sure. Where are you going?"
"Skiing." She moved out the door. "Don't worry, I'll be back before Christmas."
Her dad looked confused, trying to remember their invented conversation. She knew he would've protested if Ian hadn't hugged her and asked her to bring him another gift. Her dad glared after them as Michel opened the car door for her and helped her in, and as he stogged her suitcase into the back. Michel finally turned and faced her dad as they both glared at each other. Kerry sighed at the machoism tendencies they both displayed and opened the door hitting Michel's butt. A fine butt it was too.
Kerry shivered as Michel got in and drove out of the court. He muttered something about her dad seeming familiar as he turned the corner. She caught him glaring into the rearview mirror at her still glowering father. Men!
"I've got a problem."
"Damn right you have a problem. You promised to be back for Christmas but I can tell you there's no way in hell you will be."
"But they're my family. they expect me to be there." She sighed. "You wouldn't understand."
"That's right. I wouldn't understand anything about having a family. Mine has been dead for years after all." He practically ran into the stoplight as he swung irately around the corner. She reached over and turned the heat on swearing she wouldn't complain and tell him what the dilemma was.
He pulled up into a parking lot and stalked out of the vehicle. She scrambled after him as he quickly started to walk down the sidewalk with her suitcase. Her teeth started to chatter as her breath frosted.
"You're making enough noise to wake the." He stopped mid-sentence and scrutinized her. "Where's your jacket?"
She figured telling him he was wearing it wouldn't go over very well. He seemed to come to the same conclusion for he stripped off the leather jacket and tossed it to her muttering he knew getting it back was too good to be true.
"I think you care more about saving the jacket than you do about me." She knew she was antagonizing him, but in that second she saw the guy she had fallen for.
"The truth tells no lies."
"Well you wouldn't know anything about the truth anyway." She followed him still refusing to complain. He was supposed to see superbly in the dark and indeed he did as he dodged a fire hydrant she didn't see. She got to her feet before he could snarl at her again. After a ten-minute hike they came to the mansion of her dreams and he began to cut across the lawn.
"Why didn't we just come here in the first place? Oh I get it. the car was borrowed."
"Not the way you're implying."
"Suuure." She muttered as he unlocked the front door. He waited for her to remove her jacket.
"Where are your shoes?"
"I forgot them."
"How could you forget shoes and a jacket?"
"I was too busy trying to stop you and my dad from killing each other."
"I would never kill your dad for looking after you." He shook his head, probably at her stupidity. "Go take a bath." He brought her into the master bedroom and put her suitcase on the bed.
She frowned at him. "Don't even think I'm going to sleep with you."
"I wasn't, but obviously you were."
"This is the master bedroom, what did you expect me to think?"
He grinned almost with genuine amusement. "There are too many windows in this room. I prefer a smaller one. Now take a bath, you're freezing." His azure eyes seemed to dance merrily for a moment and she couldn't help but grin back at him.
She began to feel her toes again as his footsteps softly echoed down the stairs. The burning sensation emerging from numbness made her appreciate just how chilly she was. 'His fault' she muttered stubbornly as she found he had already turned the steaming water on for her. The sweet unselfish act almost took her breath away.
He was such a bastard. Now she liked him again. It was largely more unproblematic to abhor the man. She soaked in his antique claw-foot bathtub for a while and looked around the room for a towel. Great there weren't any. His name emerged from her mouth before she could think. Something crashed from below as he reached the door in seconds.
"Are you decent?"
Stupid question. "I'm in the tub!"
The door flew open and she squealed clutching a facecloth to chest. He eyed her, then smirked. "That's not helping much." She sunk a little more into the tub. "Now what's the emergency? Your heart isn't beating sporadically so I know you aren't in danger." He looked at her as if to say she better have a good answer or else. Her heart-beat surely accelerated.
"Uh. Where are the towels?" He scowled, and stalked out of the bathroom returning in a few moments with an armful of cotton.
"If you have any other reasons to scare the shit out of me, you better say it now."
"I locked the door, next time knock." She replied coldly.
"Yeah, I'll knock politely when someone is killing you, how's that?"
"Fine by me. Could you please leave now so I can get out?"
"No. You beckoned, you put up with me being here."
She gritted her teeth, stood up and grabbed a towel. This was obviously not what he expected for he was slamming the door and giving her privacy a moment later. She quickly dressed hoping to get a second of gloating in as she hurried downstairs. He was sitting at the kitchen table with a mug clenched between his hands.
"I made you some coffee." He gestured towards the empty seat. He was being sweet again. It almost overshadowed the unpleasant way he habitually seemed to be treating her now. She sat down and took a drink of the lukewarm bitterness and struggled to keep her face pleasant as he watched her carefully. So he was baiting her now? The childish reaction from him almost brought a smile to her lips. This meant war!
"Who and why is someone trying to kill me?"
He looked at her impassively. "I thought you would have it figured out. I guess I'm putting too much faith in your brain cells."
"I concluded that it was vampires and it's because of you but I courteously didn't accuse you of anything."
"Of course not."
"What did you do this time?"
His eyes met hers for a moment and a jumble of scenes flashed before her eyes. Before she could scrutinize them he broke eye contact. "I'm not the only one of us with secrets."
For a split second she thought she knew what he was talking about, then the thought disappeared and she was left with confusion.
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A dull glow embraced the room and cut through the otherwise darkened house. Kerry curled her legs under her and watched another monotonous program trying to appease the audience. For a change she even picked a program with a theme similar to the reason her life turned upside-down but she still couldn't help feeling something crucial was missing from her life. It was dark calm nights like this, when she was completely alone, that she felt herself drawn towards death. Her therapist said it was guilt from killing a man; her therapist was a dim-witted fool. The only reason she told him about how the dark affects her mental state was she needed something substantial to get him off the topic of Ethan's disappearance. He was probably working for the cops; they always thought there was something erroneous with her story about the guy who was kidnapped with her. (They wanted errors. they should have checked for fingerprints in the rooms she claimed she was in because there weren't any.)
"Oh yes officer, I know he's fine. You see, Ethan is really a vampire." Hell they would have thought she was crazy- she was starting to think she was crazy. Sane people didn't go to psychotherapists for two years did they? It was all Ethan's- or should she say Michel's- fault. It had been exactly two years tomorrow night and the black haired, blue (or was it green) eyed hottie's features had started to haze in her mind. She couldn't even remember his eye colour! People change in two years. well vampires don't change, but she surely had. A person can only take so much of being called a murderer and vampire lover, as well as the crueler names and un-needed sympathetic glances in school before they became cynical. It was all Michel's fault. She was pretty sure this affinity towards death was his fault somehow too.
She shouldn't say she wanted to die; death was not really part of it, more like immortal life. The body was the only thing that died when becoming a vampire right? The whole thing was very misleading. She didn't want to become like Michel, leave and outlive her family, and drink blood. Yet, she could almost feel its tentacled grasp slowly encircling her mind like a noose hanging her by her neck. (Neck- wonderful irony)
If given the choice again she still wouldn't go for vampirism despite the compellation to. It must be another vampire thing or something, maybe it meant Michel was thinking of her. That thought amused her. The man was a night crawling, blood drinking vampire who would never give another thought to the little girl who rejected his kind.
Her life was completely and irrevocably screwed.
Winged shaped shadows developed in the doorway of the living room and she could sense them without turning around. She was pretty sure they were in her mind. The phenomenon had started a few weeks before and only lasted a few seconds before the shadows always revoked back through the door. This time the wings unfurled in an angry snap and started to coldly embrace the walls of the room. Her eyes, accustomed to the dimness of the house, couldn't make out any shapes. The TV screen slowly and torturously became dark with what looked like black ink running over the glass.
Kerry screamed and lunged towards the lamp she knew was a few feet away on a coffee table. Her movements were quicker than usual and the lamp crashed to the floor just as the last of the soft TV light disappeared. She surged to her feet while the overhead light snapped on.
She turned to thankfully lie to her father about the reason she screamed. Her mouth gaped open as her eyes met Michel's glaring ones. They were definitely blue and shooting ice in her direction.
"What the hell is going on here, Kerry?" His voice wasn't much warmer than his eyes. She stared at him in shock. He had changed his hair- it was now curling on his shoulders in little black waves. She looked at his hair apprehensively.
"Why don't you tell me? What are you doing here, and are you the one causing the wings?" His face relaxed into his usual almost-amused-at- life look. This was worse than the rage because no one could ever read his facade. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her roughly into the hallway and up the stairs. He pushed into her bedroom and grabbed the suitcase from under her bed and commanded her to pack.
She grabbed stuff blindly out of her drawer as she fumed. This was just too much- she was probably hallucinating again. She rubbed her arm distractedly and noticed faint bruises were forming under the skin. She grabbed another handful of cloth and stuffed it into her suitcase and yanked the zipper closed.
"I want answers before I go anywhere." She turned to face him enraged. "What's going on? I don't see you for two years then you show up out of no where and try to abduct me."
"They are trying to kill you. I didn't think they would dare. Now pack."
"I am packed."
"As much as I appreciate the thought I think you should pack some clothes as well." He opened her suitcase to reveal her entire underwear drawer. She blushed and started to take lingerie out by the handful, and she didn't even own that much. He grabbed a cute little nightgown out of her hand and put it back into the luggage. As he was rummaging through her closet for who knew what she put it back in her dresser. He emerged from her closet carrying a tiny black dress, heels and his leather jacket.
"Humans are so predictable." He muttered as he put on the jacket and shoved the dress and shoes into her bag. She snarled.
"That's my jacket." He fixed the lapels and watched her stuff a pair of jeans into the suitcase. "Where are you taking me?" He continued to watch her with that soulless blue gaze. "I just wanted to know what to pack." She trailed off.
"My house for now. Until I find out how far they have gotten with their plan." He snapped her case shut and headed out the door.
"Who are they?" Curiosity had finally gotten the better of her and yet she knew before she inquired that he wouldn't answer. His boots stomped down the stairs as she hurried after him. "What about my dad and brother? They'll think it's weird that I leave three days after I get home from university."
"You can visit during the day."
"But what will they think?" She wailed.
"Your brother is too young to think anything of the sort. Leave a note if you're worried."
She stopped in front of the living room door and glared back at him. She was vaguely aware of the TV on in the background. He looked behind her in disgust.
"Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I'm wounded."
"What?"
"After all I've told you about us you still watch shit like that." He gestured at the TV with his shoulder and grabbed her arm again as he moved to the door. Before he could reach the knob it swung open. She briefly thought it was another vampiric power she didn't know about. Framed by the streetlight stood her father and little brother back from the newest Disney movie.
Stephan quickly bared the way so they couldn't get by, as Ian looked at Kerry wide-eyed.
"Let go of my daughter you. fiend." Kerry cringed. She didn't need this.
She put herself between Michel and her father. "Daddy, Daniel and I are going to be late for our ride. I told you about my ski trip last night remember?" She knew damn well her father wouldn't remember even if she had told him. he had gotten a little too into the eggnog.
"Uh sure. Where are you going?"
"Skiing." She moved out the door. "Don't worry, I'll be back before Christmas."
Her dad looked confused, trying to remember their invented conversation. She knew he would've protested if Ian hadn't hugged her and asked her to bring him another gift. Her dad glared after them as Michel opened the car door for her and helped her in, and as he stogged her suitcase into the back. Michel finally turned and faced her dad as they both glared at each other. Kerry sighed at the machoism tendencies they both displayed and opened the door hitting Michel's butt. A fine butt it was too.
Kerry shivered as Michel got in and drove out of the court. He muttered something about her dad seeming familiar as he turned the corner. She caught him glaring into the rearview mirror at her still glowering father. Men!
"I've got a problem."
"Damn right you have a problem. You promised to be back for Christmas but I can tell you there's no way in hell you will be."
"But they're my family. they expect me to be there." She sighed. "You wouldn't understand."
"That's right. I wouldn't understand anything about having a family. Mine has been dead for years after all." He practically ran into the stoplight as he swung irately around the corner. She reached over and turned the heat on swearing she wouldn't complain and tell him what the dilemma was.
He pulled up into a parking lot and stalked out of the vehicle. She scrambled after him as he quickly started to walk down the sidewalk with her suitcase. Her teeth started to chatter as her breath frosted.
"You're making enough noise to wake the." He stopped mid-sentence and scrutinized her. "Where's your jacket?"
She figured telling him he was wearing it wouldn't go over very well. He seemed to come to the same conclusion for he stripped off the leather jacket and tossed it to her muttering he knew getting it back was too good to be true.
"I think you care more about saving the jacket than you do about me." She knew she was antagonizing him, but in that second she saw the guy she had fallen for.
"The truth tells no lies."
"Well you wouldn't know anything about the truth anyway." She followed him still refusing to complain. He was supposed to see superbly in the dark and indeed he did as he dodged a fire hydrant she didn't see. She got to her feet before he could snarl at her again. After a ten-minute hike they came to the mansion of her dreams and he began to cut across the lawn.
"Why didn't we just come here in the first place? Oh I get it. the car was borrowed."
"Not the way you're implying."
"Suuure." She muttered as he unlocked the front door. He waited for her to remove her jacket.
"Where are your shoes?"
"I forgot them."
"How could you forget shoes and a jacket?"
"I was too busy trying to stop you and my dad from killing each other."
"I would never kill your dad for looking after you." He shook his head, probably at her stupidity. "Go take a bath." He brought her into the master bedroom and put her suitcase on the bed.
She frowned at him. "Don't even think I'm going to sleep with you."
"I wasn't, but obviously you were."
"This is the master bedroom, what did you expect me to think?"
He grinned almost with genuine amusement. "There are too many windows in this room. I prefer a smaller one. Now take a bath, you're freezing." His azure eyes seemed to dance merrily for a moment and she couldn't help but grin back at him.
She began to feel her toes again as his footsteps softly echoed down the stairs. The burning sensation emerging from numbness made her appreciate just how chilly she was. 'His fault' she muttered stubbornly as she found he had already turned the steaming water on for her. The sweet unselfish act almost took her breath away.
He was such a bastard. Now she liked him again. It was largely more unproblematic to abhor the man. She soaked in his antique claw-foot bathtub for a while and looked around the room for a towel. Great there weren't any. His name emerged from her mouth before she could think. Something crashed from below as he reached the door in seconds.
"Are you decent?"
Stupid question. "I'm in the tub!"
The door flew open and she squealed clutching a facecloth to chest. He eyed her, then smirked. "That's not helping much." She sunk a little more into the tub. "Now what's the emergency? Your heart isn't beating sporadically so I know you aren't in danger." He looked at her as if to say she better have a good answer or else. Her heart-beat surely accelerated.
"Uh. Where are the towels?" He scowled, and stalked out of the bathroom returning in a few moments with an armful of cotton.
"If you have any other reasons to scare the shit out of me, you better say it now."
"I locked the door, next time knock." She replied coldly.
"Yeah, I'll knock politely when someone is killing you, how's that?"
"Fine by me. Could you please leave now so I can get out?"
"No. You beckoned, you put up with me being here."
She gritted her teeth, stood up and grabbed a towel. This was obviously not what he expected for he was slamming the door and giving her privacy a moment later. She quickly dressed hoping to get a second of gloating in as she hurried downstairs. He was sitting at the kitchen table with a mug clenched between his hands.
"I made you some coffee." He gestured towards the empty seat. He was being sweet again. It almost overshadowed the unpleasant way he habitually seemed to be treating her now. She sat down and took a drink of the lukewarm bitterness and struggled to keep her face pleasant as he watched her carefully. So he was baiting her now? The childish reaction from him almost brought a smile to her lips. This meant war!
"Who and why is someone trying to kill me?"
He looked at her impassively. "I thought you would have it figured out. I guess I'm putting too much faith in your brain cells."
"I concluded that it was vampires and it's because of you but I courteously didn't accuse you of anything."
"Of course not."
"What did you do this time?"
His eyes met hers for a moment and a jumble of scenes flashed before her eyes. Before she could scrutinize them he broke eye contact. "I'm not the only one of us with secrets."
For a split second she thought she knew what he was talking about, then the thought disappeared and she was left with confusion.
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