Hey guys, sorry about the delay, but I had put this story on hold as I needed to recollect my thoughts on the plot and how I was going to take it. I won't be updating this too much, focusing more on my main story.

If I'm not updating this story, you should check out my profile. There is a small section near the bottom where I post personal updates about what I'm going to do or what I'm in the process of doing.

Anyway, this chapter was a bit hard to write, so forgive me if I make any mistakes. From the next chapter on, I'll hopefully have a beta or alpha [Some people have mentioned they could be the beta for this story] so hopefully my spelling and grammar mistakes will noticeably decrease from the next chapter.

Hope you enjoy this chapter.

The Shadow that Watches

Chapter 5: Her pain is his.

This was probably the worst situation that couldn't happened at the time. Here she, Akali, was standing, in between two men who shared the deepest of hostility towards each other.

Shen's face had fallen into indifference again, although there was a fire raging within his brown eyes. It was obvious that he hated the very presence of Zed, especially because Shen suspected that Zed had something to do with Akali's recent condition. She always seemed to have something on her mind these days.

Zed's face, the emotion on Shen's face mirrored on his own, was different in the fact that his eyes held nothing but sub-zero coolness. He stared down at Akali, who had walked into him, as Akali stared up at him in surprise. He could still see the slight pink tinge on her cheeks, which meant that she had been conversing something with Shen that had caused her to fluster.

"Zed. I suggest you keep moving." Shen said in his usual deep and controlled voice, although it had an edge to it that Shen reserved for Zed.
"I don't think you can tell me what to do, Shen." Zed replied coolly, his crimson eyes moving up to stare at Shen's brown ones.
"You've never been one to listen well enough to others." Shen said, a flicker of satisfaction crossing his eyes as Zed's eyes became colder, both of the males knowing what Shen was talking about.
"And look what good it did for the 'others'." Zed said, a silent message passing under his words, only meant for Shen. And Shen received it, the amusement dying from his eyes as they were replaced with fury and rage. Zed smirked at the small victory.

Akali was no fool. She knew what the two male shinobi were talking about. She needed to put a stop to it before things got too heated. "Both of you, stop this at once." Akali said in a firm voice. She turned her head to look at Shen. "Shen, I'll talk to you later on."

It was a clear dismissal, but not one that implied that Akali was commanding Shen. With one last glare at Zed and an unfathomable look at Akali, Shen turned around, walking off and becoming lost from sight within the crowd.

Akali then turned around to look at Zed, while Zed stared down at her impassively. She didn't know what to say to him. But before she could think of what to say, Zed leaned closer to her face. In a whisper, he said to her, "If you try to butt into conversations of mine that don't concern you like that again, I'll be sure to make you regret it."

As Zed stalked off, Akali sighed, putting her hand to her forehead. As the tips of her forefinger and thumb massaged her temples, Akali couldn't help but think about what an asshole Zed was sometimes.

..

As the night wore on, it was nearly time for second most anticipated event in the festival. The Dance. Everyone who had someone accompanying them to the festival walked forward onto the large platform that was a few inches above the ground, made just for dancing in occasions like this. The air was filled with music as people enjoyed and danced to the rhythm. Around the platform was several tables with enough seating for anyone who didn't wish to dance or didn't have someone to dance with to sit.

Zed was sitting in one such chair, staring at the dancers, although not really focusing on anyone, as he absent mindedly swirled the goblet of red wine he had in his hand. Although this was a traditional Ionian holiday, there were mainland food and drinks available for anyone who didn't quite prefer the spice of the Ionian food or the drinks, such as Sake. Zed, for one, simply wished to drink red wine instead of sake. He preferred it, as he had never really liked sake.

As his red eyes skimmed across the dancers on the platform, his eyes stopped and focused on a woman in red. It was none other than Akali. She was laughing, something she did rarely, as she danced around with her small yordle friend, Kennen. Kennen was having fun, dancing like a woman as he spun and twirled around Akali, causing the female shinobi to laugh even more at his antics. She wasn't the only one amused by Kennen's dancing, but she was the only one who Zed focused on. It was like he had suddenly developed a bad case of tunnel vision, everything else just blurring out of focus or going black as Akali became sharper in his vision.

He could see the way her maroon eyes moved, reflecting the bright lights around her as her gaze followed the yordle infront of her. He could see her perfect white teeth, even if they were visible for a split second as she laughed. She could see her slender fingers gripping Kennen's furry hands, he could almost feel the gentle but firm grip she had. The grip of someone sure of oneself.

"Feeling down, Zed?" A feminine voice came from his right. Zed's red eyes tore away from Akali before focusing on the woman sitting across him in the same table. She was wearing a black kimono with her white hair tied up. Syndra.

"My feelings are none of your concern, Syndra." Zed said. Syndra wasn't anyone special to Zed, although the two were warmer towards each other than most people because of both of their affinity to the shadows. Syndra smiled as she followed his previous gaze, but couldn't really locate what he was looking at. Her eyes however, landed on Kennen and Akali.

"Look at them. And they call themselves ninjas." Syndra said with contempt as she narrowed her eyes at Kennen's silly display, mouth curling up into a sneer. Zed remained silence, although his eyes hardened momentarily. Not because Syndra had insulted Kennen, but because the insult had also been directed at Akali. For some reason, that caused Zed's mood to darken.

"What is it you want, Sorceress?" Zed asked as Syndra's smile turned sly.
"Well, I thought the Master of Shadows looked like he could use some company. It's not every day I see you without something covering your face." Syndra said, her eyes twinkling. "You're actually quite handsome."

Zed took a small sip of his drink before putting it down. "Flattery will get you nowhere, Sovereign. Especially not with me. I'm sitting here alone because I wish to be alone." Zed said in a cold voice. Syndra was slightly taken back at Zed's more-than-usual hostility against her. Zed stood up, saying nothing before he walked off.

As he continued to walk around the dance floor, circling it like a predator, his eyes kept glancing at Akali. However, this caused him to be quite distracted as he bumped into someone. He was bumping into a lot of people, it seemed…

"Hmm…? Zed?" Talon said as he looked behind to his side to see Zed having bumped into him. Talon's brown eyes, equally as cold as Zed's red eyes although the latter's eyes held much more bitterness, gazed at the shadow master. Zed narrowed his eyes momentarily before widening it again, Talon turning his head back to watch the dancefloor. He was also wearing traditional Japanese clothing, consisting of a dark blue pair of hakama and a matching hakamashita.

The assassins didn't need words to converse as Zed stood next to Talon, who was leaning against a wall which supported one of many small stalls in the festival grounds. Zed joined Talon, leaning next to him and crossing his arms. The two assassins standing side by side could've been mistaken for brothers. Both of them had similar hairstyles, although Zed's hair was black and longer than Talon's shoulder-length dark brown hair. Talon's face was unscarred and slightly tanned, in contrast to Zed's battle-scarred pale face. Zed also stood a few inches taller than Talon.

"It seems I'm not the only one who's not enjoying this festival as much." Talon said in a bitterly amused voice as Zed's eyes skimmed across the dance floor again to find Katarina dancing with Garen. Zed raised an eyebrow as Talon stared darkly at Garen, his face impassive but his eyes shooting daggers, taking a small drink from the glass he held in his right hand.

"Didn't she accompany you?" Zed asked, glancing at the drink in Talon's hand. He must be quite distressed for an assassin to try and intoxicate himself. A part of Zed's mind sneered at the weakness being shown from Talon. Losing your composure just because a woman likes another man… Pitiful.

Even though Zed and Talon had a more understanding relation than Zed hand with most other people, they weren't really friends nor enemies. Just acquaintances with the same interests.

"She did. But then that sword-wielding lug came along, wanting to dance with her just for the sake of keeping political appearances up." Talon said, his eyes narrowing as they turned darker, caused by witnessing Garen whisper something to Katarina, who in response, chuckled politely. He downed his drink completely before putting the empty glass on the tray of a passing waitress, taking another drink. Zed took a drink as well, although he wasn't planning on drinking enough to intoxicate himself. Talon, however, seemed to hold no qualms as he drank almost half of it in one go.

Zed 's lips curled up in an almost unnoticeable smirk as he failed to hold his contempt inside of him. His eyes finally stopped focusing on Katarina and went back to looking for Akali. As his red eyes landed on her form, they softened momentarily before hardening and becoming frigid cold. She was talking with Shen, who seemed to be asking her something. Even as Zed watched, the music became slower and the lights dimmed, Shen offering a hand to Akali. Akali looked embarrassed, looking down at his hand as she muttered something. Shen replied with a straight face as Akali nodded, placing her hand in his before they came close and began to dance…

Zed felt his skin burning, his eyes glowing with suppressed rage. His aggressive emotions heightened even further when he couldn't fathom why he had even begun to feel such anger. Hatred for Shen had never reared its head so violently like this before. Without even realizing it, Zed completely downed his drink, Talon turning his head to look at Zed with mild surprise before glancing at where Zed's gaze was focused. Talon's face became thoughtful as he found Akali dancing slowly with Shen, their closeness and posture almost romantic. Well, the slow dance itself was romantic. Just as Talon was about to look for Katarina, his mood darkening horribly at the thought of Garen dancing with her, Katarina came up right infront of him. "Talon, I was looking for you. Come on, lets see how good those skilled feet of yours are for something slow and sensual." Katarina said in a low, passionate voice as Talon's mood instantly became better. A small smirk played on his lips as he accompanied her to the dance floor, leaving Zed standing there alone, glowering at Akali and Shen.

He grabbed another glass from a passing waitress, downing the bitter alcohol before taking yet another glass right afterwards, the waitress thoroughly surprised and confused to see Zed like this.
"Zed-sama, are you alright?" She asked. She paled and quickly scurried away as Zed's eyes turned to her, almost murderous. With the waitress gone, Zed took another deep drink from his glass, already feeling the effects. Since he had always kept himself from intoxication, his tolerance was quite low. He could already feel a buzzing in his head and everything seemed slightly numb and distant, blurred even. Only Akali and Shen was in complete focus.

And as Zed watched, Shen and Akali, who seemed to be conversing something, suddenly drew closer, Akali resting her head against Shen's chest as Shen rested his head upon her head. It looked like the two were growing even closer as their position now seemed like a couples. His temper at it's limit, Zed was aware of his hand clenching the glass hard until, with a sudden burst, the glass exploded in his hands, sharp fragments flying everywhere around him as it shredded his hands.

A few people glanced curiously over to him but turned away, not wanting to be caught looking by a very livid Shadow master. The alcohol had drowned his composure, letting his emotions surface like a venomous serpent rearing its head. Even the blood pouring from his hand, some glass shards caught in his white-knuckled grip, causing his palm to be shredded even further, could not break his attention from what was infront.

And then, just as his anger had boiled up suddenly, another emotion spiked inside of him. His anger crumbled, replaced by an even more powerful emotion. Betrayal. He felt the bitter feeling of betrayal inside of him again, like a knife twisting inside his chest, his furious eyes softening in pain. A rare emotion crossed his face, one he had sworn to never show again. Pain. He closed his eyes, lowering his head as his hair fell infront of his face.

Why was he even caring about this woman? Every step of his life was climaxed with betrayal. The betrayal of his master when he had achieved the forbidden power. The old man was too blind with love for his darling Shen to praise Zed's power. Then the betrayal of his former friend and brother, Shen, right afterwards. Even Shen, so brainwashed by false visions of balance and peace, had turned his back on Zed, swearing to Zed that if he ever saw Zed again, he would kill him.

Then, the betrayal of the girl for a mistake he did not commit. One stupid student of his had killed the mother of this girl he had grown so close to… And she had blamed him just because he was the teacher. He asked. He requested. He begged. He fell to his knees, infront of his students, throwing his honor and pride on the floor as he swore to Akali that he would set things right, that he would have the culprit punished horribly. He pleaded helplessly for her to stay, but like everyone else in his life, she had turned her back on him and left him…

Zed shook his head, thinking what kind of sick masochistic fool he was for allowing her to even come close to him again. He had allowed himself to think that he was drawn to her because of his predatory instincts. He had been fooled by himself. And yet again, he was left all alone.

With that thought in his mind, Zed turned around, blood still dripping from his hand, and walked away. This time, he had turned his back on her. On Shen. On everyone and everything. From now, he would truly walk alone…

…

Akali was exhausted. The night had gone on for much longer than expected, ending with a brilliant display of fireworks. She smiled as memories of the event flashed across her mind. Some parts, like dancing with Kennen or witnessing Irelia steal Master Yi's dumplings from his plate by telepathically controlling forks and knives, made her smile brighten. But as her dance with Shen came to her mind, her smile turned a bit sad, the memory replaying itself in her mind…

Akali had just finished dancing with Kennen, the yordle saying something about meeting with Tristana as Akali waved him away. Just then, Shen had walked up to her. Akali, remembering the conversation they had had earlier, awkwardly greeted him. The silence that followed was even more awkward. Finally, Shen had said,

"Akali… Would you dance with me?"

Akali looked down at the hand he had offered her. Those calloused hands that seemed so gentle in comparison to the rough ways he used them. Her face fell as she blushed lightly, uncomfortable with such emotional socializing.

"Umm… Shen… I already to-"

"This isn't about that, Akali. I just want one dance. One last dance before I have to go back to doing my duty to preserve the balance. One last dance where you can see me as I am, not as who I am trained to be." Shen said quietly, his eyes silently pleading her. Finally, Akali closed her eyes and nodded, placing her hands, small in comparison, into his, as his fingers slowly closed.

Within moments, he had pulled her close to him to suit the music, his movements both gentle and respectful. He was giving her some personal space, most of their body close but not touching, before beginning to dance. It was slow and relaxing, as Akali found herself slowly being soothed by the music and the rhythmic movements. Shen was leading, and he was doing a fine job of perfectly timing the movements, as well as going at the perfect pace. Not too fast nor too slow.

Finally, during the climax of the song, Shen had asked, "Akali… Is there a chance… Any chance… For us? Do you need time?"

Akali lowered her head, eyes closed in pain at the thought of how Shen must be feeling right now. "Shen… I'm so sorry, but I stand by what I said earlier… I just cannot think of you that way. You are one of the closest people in my life." She said, looking up to meet his brown eyes with her maroon ones, "But only as a friend. As a brother."

Shen closed his eyes, managing to give a sad albeit weak smile as he opened his eyes again. "I understand, Akali… I… I…"

Before Shen could say more, Akali closed the distance, hugging him gently as she placed the side of her head on his chest, hearing his heartbeat as her arms crossed around his back. Shen was still for a few seconds before his hands also went around her back, his head lowering to rest upon hers as Akali comforted Shen. Shen took solace in the fact that though Akali didn't love him romantically, she did love him in another way and cared about him and his well-being.

"Thank you Akali…" He muttered, as Akali nodded against his chest. The two stayed like that, just their feet moving as they continued the dance in that manner, Akali comforting Shen for his rejection while Shen was unintentionally also easing Akali's troubled mind. It felt good to have the warmth of someone she cared about next to her body, although her mind yearned for the warmth of another. She could easily have said yes to Shen. She could've easily done all sorts of romantic things with him. Shen was a nice guy. Responsible, smart, cool-headed, perhaps even funny in times of rest and relaxation, where rare glimpses into Shen's actual personality was revealed. But she knew that, every second they would spend together, her mind would place another in his stead. She would yearn for the touch of another, desire the voice of another, even wish for the personality of another. Shen would just be false gold, used to ease her buried desire of another. She didn't want to use him like that. She didn't want to hurt him like that.

Akali sighed, eyes closing at the thought of Shen's wistful smile as he had walked away. However, one thought had been nagging at her mind throughout the dance and even now, as she was walking back to the residential wing where her room was. Where is Zed?

And as if it was destined for her question to be answered right then, she found herself staring at Zed, who was lounging upon a sofa in a very un-Zed like way. Like he had just plopped down onto it. Her eyes looked down to see a large puddle of blood on the floor, her eyes widening as she looked at Zed for the source of it. He seemed to be sleeping, eyes closed and face peaceful even in his messy way of lying upon the sofa. There were no wounds upon him but his left hand was bandaged up tightly. Probably a healer had healed it while he was dozing, she guessed. But she still frowned as she wondered how he could've hurt himself.

She walked over to him, intending to bring him back to his room. As she walked around to the front of the sofa, where Zed was fully visible to her, her frown turned to mild surprise. Zed had changed, now wearing a black pair of trousers although he was shirtless. His defined muscular form was visible to her even in the low lights, most of the lights in the room turned off due to the time. If he had come back and changed, why had he come out of his room and fallen asleep on the sofa?

Putting her thoughts away for later, she walked over to him, wondering how she would carry him to his room. But as if her presence alone had triggered something, Zed's eyes suddenly opened. In a flash, Zed had stood up and grabbed Akali by her shoulders. She felt the world spinning before having the wind knocked out of her, absently registering that Zed had spun her into the sofa. Now she was lying on her back, staring up at Zed's intense crimson eyes. They were glowing in the dark atmosphere, staring down at her eyes with heat as Akali felt her heartbeat quickening. She was too surprised to even speak.

"Akali…" He breathed her name, as Akali's nose picked up the heavy smell of alcohol. Her mood instantly changed. Something was very wrong with Zed for him to be drunk.

"Zed, what's wrong?" She asked, trying to get up. But Zed's hands held her shoulder's down.

"I've been waiting for you." He said in a low voice, staring down at her with his frigid stare, Akali's struggles stopping as her eyes widened again. Her heart beat quickened further, but this time, it was due to fear.

"Zed. Let me go." She said, but Zed didn't respond.

"I've been meaning to ask you something, Akali." Zed said in a sinister tone, Akali's eyes widening further as panic began to seep into her veins. She began to struggle again, harder this time as Zed leaned closer.

"How many men have you pleasured yourself with?"

The statement hit Akali like a slap to the face. She instantly stopped, staring at Zed with disbelief on her face, mouth gaping at the absurdness of his insult. "What!?" She hissed at him, incredulity and rising anger evident in her voice.

"I said, how many men got to have your body for their own perverse pleasures. How many men fucked you until you moaned and screamed their name?" Zed said venomously. Akali wasn't sure how, perhaps Zed's grip had loosened or perhaps she had experienced a burst of strength to break out of his grip, but her hand had streaked across the air, striking his face with a sound like a whip's crack in the silent air. Zed's head was turned to the side as Akali withdrew her hand, breathing through clenched teeth as her anger flared.

"I don't care who you are Zed. Institute rules be damned, I will fucking gut you if you call me a slut one more time." Akali said, knowing that she shouldn't be reacting this way. Zed was drunk, he wasn't himself. But for some reason, the words coming from him had hurt her more than any physical wounds she had received. Zed slowly turned his head back to face her, his face noticeably colder, his eyes threatening.

Zed's hands pushed her down by the shoulders again, suddenly straddling her as he sat ontop of her, Akali beginning to thrash around to escape. "Let go Ze- Ow, you're hurti- ZED, LET GO!" She screamed, but Zed's rage was blinding his thoughts, which was already numbed by the alcohol. He lowered his mouth to hers, forcefully kissing her as Akali was caught off guard by the sudden assault. She let out a muffled scream against his mouth, Zed's tongue entering her mouth to explore, forcing her tongue back everytime she tried to push his tongue out with hers. She was still writhing under his grip, but with his chest pressing down upon hers and his hands holding her arms pinned down, she was trapped. One of his hand released her arm, his weight being sufficient to pin her, as it went to her side to explore. His right hand gripped her left midriff, feeling her lithe side-curves as he trailed it upwards to her ribcage. Akali's movements became even more frantic as his hands cupped her left breast through her kimono, gripping down tightly upon it.

Akali closed her eyes, screaming against his mouth, struggling to breath as tears fell from her eyes. She had always imagined having her first time with the man she loved. And now, here she was, her first time with the man she unknowingly loved. But not like this. Her fantasies had always been slow, passionate, full of love. Not like this. This wasn't love. This was rape. Her screams turned to whimpers as tears continued to pour out of the corners of her eyes.

Zed froze as he felt wetness on her cheeks. Pausing all of his movements, he released his hold on her chest and shoulder as pushed himself up, separating his mouth from hers as he panted. He watched Akali, who was whimpering, tears streaming from her eyes. At the realization of her hands being free, Akali crossed themselves over her chest in shame, using them to protect herself instead of attacking Zed. A painful realization shot through like an arrow into Zed's mind as he realized everything he was doing. His eyes widened in disbelief as he stared down at Akali's submissive display, then at his own hands. He had been this close to doing an unforgivable act. He had been this close to scarring a woman, a woman he knew and cared about once upon a time, for life. He got off of her, stumbling back as he continued to stare at her, regret evident on his face. Akali sat up, scrambling away from Zed as she drew her knees closer to herself, hugging them as she curled up protectively, staring at Zed with mistrust and fear.

Zed couldn't believe himself. He had almost done it. He had been so close… He had let himself break every code he lived by on one single night. And there was no one to blame here but himself. His leg hit a table as he continued to stumble back, breaking his thoughts. He turned around, like a coward, unable to face his faults as he hastily walked back to his room, shutting and locking his door. Running away from his problems like a child, locking the door as if that would fix everything. He leaned against the door, his legs giving away as he slid down to a sitting position on the floor, his back on the door. He stared up at the dark ceiling of his room helplessly, his face distraught as he muttered, his voice almost choking with regret, "What have I done…"

Just to clarify, no, Zed did not rape Akali. But it did come fairly close, although no articles of clothing was taken off [Zed was already undressed from the waist up, sexy beast he is.] But the very implication of it is quite a traumatizing blow for both parties, as Zed had been under the influence of drink and his rage. Hope I wrote this chapter well enough for your enjoyment, please leave a review about your thoughts. Though I might not reply to you directly, I always take what you review to heart. I've received some responses of people who didn't like this story and I just want to clarify that I'm not disheartened nor hurt, not in the slightest. Instead, I'm gracious for the advice they have given me which I can use to improve, and I would also like to thank everyone who reviewed for taking the time to do so.

Though I won't be changing the plot of my story, I'll try to improve my style of writing. I've also changed the summary to include AU since there are some modern things in this story of mine [Such as lighting, clothes and other things which you might see.]

Thanks for reading.