How dare Kotaro interfere in this. Was he the reason the girl had disappeared suddenly without a trace? Hyakuhei growled at the very thought of the Lycan being so near the Guardian Heart Crystal and the girl once again. Just because the girl had chosen him did not truly make her his. It had never been up to the girl⦠had he not learned his lesson in the past?
He had thought he had killed the vile creature along with Toya ages ago for daring to stand against him and trying to protect the girl from his possession. âNo matter,â Hyakuheiâs thoughts turned melancholy for a moment, âYou once turned Toya and the priestess against me Kotaro⦠and look what you made me do.â
A shadow of pity crossed his expression as he thought of the past. If Toya had not tried to become a guardian for the priestess and turn Kyou away from him⦠Toya would not be in the netherworld now but here, by his side, along with the beautiful Kyou. The one to blame for feeding Toya misguided lies was Kotaro.
Kotaro was also the one who had warned the priestess of his true intent. It was strange how time could warp even the lies that had been told.
âSo Kotaroâ¦â he whispered, ââ¦you have found her again.â
He was brought back to the present by the whimper that came from the boy crouched against the wall. He would need more than one new recruit to find his missing priestess if Kotaro was also with her. Hyakuhei wanted her and would have her.
He intended to claim her with the help of this imbecile who had thought to defile her. The corruption of such a creature was meant for him only. He had many plans for his priestess, after all⦠one thousand years was a long time to formulate new ways to torture someone.
Stepping back into the shadows, his eyes flashed as he nodded slightly to Yuuhi. "Make it painful. Torture his flesh, but do not kill him." He wanted this boy to suffer a little more for his actions so he would understand to never defy his new master and to never touch the girl again.
Yohji's head snapped back to the child and his eyes widened in real fear. The young boy was smiling at him but it wasn't a good smile, it was deadly. At the corners of his pale lips, the boy had long sharp fangs and his eyes were no longer black, but a dark red.
Those vacant eyes were an eerie contrast to his alabaster skin and hair. He looked like a child, but he was a soul-stealing demon in disguise and Yohji was truly afraid.
He watched in horror as his feet left the ground, and the boy sprung at him, dragging a terrified scream from his already parched throat. He never knew what hit him as teeth and claws ripped at his flesh, causing him pain like he had never imagined.
*****
Toya looked over at the girl slumped in the passenger seat beside him. "Damn it Kyoko, don't ever, ever scare the hell out of me like that again!" He knew she couldn't hear him but that didn't stop his relieved ranting. "You little idiot, you could have been killed or worse!" He turned toward the building where her apartment was located.
Even though an angry scowl remained in place, he picked her up as if she were the most precious gem on earth and carried her up the stairs. Finding her door locked, he cursed, pushing at the knob, hoping he didn't do too much damage as it made cracking sounds then opened.
"Well, she needed a better lock anyway with a murderer on the loose." Toya used that excuse, filing it away for when she woke up and yelled at him for breaking her door. "At least it's still on its hinges," he grumbled while entering the dimly lit apartment.
Standing still in the middle of her living room, he looked down at Kyoko and cocked an eyebrow, as he smelled alcohol mixed in with her natural scent.
âOh, I see how you are Kyoko.â He whispered, âNo fair⦠not even taking me drinking with you. What were you thinking?â
*****
Kyou fought to remain composed, which seemed to be happening a lot this evening. Unable to keep it bottled in, his fisted hand surged forward and hit the brick wall with such force that pieces of the masonry went flying in all directions. He gave an angry growl and his eyes tinted pink as he sniffed the air.
No one would take what belonged to him and not pay for their interference.
He immediately picked up Kyokoâs scent mixed with another that felt oddly familiar, and male. Kyou let out a snarl, pushing the feeling away as he levitated from the alleyway and followed the scent that had become imbedded in his very being.
His lone figure disappeared within the shadows as he hunted for his prey. He would find her and he would take her back from the thief who had stolen her. The muscles flexed in Kyouâs jaw in anger. How dare she speak his brotherâs name as if to confuse him⦠as if she had known him?
Somehow, the woman-child had cast a spell upon him, he was sure of it. He could feel her presence lingering on his fingertips and felt the desire to touch her skin once more. He needed to know how it was that she was so pure and what the light was that emitted from her body.
Was it what Toya had been searching for? If so, then was this girl to blame for Toyaâs death? What did this all mean? He desired answers. That light had drawn him like a moth to a flame and now, he found, he couldn't just let her go. It was as if she had unknowingly called to him and he had no choice but to answer.
Kyou growled low in his throat as his eyes flashed red with blood. This girl was dangerous. He was not one to need or want, not for centuries, only to have vengeance. She would have to be handled carefully. He did not trust himself around her. She had somehow captured him and it angered him immensely that this girl had in some way, made him weak.
*****
Mumbling something about Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, Toya carried Kyoko to her bedroom and gently laid her down on the bed. Moving quickly back through the apartment to the front door, he locked it using the deadbolt since he had broken the regular lock.
âGood thing she only locked the handle,â he shrugged and looked around at the solitude of the apartment. It was a lot different from the deafening roar that had been at the nightclub. It was almost too quiet. Removing his shoes, he sighed. âWhat a night.â He let his shoulders relax for the first time all day as he silently padded back to where his Kyoko lay.
The moonlight streamed in the window casting an ethereal glow about her body. Toyaâs face softened as his gaze lingered on her face. Her lithe body lay on the bed with her hands half relaxed on either side of her head. She looked like an angel, so at peace and so oblivious to the danger that she could have, his hand fisted as he corrected the thought, almost was in. He had a good mind to shake her awake and scream some sense into her⦠but he wouldnât.
A frown etched Toyaâs face as he tried to think of how she could have ended up in the alleyway, alone, passed out but unharmed. Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, he decided to thank the guardians who watched over her⦠whoever they were.
For the rest of the night, Kyoko would be with him and safe. That was all that mattered.
A mischievous glint flickered in his eyes as he removed her shoes and pulled the covers up over her slumbering form. She will probably kill him tomorrow but⦠Toya crawled into bed and pulled her body flush against his.
Ordinarily, slightly dirty thoughts would fill his mind as they had many times when he was home alone. However, for some reason, those thoughts seemed wrong at the moment. There was something about laying here with her that seemed⦠innocent? He shook his head slightly and situated himself more comfortably against her.
Holding her tightly, he thanked whatever god was out there that she was safe and sound where she belonged. It felt so right to have her in his arms and he would relish it for now. In the morning it might prove to be life threatening but if he were to die, at least he would die happy.
Kyoko sighed in contentment, snuggling closer to the protective warmth that surrounded her body.
A soft smile graced