Hi Everyone! Thank you for your reviews. They make me happy! Hehe! –Gives everyone a Joey x Mai, Yami x Tea, and Rebecca x Mokuba plushies-

Anayas-Creater, NinjaAngel, Kaori-Angel, FireFairy032003, -&- Landi McClellan

Italics are thoughts

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Castle of the Night

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Tristan bared his teeth in a gleeful grin as Serenity passed out in his grasp, her skin whitening as his dirty nails starved in her body and blood being spilled up rapidly. He squeezed her waist tighter; a few more seconds and she would be nothing more than a lovely corpse for his fellow hunter friends to feast upon.

Just a few more seco…

Suddenly, a dark mass slammed into his chest, knocking Serenity from his clawed hands and throwing him roughly against a tree. The still night shook as powerful gust of wind hurled among the hunters, scattering them while cushioning Serenity's fall and blasting Duke. Tristan tried to stand back up, but was slammed by both the angry wind and that dark shape.

After being thrown into the same tree enough times to leave a man-sized (or in this case, demon-sized) dent and have both eyes spinning, the assault paused and allowed him to stand. At first, he couldn't make out his attack, but then the shadow took on the outline of a tall man… a very tall man, than himself. Slowly the shadow faded, and the hunter leader swallowed roughly as he saw the last person.

"Who the FUCK are you!"

Several hunters shrieked and fled, abandoning their own master to his fate. While the Vampire Lord kept his public appearances to a minimum, his strength was well known among all others.

"Well, well, Tristan Taylor, this certainly is a surprise. Albeit not a pleasant one…" Seto had lost his kind and gentle stature that he had displayed to his loyalists only hours ago. Instead, his face was a calm mask that still seemed to broadcast his cold fury.

"I don't appreciate you defiling what is mine. Quite a mess that you've gotten into, now isn't it?"

Tristan's eyes were wide as he tried to back away from the Vampire Lord, desperately terrified.

When his back met the tree, he looked around frantically for some sort of escape and found none available. It wouldn't matter anyway; if that wind didn't stop, Seto certainly would. Tristan tried to move away, but the wind became so fierce, it caged him. And there was no aid from Duke, since he was dead.

The circumstances finally presented themselves before him: there was no way out, except through Seto's hands. With that thought in mind, all rationally left him as he threw himself at the Vampire Lord with a wild roar.

Seto step-sided Tristan easily, sending a hand chop to the area between the hunter's shoulder blades. With a grunt, Tristan crashed to the ground, but leapt to his feet quickly. He threw a volley of punches and strikes at Seto, but the Vampire's movements blurred as he dodged each attack with ease before throwing a punch of his own.

Tristan had been hoping for this. He ducked beneath the blow and got behind Seto. He then trapped Seto's trench coat where the Vampire's back should be. Should be. He was surprised when his foot met no resistance but he heard the sound of movement. Too late, did he see Seto's flip backwards so skillfully that the trench coat didn't move. By the time Tristan got the picture, the Vampire's powerful legs connected sharply with his shoulders as he was again thrown to the ground. When Seto move back, the hunter was still fighting. Throwing his weight onto his hands, Tristan's pushed himself backwards, shoving both of his feet into the unsuspecting man's stomach. Winded for a moment, the Vampire couldn't prevent the slash of nails that cut a deep slice in his left cheek.

He, dares!

A hot, red fury seemed to coat Seto's eyesight as a deep growl emitted from his throat. His bravado dwindled quickly as Tristan realized what he had done. Violent quakes shook his tall form as Seto's eyes went a blood cerulean, his hands became hard and sharp talons, and a feral look masked his features as his canines grew to deadly exaggerated lengths. Only a fool wouldn't realize that the power Vampire was indeed furious.

Still in a note of defiance, Tristan met the attack when Seto threw himself at the Hunter Leader. Their nails grasped each other as they tried to over-power the other. Seto bent his arms at the elbows, bringing him closer so he could ran his forehead into Tristan. A pained screech sounded from the hunter as he fell back slightly, as the Vampire Lord slashed out with his nails at the defenseless opponent and cut off the lower half of Tristan's left arm.

Barely shifting his stance, Seto gave a kick straight up, catching the other's chin on the way. The force behind the blow was so strong, that Tristan's body flipped a few times before falling front first onto the ground. Weakened considerably, the once proud hunter couldn't even stand as he struggled to keep himself on his right hand and knees. He gave a hoarse cry when he felt the Vampire's talon hand grab his head and pull him roughly to his feet. His eyes rolled as he began to collapse forward, but they snapped open as his weight pushed him onto Seto's awaiting hand. The sharp claws entered his chest until he frozen with Seto's entire hand inside him.

"Tristan!" came the weak cry of Duke as he looked in horror.

Duke immediately grabbed a hatchet from the inside of his left leg pants, and ran to Serenity. But before he can get close to her, a fire blaze encircled the girl, making Duke blind as bright colors flashed before his eyes and let go of the small ax.

"Ahhh!" Duke shrieked as he let go of the weapon.

The ax was suddenly picked up by the wind, and immediately threw itself into Duke's forehead, as blood spattered everywhere. Duke was blinked and collapsed on the red leaves, eyes wide opened. The wind and fire stopped moving and returned to their form. There, Marik and Bakura were close to Serenity. Bakura's hands were close to her body, but not touching her body, that way she continue breathing, since she was looking pale from the loss of blood.

Seto joined them in one swift jump.

"Is she alright, Marik?"

The wind spirit nodded from side to side.

"I'm not sure. Serenity already suffered from injuries before the sick game. She seems to be in even worse condition now. I'm not sure how long her human body will be able to hold for…" Marik stopped abruptly when he saw the look in his Lord's eyes.

He barely had heard a word he said, instead making his own calculations with what he saw: torn clothes, deep cuts, dark bruises, old and new scars, and now her pierced skin. But what had surprised Bakura and Marik so much was the look in his eyes.

I have never seen him look at anyone with so much concern before… he really DOES care for this human.

Marik looked toward Bakura as Bakura agreed what Marik thought.

Neither have I, Bakura's mind said to Marik.

The Vampire Lord crouched down and splitting the collar in half that was around her neck. With extreme gentleness, he lifted Serenity into his arms, being careful with her damaged body. His eyes never left her colorless face as he said, "Come Marik and Bakura. We're going home."

No more words passed between them as they both took to the air.

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Serenity let her head rested on the moss-covered stone behind her head as she sat soaking in the refreshing waters of the natural pool. It was so peaceful here that the hunters, and her master seemed like a far off memory. The sound of the water lapping softly on the bank was soothing as she relaxed, letting her arms float beside her uncovered body. She was along, so she didn't mind not having any clothes on. A content sigh escaped her lips as the sun warmed her face and the wind played with her loose bangs. Things couldn't get better than this; they were just about perfect.

Suddenly, something soft and light floated up to her and bumped against the part of her chest that wasn't under water. She blinked her caramel-emerald eyes open lazily and brought her hands up to cup what had come to her: a white stem-less rose. Serenity leaned forward and took a long sniff. It was one of those roses… the one with vanilla mixed in its scent. Looking around, she moved so that she was standing waist-deep in the water, still cupping the rose in her hands. If this had been any other situation, she would have dove for cover, literally, since she was far from decent. But now she was bothered in the least. She was more interested in seeing who it was, who had given her the flower than worrying about her unclothed body.

She found him hiding in the shadows of some boulders that were sunk into the water on the far end of the pool. His arms were crossed over his muscular, uncovered chest as he leaned back against the hard surface of the boulder, watching her.

Serenity smiled at him and, keeping her arms in front of her chest, tipped her hands forward to show him what she held. She raised her thin brows, silently asking, and was answered with a gentle smile of his own. Then she tilted her head to the side, this time asking him to come closer. He complied, uncrossing his arms and leaving the shadows as he walked steadily towards her through the water. Serenity gasped, now seeing him fully in the sun: his body was tall, slim, but you can see muscles, each limp a piece of perfection in itself. His chestnut hair was down ,but his eyes are what captured her. His piercing sapphire eyes that spoke of soft, gentle, trust, honest, and patience. He, too, was without any garments, the water barely touching the sharp outline of his hipbone. His face was so warm and expressive, yet his eyes could be cold and emotionless when he chose. To her, however, he was open with his feelings, his handsome face inviting.

He stopped when he stood about a foot in front of her, smiling again. Serenity sent him a questioning look, and he chuckled softly.

"I think you're beautiful, too."

Shivers shot up from her toes at the sound of his voice. It was almost cruel-like, the way he spoke, but it was very pleasant to the ears.

She returned the smile, clutching the rose to her chest.

"Thank you for the roses. They're lovely."

"I'm glad that you've enjoyed them," he murmured as he reached out and took one of her in one of his own. He held her fingers gently as he bent down to kiss the back of her hand.

A steady blush spread across her cheeks, but she was enchanted nonetheless. She appreciated his courtliness: he was so much more polite than the men at the place where she once a slave. And his touch was so warm and gentle… Serenity wondered if the rest of him felt like this. As he pulled back from the kiss, her fingers squeezed his, and he obeyed the unsaid request, still holding her hand and pulling her to him. She curled against his smooth chest as his arms wrapped around her small, clean, no wounds were to be found, waist.

Another drowsy sigh came forth, but this time Serenity was sure everything was perfect as could be. She heard him chuckle again, and let him continue to hold as he sunk back, letting her head rest on his shoulder as he floated both of them back to her original resting spot in the shallower waters. His embrace was so warm and inviting, that she soon drifted to sleep, still holding the rose over her heart.

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"Well look at that! Looks like she's already coming around! Lord Seto sure has picked a resilient lass, that's for sure!"

Serenity blinked in a dazed fashion, as she looked about. She was in a pool, like in her dream, but this one was inside a cavern or stone room of sorts. This pool was smaller, water being fed to it by a small waterfall cascading from the wall. And the water was warm. Not quite hot, but comfortable. She was nestled among some smooth rocks, her backed propped up so that she could keep her head out of the water. Then she looked to her a pair of brown eyes.

"Why, hello there dear! Good to see you alive and well. When our Lord," the browned eye girl said pointing to a young blonde girl with aqua eyes, "brought you too us, we weren't sure if the waters would be able to heal a human so badly hurt, but you pulled through surprisingly well."

For a few moments, Serenity could only blink with surprise at the sweet nature of the girl lying on the rock next to her. Her arms were crossed in front of her chest, while the other girl rested on her elbows, her face right in front of the startled young woman. Then Serenity remembered that she had nothing on.

"Eep!" Serenity cried out as she quickly crossed her arms over her breasts and curled her legs together.

Both companions giggled.

"Sorry, I forgot how modest you humans tend to be. Although, you have so much to worry about, with your lower half and all."

Serenity just nodded and slowly slid down in the waters, letting her arms go freely.

"The water has a positive affect on humans, as you can see on yourself.

Getting back up again, Serenity saw that she was right and that all of injuries vanished, completely healed over and her previous twisted or broken limbs or bones were nearly stiff. She looked back at both of them and started slipping back into the water.

"Thank you so much. How can I ever repay you Miss…?" Serenity asked kindly with a smile.

"Your welcome and you don't have to repay us. By the way, my name is Tea Gardner and the other girl who is lying down is Rebecca Hopkins," Serenity turned to Rebecca as Serenity waved. Rebecca smiled and waved back.

"And you are the infamous Serenity who has captured our Lord's interest."

Her blood boiled at those words.

"He may be your Lord, but he is not mine! Just because he's 'interested' in me, does not mean that he owns me!"

Tea paused, looking at Serenity with sincere confusion.

"You mean you don't want Lord Seto?"

If he were the man in my dream, I'd think about it… out loud she asked, "Well do you enjoy being trapped here?"

"I'm here because I want to be. Someone very special saved me. My love is only to Vampire Yami," Tea said happily as Serenity opened her eyes wide.

"Vampire?" Serenity asked with confusion her voice.

"Yes. We are both vampires and soon, your best friend, Mai Valentine. It looks like a certain vampire has taken interested," Rebecca said as she cupped the water in her hands and blew at it, making the water freeze.

"Are you talking about the guy wearing the red trench coat?" Serenity asked as Rebecca dropped the frozen water back into the warm waters.

"Yes, his name is Joey Wheeler. His element is Earth. The man I love and always will, is Light," Tea mentioned to Serenity as she understood the information.

"And I take it that your man is Ice?" Serenity asked Rebecca as Rebecca grinned and nodded.

Serenity stood up and took the white robe that was lying on the soft grass. The robe was very thin, accenting her every curve, and very short, only coming to stop between her hip and knees. A royal blue sash kept it firmly in place around her waist, the entire garment a deep velvety white

"There are some slippers by the door, dear. Oh, and don't about the doors. They aren't as nearly heavy as they look!"

"I'll keep that in mind," Serenity replied and smiled.

"Oh, and Seto told me to tell you that you may walk around at your leisure. Nothing is off-limits to you. Oh, and feel free to ask of the residing spirits for anything you fancy: they've been commanded to keep comforted entertained," Tea said as Serenity bowed to her.

"Thank you for all of the trouble, Tea and Rebecca."

"No problem, Serenity. Just take it easy; you still need to recover your basic strength," Rebecca called out as Serenity nodded and finding the matching royal blue slip-ons by the door, walking out into the hall.

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"Well, Lord Seto, you've really stuck your tail in it now!"

Serenity had been wandering around the palace for a while, admiring how well furnished and well kept everything was, when the voice seemed to boom from a room down the hall. Since she had yet to meet the Lord of the palace, and because she was too proud to ask any of the spirits for help, her burning curiosity drew her to the door at the end of the hall. There was a crack open as she crept closer to see if she could se who was speaking inside.

At first glance her heart sank. The man was remarkably tall and very slender. His silver hair went to the middle of his back. His face was half there and half hidden.

I hope HE isn't Seto.

Serenity found herself hoping, wanted to smack herself for her own folly. She nearly jumped ten feet when she heard another voice answer from someone she couldn't see, masculine, clear and lined with cold annoyance.

"It matters very little to me what you think I've gotten myself into, Pegasus. My affairs are my own and I would appreciate you not meddling in them."

The man in Serenity's vision snorted.

"I would if I could trust you to take care of yourself, Lord. You never can keep yourself out of trouble. Just because everyone else favors you so much doesn't give you any excuse to act to foolish."

A growl resounded across the room, making the eavesdropping human girl shiver slightly.

"Just because you're older than me doesn't give you any damn reason to tell me what to do, Pegasus! If I want your opinion, then I'll ask for it."

"But to try and… court… a human female! Really Lord?"

Serenity stiffened; they were talking about her! She leaned in closer so as not to miss a single word.

"I'll choose who I wish and that is final!" came the enraged snarl.

Pegasus crossed his arms in disagreement.

"I never said anything about picking for you, Lord. But a human? Guaranteed she thinks we're on the same level as our soul-sucking ancestors, murdering monsters who don't give a damn for human kind. How do you think she'll react when she realizes what you are?"

Silence reigned and Serenity held her breath.

Here is comes. He'll say, 'it doesn't matter. She'll be mine where she want to or not.'

"It doesn't matter." Hopelessness seemed to squeeze the young woman's heart, although the words were spoken much softer than she had imagined. What came next was what really surprised her, not only because of what they said, but also because of the voice, now calmer and more caring, sounded frightening familiar.

"It doesn't matter because she'll judge me for who I am, not what I am. And she'll choose of her own free will whether she will have me or not."

A harsh laugh erupted from Pegasus.

"You should listen to the nonsense you spout! You make it sound like she will take you, but she won't. I know she won't. And what then? Will you turn her anyways, or kill her so she won't speak of what she has seen?"

Serenity was confirming that she really didn't like this man when the angry retort shot, "Neither! I would not harm her in any way nor take away her freedom. If she decides that she truly does not want me, then I will return her to her own people… and will cease to see her."

"Idiocy," was the tall man's growl. "Do you even realize how much you risk with giving that woman so much freedom to choose? It could mean the downfall of us all, not just those in the palace, but your entire realm! You should just take her and turn her into one of use if you are so determined to have her. And if you won't, I WILL!"

No sooner had the words left his mouth when he was pounced on by a shadowy figure, only slightly shorter than he was, but apparently much stronger. Pegasus was instantly pinned against a wall, a hand to his throat and an arm blocking both of his. The man who had Pegasus pegged was too hard for Serenity to make out in the dim light of the fireplace in that room. He seemed to be… made… of shadow, and his cape trench coat had a higher collar making it impossible to see him clearly. She could, however, hear his venomous hiss from the opposite side of the room from where she stood.

"You will do no such thing. She is under my protection and no Fates or any other being of mine will touch her as long as I stand. If I find you or any under you near her, I will personally drink you dry, laws or no, family or no. IS. THAT. CLEAR?"

Pegasus rasped as he tried to get some air into his deprived lungs, but he nodded all the same. The Vampire Lord may be younger, but he was by far the stronger of the two. His knees buckled under his own weight as his throat was released and he coughed, holding his now sore neck. He glared at the tall figure standing before him, muttering, "I have no business here."

Serenity heard a whirling of some sort of strong wind, realizing that the other side of that room must have a balcony or other large window. These creatures were powerful, dominant, and now it looked as if they could fly, too. Was there no end to their mysterious doings? The wind was so strong enough to batter the door Serenity was clinging to and shove her backwards, making her give a small cry in surprise.

"Who's there?"

Serenity's heart leapt for her throat. What if he didn't want her nosing around so much? What if he changed his mind, took away her freedom? She froze as the door opened fully and the whole world seemed to stop.

There, before her, was the same exact man as in her dreams.

His eyes widened at the sight of her: her hair was still wet, although, not dripping, and her face flushed from the warm healing waters. The robe, although thin, clung to her delicate figure, making a hard desire awaken in him. He pushed the feelings back though: he had meant what he told Pegasus. He would not force himself upon her. Instead, he smiled, inwardly relieved that she had healed so quickly and well.

"Serenity. How are you feeling?"

Still stunned, she could barely reply, "Well, thank you."

His smile grew even warmer, to the point that it was melting her heart. He leaned closer, taking her hand in his. Her breath caught in her throat as he bent over, whispering, "I'm glad," and placing a gentle kiss on the back of her hand, just like in her last dream.

Seto was surprised when he felt her other hand on his face, but held still, watching Serenity with his fathomless eyes as she slowly traced his features, as if mapping him out in her mind. She took a deep breath, to ease her trembling hands, and then gasped. It was the same smell as those roses! It seemed to cling to him like a second skin, and suddenly it all made sense: the roses, the dreams, the times she felt someone's eyes on her, comforting her from far away. It had been him watching over her. And somewhere deep in the heart of her soul, she knew he was the one for her. She didn't know how she knew, but what she did know was that she would accept no other. Then she smiled a smile, full of relief and wonder.

"Seto… I've finally found you."

His other hand caught hers and held it to his cheek, worry flashing in his eyes.

"So you choose? Even after everything that you've heard…? Even though you don't know me?"

Serenity's face brightened as she stood there cradling his face in her hand.

"But I do know you. I think I have always known. And… I know what must happen for it to be so."

He continued to watch her still so afraid of rejection, but the look passed when she said, "And I do choose… to be with you."

With those words, Seto pulled her hands back and pulled her close, leaning down to capture her lips with his own. How he had longed to do this; to crush her body close to his and taste her sweet mouth. And it was made all the sweeter as she moaned softly and returned the kiss, passion enveloping them both like fog in a valley.

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So, what do you think? Sorry about the grammar, but my right wrist is in horrible pain.

Ki Wingz

Epilogue - Love's Transformation

Serenity made her choice, (although it was rather obvious, don't ya think?). Seto has to… distract… her in order for her to bare the pain of becoming one of his kind.

Yup… this is the lemon part.