Chapter Six
Visions
"Yazoo…" Raven whispered. When he didn't respond she sat up a bit, propping herself up on one elbow to look at him. 'He's so…beautiful…it's almost painful to look at him.' She thought.
Yazoo had fallen asleep next to her a while ago. She hadn't realized it at first, because he was an absolutely silent sleeper. 'He looks so serene.' She thought, smiling down on his still form. His head had fallen to the side causing his long hair to spill like sparkling water around him. A small smile played across his soft lips. Raven reached down and touched his hair. It was surprisingly soft. She gently picked up a lock of metallicy hair in her fingers and rubbed it thoughtfully with her thumb. Though she didn't mean too, her actions caused enough movement too catch his attention. Yazoo's left hand flashed across his chest to grab the wrist of her right arm firmly.
"Oh. Hello." He said groggily, smiling and releasing her.
"Sorry." She whispered. "I didn't mean to wake you. I just…"
"Just what?" he smiled, eyes half closed. Raven blushed, for the way he looked up at her was very seductive,
"I just wanted to…touch your hair." She turned away, blushing even more in embarrassment.
Yazoo suddenly sat up and leaned towards her, slipping his right arm under her left so his face was above hers and very close. His hair fell forward around their faces, blocking them off from the world. He stared into her eyes intently. For a long time neither said anything and hardly breathed.
Raven was getting dizzy gazing into his blue-green cat-like eyes when he suddenly leaned forward and kissed her. Her eyes grew wide in shock before closing them and kissing him back. She felt him snake is arm around her waist and pull her onto his lap as he nibbled on her upper lip, asking for permission to deepen the kiss. She placed a hand on his chest and pushed him away,
"Yazoo…" she murmured, resting her forehead on his shoulder, "I'm sorry I just…don't know you well enough and…I don't think this is the best time for me to get involved with you, or anyone for that matter. No offense."
"None taken." He whispered in her ear. "I can wait. Do you want to go home now?"
"Yes." She replied, though neither of them moved to get up right away. Eventually though, Raven slipped off of his lap, stood and stretched. Dawn would break soon. Yazoo followed her back to his bike, which he mounted first. She swung up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist. As he drove away Raven rested her head on his back and frowned as her mind tingled. She closed her eyes, frowning…
Raven looks down from her position on the wall. She glances at her arms that are raised above her, attached to the wall by glowing blue-green cuffs. When she looks at her ankles, she sees the same cuff-like bands. She closes her eyes in frustration, blocking out the cold, silver room from her view. She hears the door creak open and prepares to face her captor. When she opens her eyes, however, she gasps.
"Raven!" Yazoo calls, running over to her, leaving Loz and Kadaj by the door to keep watch.
"Yazoo, get out of here!" she says back, "It's not safe here."
"Hey!" they both turn to look at Loz, "There is no way we are leaving here without you, so shut up." He winks at her.
"He's right." Yazoo whispers. Raven turns back to look into his eyes, "I couldn't leave you here if my life depended on it…"
"Oh dear." Raven murmured. She opened her eyes and frowned. 'That was an odd one.' She thought.
"You okay?" Yazoo asked over his shoulder as he parked his bike behind the large, shell-like structure that served as their home.
"Yeah." She said dismissively as she swung off from behind him and headed towards the building, deep in thought.
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Aelita sat in the center of the small bed and picked at the fraying edge of the sheets as she thought. After recovering from Loz's attack, she had to decide whether to stay or not. After much deliberation, she had asked Kadaj if she could stay with Raven for a while. He had kindly agreed, saying she could stay as long as she wanted. That it would 'be good for Raven to have a woman to yack with.', which hearing that from the serious young mad had caused Aelita to start laughing.
So far, however, she had found nothing wrong with the three men. She had slipped stealthily around the building in which they lived, as well as the surrounding area, and had found nothing incriminating against Kadaj and his brothers. In fact, from what she could tell, they were all very nice and docile. Except Loz. But he was probably just over protective of his brothers and territory. The evening he had attacked her he had apparently taken his bike and disappeared, not returning for two days. Kadaj had told her that his eldest brother was hot-headed and just needed to blow of the aggravation of being beaten by Raven. A knock at the door brought Aelita back to reality,
"Yes?" she called, still toying with the edge of the sheet. Kadaj opened the door and walked over to stand beside the bed,
"Loz and I have some business to attend to. We'll probably be gone until tomorrow night. Yazoo may or may not be coming with us." He cocked his head and studied her. 'She's quite pretty.' He thought.
"Oh. Okay. What are you guys going to do?" she dropped the sheet and clasped her hands in her lap. She was surprised when his eyes narrowed.
"Nothing really." He straightened and tilted his head back, causing his silver hair to ripple around his face, "We're running low on supplies, so we are going to buy some more. Besides, we get restless occasionally and have to go explore for a bit."
"Ah." Aelita hopped off the bed and turned to face him. She reached out and touched his hair, "Be careful. I wouldn't want Raven to lose any of you. Though you may not be able to see it, she's happier here than she was back in Edge."
"Really?" He murmured as he walked away from her. He was uneasy when she touched his hair.
"Yeah." She watched him walk slowly to he door, "Some days she would come in to work and, though she would look and act happy, I could tell she was sad and confused. Yeah, I've never been close to her but…as you may know, we're both orphans. So I feel a certain connection with her. I do hope to become better friends with her."
Kadaj turned back to the young girl,
"You are observant for one so young." He commented, softly.
"My mother said I was special." She chirped, smiling, "And I'm not that young. Just turned seventeen about a month ago."
"Of course." He returned her smile, "And why did your mother call you special?"
Aelita looked at him and pressed her lips together, trying to decide whether or not she should tell him about her gift. They obviously knew about Raven's powers, which had only been revealed to the brunette a week ago when Raven had told her about them and how she feared rejection. Of course, Aelita had been thrilled and immediately told the violet-haired woman about her own special power. This man seemed to accept Raven and her strange abilities, and the green-eyes girl's gift was similar to Ravens. 'What harm can it do?' she thought,
"I can…sense people's emotions." She said. He raised an eyebrow,
"Really?"
"Yup. And sometimes I can control them. Like make someone angry and irrational or extremely sad or loving, though that takes a lot of energy." She picked at the hem of her dress, "People leave an emotional trail that I can follow. I guess you could say it's like footprints or a scent. Ones emotions stay where they've been for a while before fading, and I can pick up on them."
"So that's how you found us." He said, more as a statement than a question. She nodded anyway,
"Loz was easy to track. His emotions are very unstable."
"I believe that." Kadaj said, chuckling. "But, I must leave now. Take care."
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Raven giggled earnestly for the first time in months,
"Aelita, why didn't I get to know you a year ago!?"
"Cause you're crazy." Aelita winked. She clapped her hands together, eye growing wide, "Oh! Say, what do you think of Kada? Isn't he gorgeous!?"
Raven laughed again, shaking her head in awe at the young girl's ability to switch from one subject to another in a matter of seconds,
"He seems a little distant to me." She replied thoughtfully, "And isn't he too serious for you? I hardly ever see him crack a joke or even smile."
"He's smiled at me several times before." The brunette pointed out. Raven smiled warmly,
"Maybe that's because you're so innocent and pretty."
"Oh, hush. I am not." Aelita grinned and thumped her violet-eyed friend in the head with a pillow. Raven laughed loudly and grabbed it out of the younger girl's hand to hit her back.
"Are too!" she grinned. "But it's getting late and I'm exhausted. You should get some rest too."
She smiled and nodded as Raven stood. She leaned over and hugged the girl before leaving. She went into her room next door and smirked at the white room. She hated that color. She stripped off her coat, shoes, pants and shirt. She crawled into bed, wearing only her undergarments. She closed her eyes and fell asleep an hour later.
Loz grunts as he blocks the silver-haired man's attack. The weapon on his left arm sparks several times as he grips the handle.
"Loz!" Raven screams as tears fall down her cheeks, "Please just leave! I'm not worth your life!"
"Are you kidding?" he yells over his shoulder, not taking his eyes off his attacker, "I've never seen my brother so happy as when you are around. Despite how he looks and acts, Yazoo is a delicate man. I will fight for that, for him, and for you."
"Aw…" the silver-haired man coos cruelly, "Isn't that touching?" He smirks at Loz before attacking again. Raven cries out as Loz acquires more and more cuts and wounds from the other man's shockingly long sword. Suddenly, the man laughs and spins around and slashes at Loz's arm, knocking off his weapon.
"Shi—ARGH!" Loz cries as the man stabs him through the stomach.
"NO! LOZ!" Raven screams between sobs. She rushes forward as the murderer withdraws his weapon and steps back,
"Loz! Loz can you hear me?" she cries, cupping his face in her hands. When he doesn't respond she whimpers, "Don't leave me…"
"I-I'm sorry…Rae…" he whispers, coughing up blood, "Don't you die or anything…Yazoo would…hate that."
Raven nods. Tears drip off her cheeks and splash onto his,
"Please Loz…" she chokes out, "You can't die. Not when we were just starting to get along."
"Raven…" he coughs, ignoring her last plead, "He loves you…you know…fight for him…and…yourself…"
"NOOOO!" Raven sobs, sitting up in bed as the vision slowly faded away. She threw the blankets off of her and stumbled over to the chest. She quickly pulled on her shirt and pants. She wiped her tears off on the back of her hands.
When she got outside she inhaled the cold air, reveling in the feeling of cleanliness. She walked over to the water and sat down on the bank. She didn't realize she was not alone until she heard the clink of metal,
"There you are…" Vincent murmured in his low voice as he sat down beside her. She turned to look at him,
"You're hungry." She commented, noticing his blood red eyes which were normally a lovely amber, "Or thirsty, or whatever you call it."
"I've been looking for you. Rumors have been…floating around." He said, not seeming to notice her observation.
"What sort of rumors?" Raven asked, reaching out and touching his hair. He smiled at her.
"That you were living with Kadaj and his gang. You were happy and you spent a lot of time with the middle brother, Yazoo."
"All true." She replied calmly. She scooted closer and began to play with his hair. "They are kind to me and I sense nothing wrong with any of them, though Loz is a bit hot-headed. I spend time with Yazoo because he saved my life and accepts me most of all. With, my powers, you know. Kadaj and Loz are fine with it, but Yazoo is the nicest about it. I've been staying here because…I am happier. And coming here and…heh…cutting my hair has changed the future for the better."
"Oh. That's…fine." Vincent studied her. She had told him about the vision of the destroyed city. He himself reached out and touched her hair, "I like it. It's very…you."
"Vincent…" she whispered, looking into his eyes that burned with desire. "If you don't drink soon you will be irrational."
"Raven, no. Not again." He reprimanded.
"Vincent, you're going to hurt yourself." She snapped.
"Not as much as I would hurt you if I bit you." He replied calmly.
"Not true." Raven thumped him on the forehead with a finger, "Last time it didn't hurt at all. In fact, it felt very good." She scooted closer and looked into his eyes, smiling.
"Raven…" he groaned. Her scent was tantalizing. She continued to smile as she reached up and pulled his head down to her neck.
"Vincent. You need this. We'll be okay." She waited, feeling his hot breath against her flesh.
"They want me to bring you back." He murmured. "But I won't…if you want to stay."
"I do…" she whispered. She closed her eyes as he kissed her neck, "Vincent?"
"Mm?" he held back, though he desperately wanted to bite her.
"Don't tell them where to find me…please." She felt him nod against her before he sank his teeth into her neck. Raven sighed as she felt him drink greedily. After a while he lifted his head a bit, trailing his lips up her neck to kiss her gently on the lips,
"Thank you, Raven…and no, I won't tell them."
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Yazoo walked down the white hall. He had decided not to go with his brothers on their 'expedition'. He stopped outside Raven's room, wanting to talk to her. He placed his hand on the door and frowned. The room was silent and though he could feel her power coming from…somewhere, it didn't feel like it was from her room. He pushed the door open and his frown deepened. She wasn't there. Her jacket and boots were by the chest and the bed had been slept in. He couldn't imagine where she could be at three o'clock in the morning.
Yazoo stormed down the hall angrily. 'Why the hell would she disappear like that? She could get hurt?' he thought. Of course, deep down he know that probably wasn't true. He hurried down the stairs leading outside and froze. Down on the shore of the lake was Raven in the arms of a man. Her eyes were closed and her body was limp. The man held her in his lap and was bent over her, his face buried in her neck. His black hair fell over her and brushed over her face.
"Raven!" he yelled, panicking. He had heard of the fabled vampires, but had never believed that they existed. He ran forward, pulling out his gun as he did so. The vampire lifted his head and snarled at the silver haired man, who was lifting his gun to shoot him. Yazoo caught his breath as Raven stirred and sat up, holding her head,
"You bastard!" he screamed, firing at the vampire clad in red. He was utterly shocked when his bullet glanced off an invisible wall that flickered black, "Wha-?"
Raven stumbled forward and pushed the vampire back, holding her hands out in front of her,
"Yazoo…" she said softly, "Stop it…"
"Raven! He'll kill you!" he choked back a sob, terrified for her safety.
"No he won't." she turned back to the vampire, "Vincent, you should go."
"No." the vampire said roughly.
"You know him?!" Yazoo still hadn't lowered his gun and his hand shook wildly.
"Yes…" Raven stumbled a bit, though still kept her hands up before her.
"Oh God…" Vincent said, stepping forward and taking her by her shoulders, "Raven…I'm sorry I must have lost control a bit."
"It's alright." She said softly. "You needed it."
Yazoo could do nothing but stare in disbelief at the woman before him. 'She's protecting him!' he thought. 'He almost killed her and she's protecting him!' He was torn from his thoughts when the violet-haired woman stumbled and fell. He jerked forward, ready to run to her side but froze when the vampire caught her easily and lowered her to the ground, talking softly to her. Yazoo approached them carefully. When he reached them the vampire looked up at him with amber eyes.
"Take care of her." He said, standing up swiftly and holding the limp girl's body out to him. Yazoo swiftly holstered his gun and took Raven in his arms, holding her close to his chest. He looked back at the vampire with hatred and curiosity in his eye.
"Why would you care?" he sneered. He watched as the vampire gazed down at the woman in his arms.
"Because I…" Vincent sighed and turned away, "Because I love her. As do all her friends. So please take care of her. I will be back in a month or so to check on her."
And with that he leapt up into the trees and disappeared. Yazoo stared after him in wonder before walking over to a tree. He slowly sat down, careful not to jostle the woman in his arms. There was a bite mark surrounded by a large bruise on her fair neck. He reached out and touched it gently. Then he sighed and leaned back against the tree to wait.
Twenty minutes later Raven stirred and opened her eyes,
"Yazoo…" she muttered. He met her gaze but remained silent, "I'm sorry I yelled at you."
"It's alright." He sighed. "I just wish I had known that you knew him. I was…frightened."
"Really?" she smiled up at him.
"Yes." He frowned and touched the bruise on her neck again. She reached up and took his hand in hers, moving it away from her neck. Without releasing his hand, she reached up with her free one and placed it over the bruise. Her hand glowed white for a moment and when she removed her hand the wound was gone,
"You really amaze me, Raven." He said, smiling, "But tell me, why weren't you in bed, sleeping?"
"Oh…" she closed her eyes, "I had another vision, plus…it's too bright in there. I…hate white." Yazoo laughed.
"Not that I don't appreciate you taking me in." she added in a rush.
"It's fine, I understand." He smiled, thoughts rushing through his mind, "Would you like to go visit your friends in Edge tomorrow?"
"Yeah…" she turned back to look at him, "We'll be coming back though…right? Together?"
"Of course." He replied, pulling her into a hug.
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Yeah well…the title of the chapter doesn't really match with the content but oh well. I couldn't really think of anything at the time. :P Hope you're enjoying the story!
Kitsune
