Feeling cold and vulnerable all the sudden, Tristan sat back from Mamoru. “She’s not a pythia,” he said again as if trying to convince himself. It was fact that the pythia were immune to vampire saliva. Ash was just a human turned vampire, nothing more.
Mamoru shrugged, sitting back on the sofa, looking out a nothing. “You have to admit,” Mamoru’s eyes flicked to him. “She is different.”
He couldn’t deny that there were things in her life that weren’t quite what they should have been. Like her lack of the two F’s, as Tristan liked to think of it. Vampires were known to go insane without a healthy, daily dose of blood and sex. But Ash, she’d lived on a blood substitute for the last, well, nearly twenty-five years now and with little to no sex, and she wasn’t insane. Not to mention the torture and starvation forced on her the three-hundred years before that, and the extended life of her kōmajutsu by way of jikininki.
Tristan wondered, under it all, what else she was hiding from him about herself. He realized that despite all they’d been through, he’d only just licked the surface of that pop and wondered how many more to get to the center, and if he’d live long enough to find out.
19: Sex and Candy
I DON’T feel so good,” Tristan mumbled from under his arm. They were crammed into a teeny tiny little suite. With the help of Mamoru’s vampiric charm they managed to get the vampires packed away in their trunk into a room on the ferry. The big box almost didn’t fit the tiny cabin. And with Mamoru taking up the padded bench the only place for Tristan was draped over the trunk like an old blanket. An old, nauseous, groggy, grumpy-ass blanket.
“Told you not to eat that second helping…” Mamoru muttered, sounding just as tired as Tristan felt.
Tristan let out a sigh. He didn’t think he felt sick because of the food he’d eaten, or the sway of the boat. It was more likely his growing apprehension. The few hours he slept were fretful and dissatisfying, full of confusing dreams he forgot the moment he opened his eyes. No, his sickness felt more ominous to him than simple ailments, he just couldn’t say why.
He grunted, swinging his legs out to get up. His head protested at the sudden movement and a little belch worked its way out of his throat.
“Mm, tzatziki.”
“Kimochi warui,” Mamoru whispered.
Tristan couldn’t even bring himself to chuckle at the man’s disgust as he turned to face Mamoru. The other man exchanged a look with him before shutting his eyes with a sigh.
“Where are you going?”
“Out on deck. Watch the sun set.” The vampires would be able to walk off the boat, he just didn’t want to see them climbing out of the trunk, not that they could so easily with him laying on it.
Mamoru was grumbling something about needing a few more minutes as Tristan shut the door behind him. The man told Tristan a lot about the vampire mostly, but little about himself. Regardless, Tristan was picking things up. Like that the man could read his thoughts, had fangs and enjoyed solids as much as liquids… And right now he was picking up that, while Mamoru could day walk just fine, it bothered him a little. The man seemed sluggish during the day and slept for most of it. Then again, that might have just been his normal schedule, to sleep during the day like the vampires did. It’d been Tristan’s routine the past few months anyway and with the constant shift in time zones he felt like he was never really well rested.
With a sigh, Tristan collapsed against the railing on the front deck. The air was cool, almost too cold and ridiculously clean. He took in a deep breath, filling himself completely with the fresh, albeit salty taste of the ocean. Somewhere deep below a swarm of mermaid followed the path of the ship, silently willing a weary traveler into the water. Men were smarter and less inclined to go with the mer-folk in these modern times, leaving the soulless fiends hungry and wanting. Most people didn’t even believe in their kind anymore. Hell, half the shinwa ignored or flat out didn’t believe in the water-bound creatures themselves.
Tristan watched the soft roll of the darkening waves, the horizon a bright spray of orange and pink off to the far distance. The morning hours were heavy with rain and the water was rough. Still, Tristan was sure that wasn’t why he felt sick now. It wasn’t like him to be sea sick.
Tristan flinched when a hand touched his back and brushed down to settle on his hip. He tried not to let Ash know she’d startled him but the look on her face said he failed. He sighed at her and muttered, “Mornin’.”
She let out a satisfied sigh, leaning in to rest her head on his bicep. He smiled, turning to look out over the water, chin resting wistfully on his folded arms.
“We’re almost there.”
She nodded, not saying anything.
“I was worried, you know,” he said softly, almost not loud enough to be heard over the moan of the boat.
Ash sighed, trying to hide a frown. After Innokentiy separated her from the others to have a moment to talk in private, they stowed themselves into his private travel trunk in a rented residence down the street. She had meant to return to Tristan but wouldn’t have made it back in time.
“I have something I need to talk to you about.”
Tristan didn’t like the sound of that and turned to give her his full attention.
“Innokentiy, he offered to give me something.”
“O-K…”
Behind them, Mamoru made a little noise to announce himself and Tristan sighed at the interruption, turning to put his back against the rail. Ash turned with him, still pressed into his side as if she were cold. But when her hand dipped down to feel over Tristan’s backside before settling into his back pocket, he knew she was just enjoying him, maybe even silently telling him whatever it was she needed to say wasn’t so bad.
“Innokentiy?” Tristan asked, not seeing the vampire.
“Uh,” Mamoru flushed slightly, a hand going to his neck. He was embarrassed but not because he’d been fed on but because he’d been refused. “He went to the dining room… for a bite to eat.”
Ash made a noise of understanding. They’d spent very little time with each other last night, but she learned much. Like the fact that Innokentiy didn’t hate Uruwashi the way most of the old ones did but he didn’t want anything physical to do with them at all. The fact that Innokentiy refused Mamoru’s blood wasn’t a surprise. And, surprisingly, she trusted the old vampire to be discrete without having to warn him against being reckless in Uruwashi company.
“Can I ask you something personal?”
Mamoru nodded when he realized Ash was talking to him. “Sure.”
“Who is your Master?”
The man frowned. “My mother, but she’s gone now.”
“I’m sorry,” she said softly really meaning it. “But I meant, who is the one who bit you? Your vampire Master…”
“Oh, Tristan didn’t tell you?”
She shrugged and then gave way to a goofy grin. “We hadn’t much time to talk alone since reunited.”
Mamoru harrumphed and muttered, “I’ll bet,” his eyes going to Tristan. The American was grinning stupid too and offered his own shrug. “Baudouin d’Ibelin, he went by Baldwin.”
“Balian’s brother,” Ash said sounding surprised. “But I thought, I heard Balian killed him.”
Mamoru nodded and turned away to find a seat. Most of the other passengers had retreated back to their rooms or cars in ready of disembarking. Tristan’s group had only themselves to worry about since the trunk was getting left behind. They could talk without worrying about too many people hearing something they didn’t need, or want to.
“He did. But I was bitten just days before.”
“I see.” Her expression shifted from surprised interest to uneasy worry. “That makes you the last of the House of Fire.”
“Wakarimashita,” Mamoru said plainly, trying to mask his emotions. “I believe that is why Chrysanthe wanted to kill me.”
“No,” Ash said in reverence, eyes staring off at nothing. “I believe her actions are more
tied to the one who manipulates fate to his will.”
The other man nodded. “I wondered that too. But, I can’t deny I’m a danger. I’ve hurt innocents.”
Tristan jumped into the conversation. “Not on purpose.”
“No, but it happened and I can’t take it back.”
Ash reached out and put a hand on Mamoru’s, surprising both of the men. “I mean to protect you, Mamoru. You are a good man and Tristan needs you. You would be a good Master for him to learn from.”
Tristan agreed but hated that it sounded like he was weak, then realized it wasn’t how she meant it.
“I hope so.” Mamoru sounded less convinced.
“I will protect you to the fullest of my abilities. I will protect you with my life, but understand, Tristan comes first. You are my friend, but he is my all.”
Mamoru stood and patted Tristan on the shoulder in passing. “As it should be.” He stopped at the railing, looking down into the water. “I could use good allies. I don’t know if I’m strong enough to kill Genoveva myself.”
“Nor I.” Ash went to stand near Mamoru. “But I believe the three of us can.”
“With my help, she won’t see another night.” The group turned to find Innokentiy standing a mere three feet back. None of them felt the vampire coming.
“Jesus,” Tristan said, surprised. “How do you do that?”
Innokentiy’s expression was full of teasing pride. “I can teach you.” His eyes went to Ash’s and she bristled at his sudden sly smirk. “Both of you, if you’d like.”
Tristan’s reaction was full of confusion but the other two understood what the Master vampire was saying. Ash was surprised, though, to discover that he meant to share his knowledge with not only her, but Tristan as well. He was up to something.
Ash licked her lips nervously, exchanging glances with Mamoru. “I agree only if it is how we discussed.”
Innokentiy smirked and took a step towards Ash. “Of course. I intend to honor your arrangement.”
“What are you talking about?”
Ash put a hand on Tristan’s arm. “This is what I was trying to say before. Innokentiy, he can teach me things, things that only the ancients know.”
The vampire smirked at the others and turned away to go sit on the nearby bench. Mamoru, he understood immediately what was going on and backed away, removing himself from the situation.
Ash looked nervous, but anxious as she turned to face Tristan, a hand resting against his chest. “I need you to be okay with it.”
“I don’t even know what you’re talking about or what it has to do with me.”
Ash shut her eyes for a moment, gathering her thoughts. “Innokentiy can teach me all the things he knows but it—the act is intimate.”
Tristan’s expression darkened as the truth set in. “You mean sex.”
“Yes—no. Not really.” She glanced at Innokentiy, smirking to himself as he pretended to not listen. “He can teach me without it, but I may still…” She cleared her throat, shifting uncomfortably.
Innokentiy turned with a grin full of flat, perfect teeth and put a hand up, the other over his heart. “I promise on my undead heart that I will not violate her. I will only touch her with an innocent hand with the sole purpose of teaching her. Any side effects associated with my teaching method shall not be blamed on me.”
The vampire had said it with a serious tone, but with laughter in his eyes. He wasn’t the same brooding man wanting to die that Tristan had met and he wondered what’d changed since then.
“Oh, don’t get me wrong,” the man said as he stood again, moving towards the couple. “I still wish to be put to rest once Genoveva has been taken care of, but being around Ash, even you Uruwashi, has revitalized me. There are dark things in this world but I’m not one of them.”
“What do you get out of teaching us?”
“Me,” Ash interjected quickly. “I will teach Tristan myself when the time comes.”
Again, making decisions for him. “Now wait a minute—” He stopped when he saw the fear in her eyes.
“Unless you feel up to having a belly full of vampire blood…” That wasn’t the real reason, but one enough that would dissuade him from readily saying yes, she hoped.
Tristan took a step back. “Uh, no. Not really.” He could wait until Ash decided to bite him. Maybe then he’d feel differently after he was turned, until then, the thought made his stomach turn more than it already was. So then, why did his mouth water?
Netty nodded as if he knew exactly what Tristan was feeling and turned away to go sit on the bench. Seated, looking comfortable and regal despite his tough appearance, he held out a hand. Ash gave Tristan one last glance and then to Mamoru who was now retreating to put some distance between them. Tristan wasn’t sure what was about to happen, but he wanted to be close for Ash’s sake.
He went to stand guard over the vampires, Ash now on the bench next to Innokentiy, both turned slightly to face one another, knees touching. Mamoru took up silent sentinel near the walkway that led back towards the stairs to go below deck.
Innokentiy shot Tristan a glance that made him tense. “This will also help you heal the last dead nerves in your hand,” he was saying to Ash. “Perhaps even return some of your abilities until we find the pythia to undo the curse.”
Tristan’s eyes widened. “It’s a curse?” Curses were super nasty, some even irreversible.
Ash gave him a tiny smile as if to say everything would be okay. Netty took her right hand into his and Ash tried to hide a shudder at his touch, both physical and metaphysical as his presence tried to overpower her own. Netty, sensing it, chuckled and fixed his eyes with hers when she looked up. With a nod and a smile he lifted her hand to kiss her knuckles, just a brush of lips.
Over them, Tristan shifted uncomfortably, clearing his throat. “We don’t have all night,” he grumped.
“No, but we have at least thirty minutes… It’s amazing how much can happen in such a short time.”
Tristan felt himself warm at that. Despite his sudden and foreign embarrassment he managed to still mouth off. “Forty minutes, thank you very much. Worth every second.”
Netty harrumphed at him, but was smiling that way that all men do when being lecherous.
“Can you get on with it already?”
Still smiling up at Tristan, Innokentiy raised Ash’s hand to his lips again. He opened her hand and when he had her finger poised over his lips, he finally looked at her. The words he spoke then weren’t in English or Japanese. Or any language that Tristan had heard before, but Ash nodded, her face slack with austerity. Something shifted between them in that soft moment and Innokentiy’s eyes lit with an inner fire.
The older Master bit into the tip of Ash’s finger, taking only the tiniest of tastes before giving her hand back to her. She let it rest in her lap, a tiny stream of blood coming from her punctured finger.
“That’s it?” Tristan asked when they just sat there, staring at each other.
It was Innokentiy who shot Tristan a dirty look, warning him to shut up.
“My love, please sit. You are making me anxious.”
He grumbled something about not being the only one who was anxious but sat down next to Ash. Her back was practically to him, so instead of sitting with his back to the bench and leaning to look around her, he turned, slightly spooning her to look around her shoulder. She stiffened but didn’t ask him to move away. He was close enough to breathe down her neck, literally, but she appreciated the intimacy of it. Of knowing he had her back no matter what.
Eyes heavily lidded and looking almost as if he were giving an offering to his god rather than another vampire, Innokentiy proudly bared his wrist to her. She hesitated, looking at the smooth, tan surface. Even with her motonō and seikonō stunted, she could feel the hum of his immense presence beating against her. His energy sizzled along her skin on the inside as well as out. It tickled through muscle fibers, making her tense and limp at the same time unt
il the weight of his presence penetrated her very bones and brushed up against her soul, making it quiver in awe and reverence, as he demanded fealty. Of course, the fact that he could just turn all of that intensity off with a mere thought until he was nothing more than a human was equally as impressive. He wanted her to feel him and no amount of pythia inference could change that.
“Thank you, Master,” she said in a husky voice before licking her lips and lifted his hand. Innokentiy’s flesh was as taught as dried leather under her lips. Unsure, her eyes flicked up to his. With his soft smile and an almost unperceivable nod, he encouraged her to continue. She took in a breath, tasting the salt in the air and the mustiness of Innokentiy’s clothes. They were much older than they looked, preserved well to look near new.
Her fangs slipped in slow, a small noise coming from her at how easy his seemingly stone-façade conceded to her intrusion. His blood was so rich, heady on her taste buds and better than any wine could ever taste. It was so thick she thought she might choke on it. The first swallow went down hot and she shut her eyes at the pure bliss of it, the comfort in familiarity.
And then everything changed.
Innokentiy let go of his safeguards and all at once the noise of hundreds of souls screamed out for her attention. She jerked trying to get away but a hand on the back of her head kept her fixed in place. She couldn’t move or open her eyes and whimpered at the helplessness she felt, overwhelmed utterly by the souls trapped in Innokentiy’s blood.
Take them, a voice said over the din. Bear witness to their plight.
I refuse.
Then know what I have done.
Ash’s scream never left her mouth as the pain and fear of the dead trampled upon her soul leaving an impression of loss and longing. She wanted to devour them all just to quiet their pain but there were too many. Every single one of them she knew Innokentiy had willingly killed. He wasn’t the monster that Malik was but he wanted Ash to know that even in his gentility with those he ate he was still a murderer. He was capable of killing without regret because it was the order of things.
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