Author's notes: I got my self a beta-reader! …or is it beta-writer…anyway… Seducing Reason was kind enough to become my beta-reader and sacrifice some of her personal time to make sure that this fic is readable. THANK YOU! (so it's because of my new beta-writer if the fic get's better … )

Thanks to both reviewers!

Disclaimer: I do not own Tenchu…I do not know who owns it, but it's not me…

- The third mark -

Ayame slept restlessly in her bedroom in the Gohda mansion. The wide bed didn't seem big enough for her as she tossed and turned in her sleep, kicking the luxurious blankets on to the icy cold floor tiles.

A silent wail escaped from her lips as the door separating her small bedroom from the living room opened. Onikage stood on the door way, looking at the silvery, moonlit painted shadows that danced on the girl's tormented face. A lonely tear ran along her cheek as the mute sobs shook her petite body.

He had woken to the feeling of distress that had slowly oozed into his consciousness trough the link he shared with her. The feeling had been so pressing that he had decided to see what was upsetting her so much, and he transformed back to his own form. The worry over the girl had overthrown his fear of losing control.

It wasn't like him to worry about others. He did what he did for himself and himself alone. He had sworn servitude to Lord Mei Oh at one time, but even that allegiance served his own purposes in the end. In Mei Oh's servitude Onikage had been granted powers that no commoner could ever dream of achieving. He was practically immortal and his strength rivaled Mei Oh's, and the mere loss of his personal freedom had been a small price to pay.

Now, hundreds of years later he found himself to be bound to a fleshling girl, without a drop of his former glory left. Yet despite of all his power he couldn't break free from the girl and it was frustrating beyond words. To make things worse for him the filthy Half-breed-offspring of Mitsuomi had handed the rest of his freedom to the girl on a silver plate.

The only upside was that the girl was completely unaware of the link between them, and thus unaware of the power she had over him. He couldn't kill her, of course, but maybe he could use her.

The residents of the house trusted in her greatly; the meeting with the half-breed bastard had proven that. If they got the idea of him being completely under her control, their distrust would gradually shift away and he could easily have his revenge on the Mitsuomi's heir. The boy was strong in magic, but without it he was as threatening as a newborn baby. And Onikage knew certain herbs that would make it impossible for the half-breed to chant his spells. After killing him, the witch would break the curse and free him from the human.

His plan required a lot of patience, but that wouldn't be a problem. Onikage had awaited his revenge for centuries; a couple more months wouldn't be an obstacle.

He had been sleeping in the living room on a tasteless, overly fragile looking chair that had ridiculously thin velvet covering. It had been almost too small even for his cat form to sleep. The only reason he had even considered sleeping there was the girl's current situation. He wanted to be near enough to her to smell her seducing scent, which threatened to destroy the little sanity left in him.

Onikage could detect that faint scent even now, as he stood in the doorway. The scent caused an unwanted clinging feeling inside him. She was a mortal, and thus more worthless than the cattle she fed upon. He knew this, but still the fleshling girl's vexing brown eyes staring fearlessly wouldn't leave his memory.. She had known that she was weaker than him, that he could have killed her any moment, but she had neither given up nor begged. She had stood in her place, staring challengingly into his eyes, like he should have been the one who should give up.

Presently, a cold breeze moved the long white satin drapes disturbing Onikage from his thoughts. He hadn't even noticed how chilly the room was before. The pale blue floor tiles felt frigid to his bare feet.

'She must have opened the window before falling to sleep.' He mused absentmindedly as he walked to the window and closed it. The old window frame let out a creaking sound as he forced it back to it's place. The sound was obnoxiously loud in the quiet room and Onikage spun around to see if the girl had woken to the sudden noise.

She lay looking helpless in the middle of her enormous bed shivering from the cold and mumbling something in a small voice. Thankfully, her eyes stayed closed and her breathing was steady. She was still fast asleep.

Onikage let out a deep breath he hadn't even noticed he was holding, and reached down to retrieve the blanket she had dropped. The thin, white night gown really wasn't enough to keep her warm, and for some unknown reason Onikage found himself unable to leave her shivering like that. It gave him a slight pause.

'It's just because she's in heat...' Onikage assured himself. He needed to get out of this room, before her scent would dim his mind completely.

As he bent over the bed to wrap the thick blanket around her, the girl shifted in her sleep, trapping his hand against her chest in the process. Her warmth radiated trough the thin fabric of her nightgown, and it was obvious enough to him that she was naked under the cloth. Onikage felt a dangerous tingling in his groin, as rational thought began to desert him in the moment he needed it most.

He moved his free hand to caress the soft skin of her neck near the two bite marks.

"One mark more and no one would dare to touch her without my permission." Onikage thought as he ran his fingers along the scar tissue as the girl murmured softly in her sleep. Her little voice broke the charm and Onikage snatched his free hand back from her, as though it were on fire. His mind began to race.

'Here I am, trying to maintain an inhuman amount of self-control, and look what fucking happens! I get trapped in a fucking bed with a nearly nude human in heat. God, if you exist, you have a fucking cruel sense of humor.' Onikage thought bitterly, cursing every possible form of a higher force he could think of.

It had been a mistake to return to his original form. Even though the girl's captivating scent was much stronger to the cat's nose, it was far more tormenting to be near her in his own body.

This body remembered the sensation of touching her warm smooth skin. Remembered the taste of her full lips, her soft gasps and the manner her hands had caressed his back. Her body had felt so good in his arms, so right. To him, the sensation was unnatural. He was a lone warrior. He didn't need anyone to slow him down, especially not some weak mortal girl.

But as unnatural as the sensation was, it still lingered stubbornly in the back of his mind. Onikage wanted her, and what he wanted he always got.

"Why shouldn't I take her? Despite her words she wasn't exactly unwilling earlier, and I doubt anybody would come to interfere. Not in her room in this time of night." Onikage mused, climbing to the bed next to Ayame.

A small voice in the back of his mind reminded him that the girl was a filthy human, but Onikage ignored it, snaking an arm around her waist and pulling her against himself.

Ayame woke from her sleep.

She had relived the day of her parents' death once again, but the dream had been different this time. There had been someone else in there too, someone soothing. The foreign presence had embraced her with a warm light and dried her tears, leading her into a field of flowers.

The field had been bathed in a warm sunlight and for a brief moment she had wondered if she was dead. The stranger had even taken her hand and pulled her into fierce dash trough the sea of flowers.

Smiling at the memory of her dream, Ayame snuggled deeper under the blankets just to be pulled up against something, or rather someone warm by an arm around her waist. Her eyes flew open. She wasn't alone. Ayame wriggled rigorously trying to break free from the arm that trapped her. The arm didn't lose it's grip a single bit. On the contrary, it pulled her more tightly against the warm chest behind her.

Getting rather scared, Ayame summoned all of the strength sleeping inside her slim body to battle her way out of the embrace. She swung her arm back trying to hit the attacker, but another hand trapped her little fist before it hit anything. The blanket dropped back to the floor, but neither of them noticed it.

"That's not a very nice thing to do, you know?" A deep voice scolded her in playful tone.

Ayame gasped in surprise. She knew this voice. It belonged to the tall man with the crimson eyes. The man, who had tried to kill her, saved her, kissed her and then saved her again. He confused Ayame to no end; she couldn't see the logic in his actions. It wasn't logical at all.

"But you despite all that you long for his touch?" The dry voice of her consciousness asked. "You are even more pathetic than you were before."

"No. I can't explain it, but something tells me that he doesn't wish to harm me. He protected me back there, when he could have let me die." Ayame reasoned to her addled thoughts, remembering how the man had sheltered her from the falling rocks in the underground tunnel.

Master Gohda had seemed so different back then. Usually the soft spoken lord seemed the most normal person in the mansion, despite his over-grown, laid-back attitude and ridiculous optimism. But back there the wishy-washy man had abandoned his kind smile. Even the crimson eyes of the tall stranger had been less scary than those of Gohda's. At least those glowing red eyes had been filled with emotions. Gohda's dark eyes had been totally lifeless, like they were made of stone. And to think that someone could actually wield such a terrifying power ... It was scary and against every law of nature she had ever heard of.

Bringing herself back to the present Ayame opened her mouth to talk: "What the hell are you doing in my bed?" she asked with a voice reeking of irritation. For some reason she wasn't as scared of him as she had been before, even though he still made her feel a bit edgy.

"I said that I'd stay close to keep an eye on you, didn't I?" The man answered with a sinisterly playful tone reminding Ayame of his words after the battle with Master Gohda.

--

(Flash back)

After Gohda had vanished in to the shadows, the magical ties that had bound the red eyed man disappeared and he let her down gently.

Ayame had been about to ask if the man was all right, when she saw the look in those red eyes. Flames of pure rage had burned in those glowing eyes as he had touched the silver medallion around his neck. She had taken an unconscious step back when the man had shifted the burning gaze to her.

"Can you find your way back to your rooms, wench?" His voice abruptly asked.

"I... Yes I think so…" Ayame stuttered.

"Good. Now, go to your rooms and stay there. And don't tell anyone about today's events. If you so much as hint about my existence to the others, I'll make you wish that you had never taken your first breath. Do I make myself clear?" He asked, turning the full power of his hatred towards her.

"Very." She uttered breathlessly.

"Now, be a good girl and go back to your rooms. I'll keep an eye on you and I'll contact you when the time is right." He said before he disappeared to the shadows like Gohda before him.

(End of flash back)

--

"When you said that you'd keep an eye on me, I didn't …" Ayame started, but her answer was cut short by the soft lips tracing the base of her neck.

She gasped in surprise and the sound seemed to be a sign for the man to continue his actions. Ayame felt how his hand caressed her side through the thin fabric of her night gown, moving from her ribs to her waist and on to her bare thigh. His touch was light as feather, but it was enough to start a burning inside her body.

Biting back a moan that was about to escape from her lips, Ayame grunted. She absolutely wasn't going to let him win. Not like before, she wouldn't surrender to him just because he was a good kisser.

"What do you think you are doing!" Ayame asked in a voice that lesser man would have considered threatening, but the glowing-eyed stranger just let out a deep chuckle and tossed her to her back, trapping her hands above her head and her legs under his own. The hold of her hands was gentle but firm as steel and she couldn't make him budge.

Ayame's eyes widened in surprise as found herself face to a face of the red eyed stranger. Fierce hunger burned in those ruby eyes and his lips were twisted into a sly smirk. The moonlight played on his bare chest making it easier to Ayame to see the tattoos that decorated his upper torso. His free hand caressed her cheek as he bent closer over her. He was so close that she could feel his breath against her skin.

Her heart was beating so rapidly that Ayame wondered if it would come right trough her chest. She could feel how a slight blush raised to her cheeks as the man bent even closer. Ayame was afraid that her poor heart might fail her completely, it was beating so loudly in her ears.

"Why am I reacting to him this way? He is my enemy ... isn't he?" Ayame wasn't so sure anymore. He had, after all, saved her twice without any signs of wanting to take her life. The deep voice of the man dragged her from her thoughts when he spoke.

"I don't know how you do it, but you distract me, human. So, I'll make you bear my mark, and then you'll belong to me and me alone…forever." The man said in a husky voice and lowered his head to kiss the base of her neck.

Ayame gasped in pleasure. The area around the bite marks was extremely sensitive to his touch. Maybe it was because the scars weren't completely healed or maybe it was for some other reason. Right now she didn't care about the reasons. She just didn't want him to stop, whatever the reason.

The sharp pain of his fangs piercing the sensitive skin of her neck woke her from her lust. The man was licking the blood from the wound, but not hungrily like the first time. This time her blood wasn't food to him, now it was something else. The bite mark throbbed painfully for moment but the pain was already subsiding, giving space to another feelings. Part of Ayame wanted nothing more than for him to continue, but that part was left to the minority.

"I don't give a shit about how much more powerful you are than me, but if you don't stop right now I'll make your life a living hell in every way I can think off." Ayame whispered quietly.

For some reason Ayame felt tears burning in her eyes. This wasn't anywhere near the right time to break, but so much had happened in such a short time. She had been close to death twice today. She didn't know what was going on anymore, and she was confused and scared.

The man moved his lips from her neck to look her in the eyes. Ayame glared him as challengingly as she could despite the tears that blurred her vision. She wasn't going to let him have the pleasure of victory.

-The end of chapter nine-

A.N: Ok…that was it this time will be continued in chapter 10 that is up…someday not so soon, anyway please review andtell me what you thought about it…The good, the bad …and the ugly…and everything between…