Ronin Warriors Fan Fiction ❯ Twilight Sky ❯ Home was... ( Chapter 7 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Hello, readers. It's been a long time since I've thanked all of you who've been reviewing and keeping
up with the story, so here it goes:

Zorra!- You say so many nice things:) Wow, what can I say? You don't have to feel badly about not
reviewing, you tell me what you think all the time. Hmmm. People who read this are going to think
we know each other.

DxInsider -thanks for reviewing, I'm glad you're enjoying it.

Amine girl -I like your idea about taking Ryo shopping. It's about time he gets
some new clothes for himself, isn't it?

Kato-chan- You flatter me! I'm so pleased, I'm trying to keep everyone in character, at least mostly. I
like Xiu X Seiji just because no one ever seems to do them as a pair. I read one fic with them and I
just loved it.

Marissa - I'm happy you took the time to write in. You're right, the warlords are just to darn cute!:)

M14Mouse- I like causing trouble for the boys. That's what life's all about, after all.

Brennend- *Blush* that was a mistake, actually, when I put Touma's trial there. I fixed it.

xxkurenaixx - You have no idea how happy I am that someone is so enthusiastic about this story.
It's reviews like yours keep me writing.

Tigergirl- Thanks for checking up on me. Don't worry, this fic will get finished.

Ena- The next chapter will be out soon.

Rockergurl - Hee, hee. Yes, the poor boys do deserve your pity after what my muses and I do to
them. Isn't it fun to see such sweet and innocent people in pain? Whoops. Sorry. My evil side is
showing again.



On with the story!


Twilight Sky



Chapter seven
Home was...



Rajura carried Anubis back to his private chambers, away from the sleeping Sh'ten and from Naaza
who was trying to sleep. As he made his way through the halls of the palace, Rajura allowed his
thoughts to roam. He thought about what Anubis had shown him about the boy, Ryo, and the
blonde who'd stopped him from tasting more of Ryo's blood. There had been a third, an ashen
haired boy, who had threatened to kill Anubis, as unlikely as that seemed. 'Still, the blonde has
definite power if he was able to enter Anubis' mind and...' Rajura didn't want to follow up that
thought. The idea that outsiders, mortals, had power that was similar to that which he and his
brothers had was unthinkable. Yet, the idea was there. The blonde had more power than he was
aware of. Ryo had fire in his veins. In his mind's eye, Rajura saw, or rather, he felt something
developing. He couldn't quite describe what it was that he felt happening, but he knew that it was
important.

'Two children who seem to have great power. That doesn't necessarily make them like us. The
pattern isn't finished, yet. Perhaps the weaver will give me a glimpse.' Rajura's idea of like was
quite different than most peoples. In his mind, there was no god nor were there demons. There were
people who lived their lives on a preordained path. There was a weaver, somewhere, who worked
the threads of life on a great loom and, occasionally, Rajura was given a look at the loom. Second
sight, his father had called it, long ago.

Lightfoot, a tawny colored wolf was waiting outside Anubis' chambers. For all that she was small,
she radiated power and strength. Rajura wasn't sure where the wolf had come from, only that she'd
been with Anubis when Rajura had found him so long ago. Looking at her now, Rajura wondered
briefly how a mere wolf could live so long. It was quite impossible, yet here she was. The thought
was brushed aside. 'I'm worrying for nothing. She's just a wolf. Probably, she's lived so long
because of some effect of the Youja Kai has on her.'

When Rajura went into Anubis' spartan chambers, the wolf followed, keeping her possessive eyes
on Anubis. Rajura covered up Anubis with the several layers of blankets and thick quilts. "You'll
have to sleep a while." Rajura told him, even though he knew Anubis couldn't hear him. "I know it
won't effect how you feel about this boy, even if you don't realize how you feel. Still, I want some
time to figure out what's going on and I don't want Arago getting suspicious of your odd behavior."

Lightfoot jumped up on the bed and sniffed at Anubis, her nose nearly touching the bruise at
Anubis' temple from where Rajura had hit him. She turned to look at Rajura with a faintly accusing
expression and gave a soft growl of displeasure.

"Don't worry." Rajura said, not knowing if Lightfoot understood or not "He'll heal in just a little
while."

She didn't seem to believe Rajura and lay down next to Anubis, putting a protective paw on his
chest.

"We're on the same side, Lightfoot. I just need some time and I don't want him to end up hurting
himself."

Still the wolf turned away from him and put her head down, keeping focused on Anubis as Rajura
left the room. 'I'll have to ask Anubis where he found her, one day.' She seemed to be a remarkably
intelligent animal. 'There's something very odd about her, though.' He took one last look over his
shoulder at Anubis and saw his brother tossing in his sleep. 'He must be dreaming.'


Anubis' dream-
January 9, 1560

Home was a one room house with sandy floors in the ancient, sun-baked land of Egypt for
Kujuurou. On the morning of Kujuurou's ninth birthday, he woke to the sound of his parents arguing
and he smiled at the sound. 'She's here!' He thought joyfully, though he didn't get up and pretended
to still be asleep. He liked to just listen to his mother talk. His mother's voice was like magic to
Kujuurou, he didn't get to hear it often since his mother didn't live with his father.

"Kujuurou isn't an Egyptian name, my love." Kujuurou's father had said. He has such a hard time
hard time fitting in with the other children and he has no friends. I don't want to hurt you, but it's
because of his appearance, his eyes and his to pale skin."

Kujuurou's mother spoke, her voice like satin. "Do you think a different name will let him fit in?"
She asked softly. "We can not change his skin or his eyes and I will not change his name. His name
is the only thing I can give him from my family. No. He will never be like anyone else."

Kujuurou felt himself wilt as he listened to the conversation. He knew he was different, but he hadn't
thought his parents worried so much about it. Were they disappointed in him?

"We chose to have a child." Kujuurou's mother continued. "I told you he would be different and we
agreed that we would love him despite the odds. Kujuurou is all that I have ever wished for in a
child, but I can't even be with him. You, at least, get to raise our son. I should go. The night grows
old and I can feel the daystar waking."

Hearing that, Kujuurou abandoned his play acting of sleeping and sat straight up. "Mother?!" He
called, but she was all ready gone. There was his father, standing by the door and looking out at the
still dark dawn.

"I'm sorry, Kuj. You just missed her. Don't worry, she'll be back tonight. She promised."

In the great city of Cairo, Kujuurou lived with his father in a modest home, no different than any of
the city. His father, a carpenter, earned them a comfortable living while Kujuurou helped the family
by herding goats for a farmer on the edge of the city.

Disappointed that he'd missed his mother, Kujuurou sighed, even as his father set out breakfast for
them. Kujuurou's first memory wasn't of his mother, as so many children's were. No, his first
memory was not a memory at all, but a dream. It was a dream that he would have over and over and
over for many years before he would understand it.

"I had that dream again, father." Kujuurou said as he dressed himself and started tying his sandals.
"I was apart of something. Like a family and everyone was like me, but not like me." He paused and
looked up to find his father looking at him in concern. "I dreamed there was a circle and it was
spinning and spinning and I was apart of the circle." He smiled despite his father's worried face. "I
felt like I was home."

"You've been listening to the storytellers to much, my little one." Kujuurou's father laughed uneasily
as if he was trying to convince himself more than his son. "You are home, why would you dream of
someplace else?"

"I don't know, father. But if felt like I was supposed to be there and that there are people waiting for
me." Kujuurou sat on the bench at their family's table as he stared at his fingernails. They were blue,
they'd always been blue. Not like the painted women or the eunuchs that he's seen in the markets
occasionally. It was more like the blue of someone who was cold. He's always been cold. Even in the
high midday sun, where his skin would burn in just a few minutes, Kujuurou just couldn't get warm.

"Don't get lost in dreams, son." Kujuurou's father smiled at him. "There will be many wondrous
things for you in life, just be patient. Now, why don't you get your chores done early so you can
spend as much time with your mother as possible when she comes back tonight?" The beaming
smile his father couldn't hold back was the proof that no matter the reason that while Kujuurou's
mother didn't live with them that his father still loved her with all of his life. "She'll be here as soon
as she can, so I want you home early, understand?"

"Yes, father." It wouldn't be a hard order to obey. Kujuurou was only ten so he spent most of his
day in the fields, tending the herd of goats for one of their neighbors. He had no friends to speak of,
for his strange looks, his weak nature, and the fact that few people had ever seen his mother. But
Kujuurou didn't care. His father was very loving and Kujuurou actually liked being alone with the
animals all day. It saved him from the stares of the other children who seemed to love to stare at him.

They went about their normal, daily lives and Kujuurou found himself in the fields near the Nile.
Lush from the yearly floods, the grasses were tall and the goats sedately grazed, giving Kujuurou
time to think. He took up his usual spot, a small hill overlooking the flock where he could sit in the
shade of a tree. He pulled the hood of his cloak over his face to shield him from the unmercifully
bright sun. That was part of the reason that Kujuurou had no friends, it was well known that he was
frail and that the sun made him weak. It wasn't so bad at night, but during the day he couldn't run or
play in the sunlight the way everyone else did. He moved around in a kind of dull-eyed lethargy with
little energy to do anything. He was subject to fainting spells if he tried to exert any energy and when
he didn't have to watch the herd, Kujuurou kept himself inside his home.

It didn't make for a very healthy social life.

One small goat kid sat next to Kujuurou and he stroked its neck. "Well, at least I have you guys,
huh?" Of course it didn't help to cheer him up that Kujuurou knew these goats would be slaughtered
in a few months.

As the day passed and the sun rose higher, Kujuurou tucked himself safely under the cloak his
mother had given him. It was useful and beautiful, a fine dark blue color, but it was another thing
that set him apart from everyone else. No one in Cairo wore such things as the heavy hooded cloaks.
His pale skin, so sensitive to light and easy to burn, was another things that set him apart from the
dark skinned Egyptians.

It was like this that Kujuurou fell into a doze, still awake, but not really paying attention to the
world around him lazily. He was like this, almost half asleep, when he felt a rough, wet tongue lap
at his cheek and he looked up.

"Hello, Lightfoot." He smiled at the little wolf pup and patted her head. "I missed you." This little
cub was the only friend he had, really.

-I missed thee, also.- She said, happily climbing into his lap. -Shall I watch thine goats while thee
rests?- It wouldn't be the first time Lightfoot had helped to watch the goats while he hid from the
sun.

"Thank you." Kujuurou replied as she settled into her place on his lap. It was like this everyday. She
would come and they'd talk for a while. She'd let him take a nap while she kept the goats from
going to far and then they'd part company at the end of the day when he went home. For some
reason, Kujuurou never thought it odd that he could talk to a wolf. It just seemed natural.





Returning home later, Kujuurou went through the city as quickly as he could, which wasn't very
quickly considering the injuries he'd just gotten. The sun had just set, making Kujuurou feel slightly
stronger, and he knew his mother would be coming soon. She always came just after dark. It should
have been a happy day, but life rarely worked out the way one expected or hoped it would. 'If I
wasn't so different...' Kujuurou thought darkly, limping as he went. 'I wonder what I would be like if
I wasn't so different.' But he was different.

"Pale slug, creeping around the night!"

"White as a pig's ear!"

"Ugly, weak thing!"

Kujuurou shook his head to get rid of the words they'd called him. 'They' being the boys, who'd met
him on his way home and, after a short fight, left him in the street, hurt and bleeding. It wasn't
uncommon, but Kujuurou really didn't want to go through this today of all days. He didn't want his
mother to see him as weak.

"Kuj-chan? Is that you?"

At his home's doorway, Kujuurou couldn't hold back the smile, despite his bleeding mouth.
"Mother!" He cried, rushing into her arms. Kujuurou' mother looked very much like him. Her hair,
though much longer than his, was thick, dark, and wild. Her skin was almost as white as bone and
her long fingers were gracefully slender. "I missed you so much, mother!"

She, of course, noticed his wounds. "My dear Kuj-chan, what's happened to you?" She asked,
looking at his swelling mouth and eye worriedly. She bent down and kissed his forehead. "Have you
been getting into fights? Boys do that quite often, I've noticed. You really shouldn't, you know." She
patted his head and smiled angelically. "You'll manage to hurt yourself."

Kujuurou stood as tall as he could, though while he was almost as tall as his father's shoulders, his
mother was far taller. "I'm not hurt, mother. It's just a little blood."

"Yes." She answered, wiping his bloody lip with her fingers. "Just a little blood, isn't it?" With a
strange look in her eyes, Kujuurou's mother lifted her fingers to her mouth and opened her mouth.
Kujuurou stared, puzzled about this strange behavior, but his mother quickly lowered her hand and
wiped it on a rag before using the rag to clean Kujuurou's face. "Where's your father, dear?"

Kujuurou frowned, his mother's strange behavior all ready forgotten. "I thought he'd be here, mother.
He was very excited that you were coming tonight."

She straightened up. "Well, he's probably gone into Cairo for business. Why don't you set up some
dinner for us and I'll go fetch him? We'll be right back." She was still smiling as she pulled her hood
up before leaving the house.




Kujuurou fell asleep waiting for his parents to come home. The dinner he'd painstakingly made went
cold as he waited and he fell asleep on his father's bed, but still his parents didn't come. He tried not
to worry, but his father had never stayed away all night and his mother said she'd be right back.

When he woke, it was still dark, but the lightening sky told Kujuurou it would soon be dawn and his
parents still hadn't come home. 'I'll just go out and look for them.' But before Kujuurou had gone
five steps out of his home when he heard the noise. It was a loud, thunderous roar of a crowd and
coming from the middle of the village. Curious about why everyone would be awake so late at night,
Kujuurou began to make his way to the noise.

Everyone was there and Kujuurou, not at ease in large crowds of people, kept himself at the edge of
the wildly cheering crowd and thought that there must be a festival or something going on. People
were holding torches up to light the night and Kujuurou could even see the white robed priests of Ra
moving amongst the crowd of people, as if they were looking for someone.

A hand slapped over his mouth and Kujuurou was roughly pulled off his feet. He struggled, but it
did no good. Whoever had grabbed him was incredibly strong and even when he bit the hand over
his mouth; the person didn't release him until he was taken into a side alley, out of sight of the
crowd. The person whispered into his ear,

"Be quiet, my son."

Kujuurou moved his head to look up at the person holding him and saw his mother, looking at him
with anguished eyes and red tinted tears running down her face. Very slowly, she released him, but
kept her hands on him.

"You must be quiet, Kuj-chan. We're in a great deal of danger."

Kujuurou had no idea what was going on, but he could see that his mother was upset. She looked
like she'd been crying. "Where's father?" He asked, thinking that his father must be nearby. "Did he
get hurt?" Maybe that was why she was crying.

Kujuurou's mother bit her lip, her pale blue eyes shifting side to side. "Your father won't be coming,
my dear. It isn't safe for us to stay here any longer, we must leave." She pulled him up against her
and hugged him tightly. "Please, don't be afraid, no matter what happens. I love you so very much,
Kuj-chan. I'll never let anything happen to you for as long as I live."

"What's going on?" Kujuurou asked, getting frightened, despite what his mother said. "I don't
understand."

"I'll explain it all later, but we have to leave now before they find us." She looked around wearily, as
if afraid to be seen. "I have to do something and I know it's going to be a little...well...strange. But I
won't let you get hurt." She pulled him close again. "Put your arms around me, Kuj-chan, and hang
on tightly." The noise of the nearby crowd grew even louder and she pulled him into her arms.
"Quickly!"

The next thing Kujuurou knew was the rush of warm air against his face and the feeling of the
ground vanishing under his feet. He looked down to where the ground should have been, but all he
saw was the terrifying sight of hundreds of people in a mad frenzy charging towards his home and,
behind them, a hastily erected gallows with a body still swinging.

"Don't look." Kujuurou felt his mother put one hand on the back of his head and push his face into
her shoulder. "Please, don't look."





Kujuurou was tired after so many weeks of hard, slow travel. His mother would travel only at night
and she kept telling him that they had so far to go. From Kujuurou's desert home to a land filled with
trees and mountains and life. Soon, the few people they met started to speak in a different language
and Kujuurou was dependent on his mother to tell him what was going on. She never did tell him
how she could fly or where they were going. She avoided the subject of his father desperately and
Kujuurou found himself completely lost, even with his now constantly depressed mother. In the back
of his mind, Kujuurou knew that something horrible had happened to his father, but he refused to
admit it, even to himself.

It was like walking into a dream world. Kujuurou's mother had to buy him new clothes so he would
fit in a little better though, sadly, even wearing more clothes didn't help him to feel warmer. They
continued traveling though the forests and over several mountains until they came to a stone
building. It was huge, but built in such a secluded area that there wasn't even a road for miles.

"It's time for you meet your grandsire, Kujuurou." His mother told him when they entered the large
house.

"You mean my grandfather?" Kujuurou tugged at the collar of his new, restrictive shirt, still not
used to wearing so much clothes.

"No, dear. Your grandfather was your father's father." She gave him a sad smile, the first one in a
long time. "The person you're going to meet is my sire. You be good and respectful, all right? Just
remember, never let yourself be alone in this house without me."

The house was nearly empty, but as soon as they walked in, Kujuurou could feel an itch at the back
of his mind. He wasn't sure what it meant, but every time they'd meet someone in the long hallways,
the itch would get stronger and as soon as they walked away from the person, the itch would get
weaker.

"Mother..."

"Hush. I'll explain in a moment. Your grandsire wanted to meet you before I told you anything." She
seemed nervous and held his hand, but it seemed like she was trying to comfort herself rather than
him.

Eventually, after passing a lot of people who stared at him with strangely hungry smile, they came to
a door. It was a very ordinary wooden door with nothing special marking it.

"Come in, Miko." A voice from behind the door called.

Inside the room was a library, a whole room overflowing with books and a high-backed chair with a
boy no older than Kujuurou sitting in it. He was as pale as Kujuurou's mother and had brown,
straight hair that fell to his shoulders. The boy was dressed in robes of bright colors and when they
entered he set down the large book he had been reading. "It's been a long time, Miko, my dove."

Kujuurou's mother never let go of his hand, pulling him along as she went to the other boy and
kissed his cheek. "I've missed you, sire."

"And I've missed you, my dove."

For some reason it offended Kujuurou to hear anyone, let alone this kid, talking to his mother in
such a familiar manner. No one but his father was allowed to do that.

The other boy looked at Kujuurou, carefully running his eyes up and down Kujuurou before
meeting his eyes. "Miko has told me much about you, Kujuurou. I was sorry to hear about your
father. I know how Miko cared deeply for him." He stood up and embraced Kujuurou. "Know that
you are welcome in my home, Kujuurou, whenever you need a safe haven."

Kujuurou didn't like being hugged by this other boy. There was something strange in his eyes.
"You?" Kujuurou asked when the other boy pulled away. "You're my grandsire?"

"Do you find that so hard to believe? Surely you know that you're different than the people you've
grown up around." The boy went back to his chair and sat down. "I am Abraham and, yes, I am your
mother's sire. I created her with all my love." He smiled at her fondly. "I'm not surprised that she
hasn't told you earlier, though I am disappointed you didn't bring him to visit me earlier, Miko." He
turned to her, obviously expecting an explanation.

To Kujuurou's surprise, his mother went down on her knees before Abraham. "I wanted him to have
as normal a life as possible." She said.

"How normal was it for him?" Abraham cupped her face in his small hands. "You let him be raised
as a motherless child in a land where the sun rules all. He couldn't possibly look less like his father's
dark skinned people and his resistance to the sun is not complete. He's not yet tasted life as we know
it and," He cast a glance at Kujuurou. "Look at him. He's so fragile, he'll break in the slightest
breeze. You should have brought him home sooner. Why didn't you?"

She raised her chin proudly. "Because he and his father would not have been safe here. I'm not
strong enough to protect them both all the time."

"You don't trust me?"

"I do not trust our people."

"I never asked you to bring his father with you."

"I wouldn't take Anubis from his father." She declared. "I loved my Abdu far to much to take his son
from him."

"Yes." Abraham took his hands away from her face. "I know. I saw that when you came to me and
told me you were pregnant." He gave a bitter sort of laugh. "I never imagined such an impossible
feat by one of my own children." His eyes drifted to Kujuurou who still stood in silent confusion.
"You have a question?"

"You...you're really my mothers sire?" Kujuurou just couldn't figure that one out.

Abraham nodded solemnly. "I...er...created your mother nearly two hundred years ago."

"Two...?" Kujuurou simply couldn't believe that, but when he looked at his mother he saw that she
was very serious.

"It's true." She told him. "I wanted to wait to tell you until you were older, but...I suppose there's no
other choice." She took a deep breath. "Kuj-chan, I'm a vampire." She watched his face intently, but
he wasn't sure why. Did she expect him to hate her for this little confession?

But Kujuurou had a more pressing issue than his mother's diet. "Mother, what happened to father?
You never told me."

She seemed reassured that he hadn't run from her screaming, but his question almost made her wilt..
"The people of Cairo somehow found out what I am and they decided to punish your father because
of me." Her strength finally giving out and she wailed, with red tinted tears running down her face,
"Oh, Kujuurou! It's all my fault! They killed your father!"

Kujuurou ran to his mother, but not before Abraham wrapped his arms around her and began
whispering comfortingly to her. "Shhh. Everything will be all right. I'm here, my dove. I'll make
everything all right." Abraham didn't stop talking to her, even when Kujuurou was putting his own
arms around his mother. Finally, when their words didn't work to soothe her pain, Abraham sighed
heavily. With a resigned look, he passed one hand over her eyes and instantly Kujuurou's mother fell
asleep, slumping into his arms.

"What did you do?!" Kujuurou demanded, frightened and confused. 'Father can't be dead! He just
can't be!' But there was no other reason his mother would have taken him away from his home and
Kujuurou had seen the gallows with the hanged man still swinging. "What did you do to my
mother?"

"She needs to sleep for a little while." Abraham picked up Kujuurou's mother with strength he
shouldn't have and carried her out of the room. Kujuurou wasn't about to let anyone just wander off
with his mother's body, so he followed, feeling more than a little useless. Abraham took Kujuurou's
mother just across the hall and set her down on a bed before covering her with a warm blanket. This
room was obviously a lady's room, filled with fine clothes and bottles of perfume on a writing desk.
"Your mother is feeling so much pain that she wants to die, right now. You don't want that, do you?"

Kujuurou glared at Abraham. "Of course not!"

"Then she will sleep until the pain passes." Abraham brushed his fingers through Kujuurou's
mother's hair and climbed up on the bed to sit beside her. "I will not have my child hurt by her love
for a mortal." Finally, he fixed his eyes on Kujuurou and seemed to consider him. "You are my
charge now, Kujuurou. There are something's that you are going to need to learn, now that you've
come to stay with us."

"Like what?" Kujuurou didn't want to look at Abraham. He just wanted everything to like it was
before. He didn't want to live with this kid who put his mother to sleep without even trying.

"Open your mouth." Kujuurou frowned and wanted to disobey. He really wanted to, but there was
something terrible in Abraham's dark eyes. It was terrifying the way that Abraham was looking at
him suddenly. Nothing that Kujuurou could put his finger on, but all the same it make him feel like
he should be falling on his knees to do what Abraham told him to do.

Without a word, Kujuurou opened his mouth and let Abraham peer inside. One small finger poked
inside Kujuurou's mouth and he had a sudden desire to bite Abraham's finger.

"Don't do it." Abraham warned, as if he knew what Kujuurou was thinking. "Ah, I see. You do have
fangs." He poked one of Kujuurou's large canines. "I take it you've never tasted blood before."

Kujuurou wasn't sure what to say about that so he stayed silent.

"I thought not." Abraham continued. "Well, we'll have to get that taken care of. If you start drinking
blood on a regular basis, you'll get much stronger and you'll be able to stand the sunlight even more
than you all ready can. You're lucky, you know. You'll have nearly all the strength of a vampire, yet
you'll be able to walk in the sunlight. You'll be able to eat real food and you'll probably have no
reaction at all to religious symbols." Abraham hopped off the bed and took Kujuurou's hand. "Come
on, Ku. It's time for your first lesson."

As Abraham led Kujuurou out of the bedroom where his mother lay in her deep sleep, he turned
slightly and smiled. In the dim light, Kujuurou was only mildly surprised to see to long, gleaming
fangs in Abraham's mouth. "It's time for you to feed, Ku."




End of dream-




Anubis woke abruptly, drenched in a cold sweat and panting with the memory of his crying mother
still fresh in his mind's eye.

'Damn!' He cursed to himself, letting his head slump back on the pillow. 'I hate that dream.' It had
been a pivotal moment in Anubis' life, the meeting with his grandsire. It wasn't a happy turn, either.
His grandsire had shown Anubis every courtesy, giving him a large room in the manor house,
teaching him how to read and write in several languages, as well as teaching Anubis to play a lute.
He'd had fine clothes and the best Abraham's limitless money could buy. It was also his grandsire,
though, who taught Anubis to kill and how to feed to increase his strength.

It had been necessary, Anubis realized that later, but for a nine-year-old killing was always
traumatic.

Trying to sit up, Anubis found an unpleasant surprise when he discovered he was chained to the bed
he was laying on. "What the Hell?" He yelled furiously. Anubis pulled at the chains, but he wasn't
able to break them. "Rajura, you ass!" He screamed at the top of his lungs, suddenly remembering
that it was Rajura who'd hit him and knocked him out. It was Rajura who'd taken him away from
Ryo and that wonderful warmth and away from that blonde who'd ensnared Ryo with a spell. "I'll
kill you!"

"No, you won't." Naaza was sitting on the edge of the window, looking at him with his usual
expression of boredom. "You were acting very foolishly and Rajura is doing this for your own good.
He said he'll let you up when you start thinking rationally."

"Naaza..."

"Don't even think of trying to persuade me, Anubis. I'm your guard for now and I am to make sure
you feed and that you don't escape. I know what you told Rajura about 'needing' that human," he
sneered the word as though it disgusted him just to say it. "And you won't find much sympathy from
me. Go back to sleep." He sat next to Anubis on the bed.

"No! Let me up from here before I..."

Naaza suddenly struck, biting Anubis on the arm and making him fall almost instantly asleep again.
The last thing Anubis saw was Kujuurou's almost smug expression at having hit his target. "I won't
let you hurt yourself, Anubis. We both know mortals will lead to nothing but pain."




Dream-





Home was a small cabin deep in the German forests, far from the manor Kujuurou had been raised
in and even further from his birthplace in Egypt. In these dark woods, Kujuurou had found a lone
hunter and killed him, draining the blood from him. It was easy now; something he'd grown
accustomed to with help from his mother and his grandsire. After killing the hunter, Kujuurou had
found the hunter's cabin and taken it over as his own. It was certainly smaller and had far less in the
way of material comforts, but it was more homelike in Kujuurou's way of thinking. It was small
with little more than a bed and a few chairs, but it reminded Kujuurou of his house in Egypt and his
father.

"You are welcome to stay." Abraham had told Kujuurou the day he was packing his few belongings
to leave. Abraham was sitting on the bed he'd let Kujuurou use and swinging his legs like any
human child would do, but there was the eternal seriousness that marked Abraham. "I admit, I've
grown fond of you over the years." By now, while Abraham still looked like a young child,
Kujuurou had become a young man of twenty-five, though he still looked fifteen. Apparently, he
still aged, just slower than normal humans did.

Kujuurou wasn't changing his mind, though. "I'm not very comfortable here, grandsire. I think it's
time I went out in the world and traveled a bit. Besides," He added with a bit of a rueful grin, "I
think some of your clan are starting to look at me like a side of beef and I don't care to be the main
course of tomorrow night's dinner."

"I would not allow them to harm you, Ku."

"I don't like they way they look at me." There had always been something in the eyes of the
full-blooded vampires of Abraham's clan that put Kujuurou on edge. A deep hunger like nothing
he'd ever seen before.

Abraham shifted slightly and crossed his legs on Kujuurou's bed. "Their interest in you is only
natural, you know. You are one of a very rare breed. You are dhampire, a half-blood." He got onto
all fours and crawled across Kujuurou's bed until he was close enough to take Kujuurou's hand. He
brought the now large hand to his face and sniffed it before giving it a soft lick. "I can almost taste
your blood and even the lesser of my clan can smell you. You are different from us and different
from humans. It's that difference that make you so...attractive, I suppose. There are others like you,
Ku, but I could count their number on one hand." Abraham gave Kujuurou a pull, making him sit
on the bed, and sat on Kujuurou's lap. With his free hand, he reached up and stroked Kujuurou's
cheeks. "You'll have to start shaving soon, Ku. I think I don't like you." His eyes closed, though he
was still petting Kukuurou's face. "You'll leave me and grow old and you'll die in a few short years.
You'll live longer than any pure human could, but still, you will age and die." One of Abraham's
petting hands moved up and drew one finger up and down Kujuurou's earlobe. "I don't want you to
leave."

Kujuurou had long since gotten used to the fact that his grandsire like to touch him. Abraham liked
to touch everyone and could often be found sitting between two or more of his clan members, letting
them kiss or just cuddle with him. Kujuurou had even seen his mother once or twice playing such
love games with the child-like vampire. But Abraham seemed to have a particular preference for
spending time with Kujuurou. Kujuurou didn't know why, he knew he wasn't attractive and he
wasn't especially smart. It made him more than a little uncomfortable having this person with the
body of a child saying such things to him.

Abraham had never hurt Kujuurou and had never tried to do anything more than to give him a
chaste kiss on the cheek, but Kujuurou knew it wouldn't last long. Abraham was getting more and
more bold with his touches and his words as the weeks passed and Kujuurou had learned not to go
against what his grandsire wished. In fact, the only way Kujuurou was going to get away from the
manor was with Abraham's permission.

Don't get him wrong, Kujuurou was grateful for the safety Abraham had given him all these years
and for the home and education and, in a way, he did love his grandsire. But...the lump that was
growing in his stomach told Kujuurou he should get away from his grandsire, at least for a little
while.

"I just feel...I feel caged here." Kujuurou admitted. "I'm not safe unless I'm with you or mother and,
well..."

"Now that you are nearly adult, you want to test your independence?" Abraham pulled away a little
and looked deeply into Kujuurou's eyes. "That seems to be natural for young adult mortals. I was
never given the chance to experience that part of growing up, myself, but I can understand it."
Abraham jumped off Kujuurou's lap with a short hop and landed on the stone floor with a soft pad of
his bare feet. "If you are intent on leaving me, then I will have you say a proper farewell to your
mother." He put his hands behind his back and began to pace back and forth in front of Kujuurou. "I
don't want you doing something insensitive like leaving her a note while you sneak off in the middle
of the day. However, you shouldn't tell the others of the clan that you're leaving my protection." He
quickly reassured Kujuurou, "You always have my protection, of course, but it will be almost
impossible for me to guard you if you're off wandering. You will have to keep a low profile, not
only from mortals, but also from vampires. As I just said, your blood is considered a delicacy. Also,
you must continue to feed on blood to keep up your strength. Regular food won't hurt you, but it
doesn't give you much in the way of nutrients."

Kujuurou nodded obediently. "Don't worry, I'll protect myself."

Abraham fixed him with a gaze that made Kujuurou swallow hard. There was a terrible possessive
quality about that look. "Yes, you will. I won't forgive you if you're careless and get yourself killed."
He again came up to Kujuurou and put his hands on Kujuurou's knees. "You will come back to me,
Ku."




Home was a one-room cabin built on the side of a mountain in Germany. It was small and dark,
with heavy curtains to keep out the uncomfortable light. Unlike his full blood kin, Kujuurou could
easily survive the sunlight. It was uncomfortable and often painful, but he would live. However,
giving a choice, he would always choose the darkness over the light. So the curtains hung over the
windows of his stolen cabin while Kujuurou slept the day away. He'd gotten into that habit at his
grandsire's home where everyone slept during the day out of necessity. His mother had stayed at her
sire's home, but she would visit him occasionally. The pain of her husband's death weighed heavily
on Kujuurou's mother, though, and she'd spent years in a depression that Abraham was still trying to
bring her out of. She just didn't have the strength to go anywhere lately.

It was years after leaving the safety of Abraham's house that Kujuurou met the stranger.

Like an ivory beacon in the darkness, the man stood outside Kujuurou's home, leaning causally
against a large tree when Kujuurou woke and Kujuurou was instantly suspicious. The man was
unlike anyone Kujuurou had ever seen with the long white hair of an old man pulled into a high
topknot, except for a few strands that hung down on either side of his face. He wore several layers of
a complex looking robe made of brightly colored silks, a kind of style that Kujuurou had never seen
before. The robes were held together at the man's waist by a pale purple sash that seemed to only
barely hold everything together. But this was no old man. His skin was nearly as pale as Kujuurou's
and, despite the eye patch that made him look like some common brigand, his face was almost
surreally beautiful. One intensely blue eye watching.

"So," The strange said in a voice that was barely more than a whisper. "You are the one."

Kujuurou closed the door of his cabin behind him and kept his eyes on the stranger. Since living
with his grandsire, Kujuurou had learned to use his enhanced senses and had discovered how much
more powerful he was than mere humans, though not as powerful as his vampire kin. Right now, his
sense of smell and sight was telling Kujuurou that this was a man, a normal, ordinary human male.
But there was something that whispered deep inside him, telling him that this was no human, that
this man was special and powerful. He reminded Kujuurou of a long ago dream.

"Who are you? What do you mean, 'the one'?" Kujuurou asked warily. Kujuurou didn't like
strangers, especially since he couldn't seem to tell exactly what this person was. If he was human,
Kujuurou would have to kill him to preserve his privacy. If he was kin, a vampire, it would be more
dangerous. This one could be a high ranking elder, like Abraham, or just some fledgling who'd
stumbled across Kujuurou by accident. However, if Abraham was right, the kin could smell
Kujuurou's half-breed blood. Whoever this man was, he was a danger.

The stranger, who looked to be only a few years older than Kujuurou's physical age of about
seventeen, smiled at Kujuurou. It was a devilish smile filled with, well not evil, but mischief. He was
dressed far to finely to be out in the forest, so far from civilization, with his elegant robes that looked
like he'd lazily put them on. It was almost laughable how out of place the stranger looked. Even his
feet were bare, Kujuurou could see his toes sticking out from under his long robes.

"I am called Rajura." Rajura's voice was deeper that Kujuurou had thought it would be. Rajura was
so small, almost delicate looking, that Kujuurou had rather been expecting the voice of a young boy.

'He can't be human.' Kujuurou decided at last as he began to circle the man. 'There's something
different about him and I just can't put my finger on it. He doesn't smell like kin, exactly.' Long ago,
Abraham had taught Kujuurou how to touch a human's mind and how to influence it. It was a useful
skill and Kujuurou turned out to be quite good at it, despite his half-human blood. While keeping his
eyes on Rajura, Kujuurou opened his mind and reached out for Rajura.

Rajura smirked and brushed away Kujuurou's mind's touch as easily as swatting a fly. "This will be
easier than I'd thought, perhaps." For the first time since Kujuurou had walked out of his home,
Rajura began to move. Slowly and in an almost lazy manner, just sort of strolling as Kujuurou
circled him. It wasn't a lazy stroll though, Kujuurou knew. Rajura was watching him and judging
something. "You have strength, but little skill. Do you fight?"

Kujuurou was taken aback by the question. Fight? "When I must. I've more than enough strength to
protect myself."

"You're cautious. That's a good start." Rajura said approvingly. "I didn't mean self-defense, though.
Have you been trained to fight? Do you have a weapon."

"I can use a sword." Kujuurou lied. He'd never used a weapon in his life, other than his own hands,
but he didn't want to let it out that he'd never been formally trained in any kind of fighting, though he
doubted this small man could pose any physical threat to him.

"As I thought." Rajura didn't seem pleased by this and he shook his head, making his hair bob
behind him. "You've never trained. Still, it's no great loss. I am well able to train you. You'll have to
choose a weapon to your liking, though." Rajura's smiled grew sly. "You may find that learning a
weapon will come in handy soon. I foresee much pain in your future if you remain without
weapons." There was an irritating smirk as he said this.

"Foresee?" Kujuurou gave a dark chuckle. "Do you believe in such children's fables as fate and
destiny?"

"Don't you?" Rajura reached up and plucked a leaf off the tree he was standing under. For some
reason the veins of the leaf seemed to fascinate him and he traced them with his long white fingers.
"I suppose that means you don't want to know about the arrow that's about to be shot into your
back."

Kujuurou's eyes widened and he was just considering whether or not to turn around and check to see
if Rajura were telling the truth or not, when he felt a shocking pain in the center of his chest. Very
slowly, Kujuurou looked down and found the bloody head of an arrow protruding from his chest.
'Wood.' The thought came at him unbidden and Kujuurou knew he was as good as dead. The wood
hadn't pierced his heart or he'd be dead now. His vampire blood would make sure of that. But the
arrow had opened up a wound big enough in his chest that Kujuurou could see his own blood
pouring down and landing in a puddle at his feet.

Kujuurou opened his mouth to say something, but for the life of him, he couldn't think of anything
to say when he looked at Rajura's unconcerned face. Blood poured out of Kujuurou's open mouth,
but Rajura only said,

"That'll take some time to heal."

He felt suddenly light headed and sank down to one knee just as a blur of tawny fur virtually flew
over his head. There was a snarl and a person's frightened cry that was cut short by a tearing sound.
Kujuurou didn't have the strength to turn around and see what was happening, but he did watch
Rajura's surprised face.

"My," Rajura said, sounding amused. "I didn't know you had a defender."

Kujuurou collapsed to his hands and knees, watching his own blood collect in a puddle under him.
Strangely, he couldn't smell his own blood. How odd.

A rough, wet tongue lapped at Kujuurou's face and he turned his head to see familiar brown eyes
looking at him. -Thou art injured, my brother.-

Lightfoot! He wanted to say something, anything to her. He hadn't seen her in so many years and
now she was a full grown wolf bitch, but he would recognize those eyes anywhere. The world grew
dark around him, but Kujuurou didn't want to give in. Whoever had shot at him was dead, by the
blood on Lightfoot's muzzle, but Rajura was still standing there.

'Don't worry.'

Kujuurou didn't question the voice. It was unfamiliar, but Kujuurou knew it. He felt like he'd
always known it. It wasn't Lightfoot or Rajura, but Kujuurou let the voice pull him down into the
darkness. 'Who are you?' He asked.

'I am you. We are Yami."


End dream-


Anubis woke again, this time groggy and feeling sick to his stomach, no doubt a result from Naaza's
venom. The dream wasn't so much a dream as a half-forgotten memory. Anubis closed his eyes
almost as soon as he'd opened them and wished he could forget the memory again. He didn't want to
remember that his mother was still deeply asleep and would stay that way until Abraham chose to
wake her. He didn't want to remember his murdered father or the cool, moonlit nights of the desert.
In the familiar darkeness of his chamber, even though he was still bound hand and foot, Anubis
turned his face as much into the thick blankets as he could and he cried. He hadn't cried for
centuries, but Anubis just couldn't stop himself this time.

Lightfoot rubbed her face against his scarred cheek. -Thou art healed? Thine one-eyed brother
struck thee and thine serpent brother bit thee.-
Anubis couldn't bring himself to answer, but the sound of her heart beat was, as it always was,
comforting as he let himself cry.



To be continued...


Lil' Demoness: Sniff! Poor Anubis! I thought we were going to start being nice to the boys and now
you're hurting the ma-sho?

ElgoW: Who told you we were going to be nice? You know that everyone wants to read torture!

Lil' Demoness: Come on! We've got the stage set for a wonderful romance...

ElgoW: Over my dead body!

Lil' Demoness: That can be arranged, my dear.