Chapter 5.

Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Princess Miyu, but I do own the fanfics New Vampire Miyu: To Change The Future, Miyu: The Vampire Hunter, and Return To Me. (The one that you are currently reading.)

Miyu shivered with delight as she slid her foot into the icy cold water of the creek. She slowly slid her other foot into the water and waded toward the middle.

It had been centuries since she had last done this. Since she happened to be passing by she decided to relive a little bit of her childhood.

She lifted her foot out of the water and splashed some water in Larva's direction. "Come join me Larva," she said.

Larva shook his head and Miyu frowned. "Why not?" she pouted. She waded back to land and crawled into his lap. She looked up at him. "What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing," he whispered. He brought his hand up and caressed her face.

He had not talked to her the whole afternoon and Miyu was beginning to wonder if he was angry with her.

"Are you angry?"

"No."

She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Then why won't you talk to me?" She kissed his lips.

"You've done nothing wrong," Larva assured her.

"Then what's bothering you?" Miyu demanded. "We've been together for centuries, I always know when something's bothering you."

Larva was silent.

Miyu sighed. "Larva if you don't tell me I will just get it out of you sooner or later." She kissed his neck teasingly. "You're blood will tell me everything."

Larva looked down at her. "I know the origin of that shinma," he finally said.

A sick feeling formed in Miyu's stomach. She crossed her arms in front of her chest. "You'd think that we could actually get one moment of privacy without being interrupted. What was it?"

"Western," Larva replied.

"What do they want now?" Miyu asked angrily. She just about had enough of those westerners.

"I do not know," Larva replied. "But there are sure to be more of them. We tend not to travel alone."

"I hate the Western Shinmas," Miyu said bitterly. "All of them except you." She pressed her head against his chest. "I wish that they would just leave us alone."

"I know," Larva whispered. He wrapped his arms around her. "I understand."

"But we don't understand."

Miyu and Larva looked up and saw Carlua and Lemures standing on the other side of the creek.

"It's not very nice to talk about people behind their backs little Miss. Guardian," Lemures said.

"Since you're so heartless I didn't think that you would care," Miyu said. "You shouldn't pry in on other people's privacy."

"I really didn't know that you were that way," Lemures said. "You are a very sinful little child aren't you?"

"I am much older then I am perceived to be," Miyu said. "I may have the body of a child, but I have the mind of a woman."

"A woman whore," Carlua mumbled.

Miyu glared at her. "Well I am so sorry Carlua, but I think Larva would prefer not to do it with his little cousin." She shrugged. "But I guess that is just how you are."

"Shut your mouth!" Carlua snapped.

Miyu ignored her. "So what brings you two back here to Japan?" she asked Lemures. "I hope you aren't staying long, but it doesn't really matter anyway. Since you are both here in Japan, I might as well return you both to the darkness."

"Good luck trying," Lemures said. He pulled out a vial filled with white powder from his cloak and pulled out the cork. "Sweet dreams Vampire Guardian." He threw the opened vial into the water and the powder billowed up from the water and expanded into a dust cloud.

"Don't breathe it in!" Larva yelled covering Miyu's mouth with his hand. He picked her up and ran as fast as he could to get away from the advancing white cloud.

"You won't be able to run without breathing it in Larva!" Lemures called after him.

Larva didn't hear what Lemures had said. His voice had been drowned out by the shrieks of the forest animals trying to escape from the advancing white cloud. He could feel Miyu's body become weak from the lack of oxygen. She would soon faint if he didn't allow her to breathe, but he couldn't allow her to breathe, he couldn't even allow himself to breathe. If they breathed in the powder they would fall asleep and would be unable to defend themselves.

He looked behind him. The cloud was still expanding but the further it expanded the weaker the powder's effect became. He still couldn't risk letting Miyu breathe in the air.

Suddenly, something rammed in to him, knocking the breath out of his body. He dropped Miyu and fell to the ground. He gasped for breath. Bad move. He could feel the powder's effect slowly beginning to make him drowsy. He wanted nothing more but to sleep, but he forced himself up off the ground and picked up Miyu. She had already breathed in enough of the powder and was beginning to fall asleep. 'I'm sorry Miyu,' he thought. He slapped her hard across the face to wake her up then held her close to him and continued to run.

He stumbled and tripped over tree roots that he could have missed if he hadn't breathed in the powder, but he continued to run no matter how inviting the sleep seemed.

Miyu's eyelids slowly became heavy. It took all her strength to keep herself from falling asleep, but it was almost like her energy was being drained from her the more she fought it. Larva noticed this and grabbed her wrist in his hand. She could fell his thumbnail resting against her skin. She bit her lip to keep herself from crying out as he cut into her wrist. The pain should have kept her awake, but to Larva's horror, the powder acted like morphine and caused the pain to cease almost instantly.

It was hopeless. He couldn't keep running like this, but he had to keep trying. He had to get to an area where the powder was diluted enough that it would be safe to breathe. Of course, the only way to find out if it was safe was to breathe in the air.

He tripped and fell to his knees. He struggled to his feet but it was almost impossible. He was just to damn tired, but he had to keep going. He started to run again, but not as fast as he had been running before.

They were both running out of time.

Something rushed past him, but this time he was able to dodge the blow that was meant to hit him. Lemures was attacking from the sky. He didn't want to risk traveling through the smoke cloud.

He looked behind him. The white cloud was dissipating, but that didn't mean that the powder was diluted enough to breathe.

Finally his knees buckled and he collapsed out of pure exhaustion. Miyu crawled out from underneath him. Larva looked up at her. His wasn't sure how long they would be able to stay awake.

"Run," he gasped. Every breath he took caused the effect of the powder to become stronger and stronger. He was beginning to fade in and out of reality.

"I'm not going to leave you!" Miyu said weakly. "Not like last time."

Larva shook his head weakly. "You have to go." He tried to push her away. He didn't have the energy to teleport her away. That was what he should have done in the first place, but it was too late to change anything.

Miyu grasped his hand tightly. "Please try to get up!" she begged him desperately. "We still have time to get away. Maybe we can find somewhere to hide until the powder's effect wears down."

"Run," he whispered. His eyelids slowly shut. "Run."

"No!" Miyu screamed. She held his wrist to her mouth and bit into it hoping that the pain would wake him up.

Larva's eyes snapped open but slowly began to close again. "You can't die," he whispered. "You must live."

It was what he had said when the Western Shinmas had attacked five years ago. "If you die I'll. . ." Miyu paused. "I'll kill myself!"

"No. . .you can't," Larva whispered. "You have to live. You have to return all the stray shinmas to the darkness. It is your destiny."

"And it's your destiny to stay with me," Miyu said. "I am not losing you again to your bitch cousin." But Larva had already fallen asleep. She tried to wake him, but he didn't stir. The powder's effect had taken a hold of him and it refused to let go.

She could fell herself beginning to succumb to the effect. Her eyelids slowly drooped closed. An image of Larva came to her while she was half conscious. The five-year-old memory that still haunted her dreams. Blood everywhere. His blood. It ran down his face and stained her kimono.

"Miyu, run," he said. Blood poured out of his mouth. "You must survive."

Miyu's eyes snapped open. "I must survive," she said to herself. "For you, Larva." She heard the sound of Lemures wing above her. She kissed Larva's bloodied wrist, tasting his blood for the last time, and jumped up with determination and ran. She ran as fast as her legs could carry her. Not looking back to see Lemures picking up Larva's sleeping form.

"I must survive," Miyu chanted to herself. "I must live. I must escape."

Suddenly, she felt as if she were falling. Her ankle throbbed with pain from getting it jammed between two tree roots.

She fell to the ground. As soon as she hit the ground the whole world began to spin around her. Her body was rolling down a hill. Thorns, thistles, and prickles tore her kimono and her flesh. She could feel the blood pouring down her body.

Then she crashed into a thorn bush, halting her descent down the hill. She bit her lip to keep herself from crying out in pain. Not the pain of her wounds, but the pain of leaving Larva in the hands of those Western Shinmas.

How could she? She should have stayed there along side him, and died there along side him. Now he was going to die alone. Tears poured down her bruised cheeks.

'Oh Larva! I'm so sorry,' she thought.

Carlua looked down the hill. She had seen Miyu fall and disappear down the hill but she couldn't find her. She couldn't even sense her. Was it possible that she was dead? No. A little tumble down a hill could never kill the Japanese Vampire Princess.

"Do you see her?" Lemures asked appearing behind her carrying Larva.

"No," Carlua said. "We let her get away." She kicked a loose rock down the hill.

"Don't worry," Lemures said. "She'll come looking for us since we have her servant."

Carlua looked at Larva with a look of disgust on her face. "What are we going to do with him until then?" she asked.

"Oh, I have a few things in mind," Lemures replied. Then they both disappeared.

To Be Continued. . . . . . . .

BlueDragonGirl#1: Oh-no! It's almost like déjà vu, only this time the westerners aren't going to bring Larva back to life if they kill him. What will happen next? Major R&R time!!! (Thanx for all the reviews you guys have been submitting!)