Moon Child (20 page)

“She’s playing you, Ash.”

“Of course. And while it makes me angry to no end, I understand why.”

Tristan sighed, not sure how he felt about the whole thing.

“But, I have decided. There is no point in fighting fate. Besides…” She sat up, leaning in closer. “I do not have to be a slave to it. My love for you may be fated, but it is real, the first real love I have felt since—” She stopped to bite into her lip and shake her head. “I will not walk away from our love. I will no longer fear a fate I cannot control.” 

Tristan tilted his head towards her. “Live in the moment, then?”

“Yes,” she whispered, from a breathless inch away. “Every moment.”

He sighed as their lips met in a light embrace. Wanting more, he reached up to grab her, but sensing his hunger, his need, she was already pushing herself over the tub. She may have felt human, but her instincts were still strong, especially when it came to lust.

The water sloshed over the sides as she settled herself on Tristan, straddling his waist. Her hands went to his chest and up to his neck to settle on his cheeks, his own digging into her hair, fisting the damp strands. She moaned into his mouth, forcing her tongue in. It surprised Tristan and he hesitated, his eyes slitting open to look into hers. She stared back, unwavering and unafraid. It was the first real kiss they’d shared. Even in France, when she let her hunger drive her into his arms, she never fully let herself go. But with her inhibition, Tristan knew there was still a firm line she wouldn’t cross.

Tristan’s lip held between her teeth, safely out fang’s way, Ash slowly pulled back. “No,” she said softly. “I still will not bite you, but I will fight to control my hunger and be with you.”

“You can’t read my mind right now, can you?” She still felt empty to him.

Her eyes darted away. “Not as of yet.” She looked back to him. “That woman will fix me or so help the Goddess I will show her how ruthless a long term non-practicing vampire can be when she decides to practice again.”

“You—you’re going to start feeding on people again?”

Seeing the worry, jealousy and fear in Tristan’s expression, Ash sighed, sitting up. “It is the only way I can see to keep you safe. As I am now, I am no better than a human. And I have realized, these few days like this, that I hate it. I want to be whole again. I see the error of my old way of thinking. I need to evolve and change or just give up and die.”

Tristan frowned. Ash’s sudden non-vampiric state sounded an awful lot like Yuki’s meddling again.

“I do not think this was Yukihime’s plan.”

“Seriously, how are you doing that?”

She smiled. “I can read your face. I have lived a very long time and have learned to read any nuance. Besides… you are so honest.”

“I hate lies.”

“Yes. I agree. Which is why I have so much to tell you. Right now, this very minute though… you were right, is not the time, but I fully intend to tell you everything I remember the moment we are free of bothersome guests again.”

Desmond
, he thought but then realized she might have meant the elf and pythia. Regardless, they all needed to go, not to mention Genoveva being at the top of the list. Tristan considered her a moment, wondering how much truth she was actually going to tell him and ended up sighing heavily. He lifted his hand between them. “Deal.”

She started at the odd gesture before smiling again, slipping her hand into his. It was a human gesture, shaking on an agreement. She was okay with playing human for a little longer. But she was more than ready to start being vampire again. In the very back of her mind though, the place she shoved things she didn’t want to think about, she wondered who was manipulating her into this life changing decision by spelling her like this. That it could be Yukihime in any form just didn’t seem plausible anymore.

For Ash to go back on human blood again was a huge decision, maybe one that she wouldn’t have otherwise made if she hadn’t realized how weak and pathetic she was. Even without the spell riding her, cutting off her motonō and seikonō powers, she was a weak creature, not befitting the name of vampire, the title of Master of Earth.

“Hey, you uh, you won’t kill those you feed from, right?”

Ash took her hand back, squelching a frown. “No. It is not necessary to kill to fulfill one’s hunger. But…” She licked her lips nervously. “It is a bonus pleasure for us. I am ashamed to admit I have tasted many deaths and the elation they give.”

Tristan shifted in the tub to sit up straighter, forcing Ash further down on his lap. “But Mamoru said you’ve never killed anyone voluntarily in your life.”

She flinched, having not realized that the man saw that when they’d had their little tryst more than a year ago. “Yes. That is the truth. Every life I took I was forced to do so. But that does not mean their deaths are any less my fault. That I had not enjoyed the taste of those lives even as I wept for their damned souls.”

“Just means I don’t have to kill you,” Tristan said with a smile. He meant is as a joke but Ash’s unblinking stare made his core shiver with the knowledge that she could easily kill those she fed from. It was infinitely harder for her to abstain of their deaths than to take them. It’s why fledglings killed so many in their early years.

She let out a huff, forcing herself to relax. “If I do lose sight of my values, I fully expect you to kill me.”

“Ash, I was just kidding.”

“I wasn’t.” Her eyes were sad when they looked into his. “Promise me that you will. If I lose all of my humanity, the morals by which I have to live by, that you will be the one to stop me. Please,” she added at his extreme hesitation to answer. “It is important to me that you do this for me.”

He shut his eyes. He knew that no matter what he’d never be able to do it. “I can’t promise something I don’t think I can do.”

“That is an honest answer… not the one I wanted, but honest.”

“Sorry,” he whispered.

Ash stood in a rush of water. It was getting cold again and Tristan felt warm enough that he was tired of being in the tub. “I will get your clothes.”

He nodded as she disappeared into the other room, dripping water behind her. With a groan he climbed out of the cooling water and nearly stumbled. His muscles ached in protest and he felt heavy. But overall, he was okay. And hungry as the smell of hot food found him. His stomach rumbled and he shuffled out of the bathroom.

The bedroom was warm and dark. A pile of wet clothes sat in the middle of the floor and a naked behind stuck up from behind the bed. Tristan smirked, getting a big eyeful as Ash rummaged around in the bag at her feet. With a huff she lifted the bag to the bed, turning and flinched when she saw Tristan standing in the doorway in just a towel.

He grinned big. “
Hello
, nurse.”

Ash flushed ever so slightly, a shy smile on her lips. “We are low on clothing.”

“I’ll say,” Tristan said as he went to her and took her into his arms. Letting go of the towel made it fall to the ground so that they were both standing there completely nude.

Feeling Tristan’s warm, damp flesh against hers, she let out a shaky breath of desire. “As tempting as the offer is right now, we cannot.” In fact, now would have been the perfect time to finally take that last, aching step in their relationship since Ash had no blood hunger. Maybe she could prolong forcing Chrysanthe to remove the spell—just a little bit longer. Not that she believed the child could help even a little bit.

“I know,” he said in a low, husky voice even as he lowered his face towards hers.

She didn’t resist his kiss, instead encouraging it with a little nudge of her hips against his. Holding her tightly against him, he started to rock them from side to side, a slow dance to music that existed only in Tristan’s head.

“You’re such a tease, you know that?” he whispered across her lips.

The hands that had slipped south of Tristan’s waist moved up again. “Sorry.”

He burst into laughter and flung them down on the bed. Lying on their sides, facing each other, he nuzzled Ash’s neck, still chuckling softly. “I was thinking, a simple solution to our problem might be to get a custom mouth guard…”

“What?” she snapped, jerking back enough so that she could look him in the eye.

“No,” he said chuckling again. “Not like the kind athletes use, but more like a retainer or like those clear braces tray things? You could have a bit of plastic molded to your teeth that fit like a glove to take the bite off your fangs.” Granted if she really wanted to break his skin, she still could, but the effort would have to be significant. The guard would certainly be a decent safeguard for those heated moments.

“That—” She blinked at him in shock.

“I know, right?”

Ash pulled the corner of her lip between her teeth. Could the solution be something so simple? By the Goddess, it was worth a try. She gave a little laugh, shutting her eyes and resting her forehead against his. “I feel a fool for not thinking of it before. And here I was looking to spells and tricks when all it took was someone with a modern frame of mind.”

He kissed her on the cheek. “It’s not like you’ve ever been to the dentist before. Hell, I think I’m more than overdue myself,” he said and then mumbled, “not that it really matters...” Never had a cavity or any other dentistry issues. 

“I can make an appointment for us both once we have the time.”

“Sooner than not, I hope,” Ash said with a coy little look.

Tristan laughed, hugging her. “My thoughts exactly.”

“Oi,” came the voice as the door opened. “Yew two aboot done? We’ve shite tae do!”

Ash signed, knowing Desmond was right and climbed off the bed to get dressed. She ended up in her last pair of pants, leather, and one of Tristan’s black undershirts. It was too large for her but the appeal of her wearing one of his shirts was enough to find the frumpy top sexy. Tucking the ends into her pants helped shape it. A quick comb through her hair and she was ready.

Tristan had only two pairs of jeans left, a long sleeve top and two more undershirts, one white, the other black. Not sure exactly what was going to happen next but having a pretty good idea, he opted to leave his last good shirt for another day, just going with the short sleeve under-tee, anticipating it’s ruin. The weapons though, they weren’t optional.

Silent, stoic, Ash lead the way into the main room. Desmond was lounging in the chair near the patio slider. Mamoru stood with his back to the small kitchenette, arms crossed over his chest as he closely watched the pythia and the elf sitting on the sofa. Chrysanthe looked nervous, unsettled. Silas, an ever vigilant guard at her side.

Desmond ignored the couple as they came further into the room, pretending like he didn’t care about anything but the drink in his hand. It was Mamoru that acknowledged Tristan first, straightening as he turned towards the pair.

“Tristan!” The man looked genuinely happy to see him.

Chrysanthe jumped to her feet, having only just noticed Tristan too. Silas didn’t even flinch, remaining the apathetic sentinel he was.

“How are you?” Mamoru asked, moving aside as Tristan went straight for the food on the table behind him.

“Still a little cold,” he admitted. “And hungry, but I’ll live.”

“Thank the Goddess,” Chrysanthe whispered and then jumped when Ash stomped up to her.

“This was your fault, witch!”

Tristan chuckled. According to what Mamoru had told him on the boat, the term was a huge insult. He stressed how important it was to never call pythia a witch, even in anger. Which is exactly what Ash had done.

The pythia bristled as Silas drew himself to his feet to stand closely behind her. “I was just doing what I was told, I didn’t bloody well know he’d fall into such dire trouble!”

Ash got close, close enough that Silas’s hand went straight for his sword. Then he scowled, dark look darting right to Desmond who was secretly grinning to himself as he fingered the handle of the sword resting at his side.

“Told by whom?” Ash asked with precise syllables.

She shook her head. “I can’t remember his name. Silas?”

The elf shook his head somberly.

Ash narrowed her eyes at the witch. “Do you remember what he looks like?”

Chrysanthe took in a breath, held it, looked at her companion and at his nod, collapsed on the sofa, letting out a puff of breath. “An old man. Confident, even-tempered, pensive… but not old-minded. Very modern in his thought process and still of his wits.”

She understood what Chrysanthe was saying, that the man wasn’t human, but not necessarily a pythia either. The shinwa and heikō as a whole tended to work on an older frame of mind, stuck in their old world ways. The vampire in particular too were resistant to change along with the elves and the shinigami. But the lycan, before they’d been hunted out of existence, and the fae tended to love modern times and the technology that it brought. Whatever he was, most likely he’d been spelled to hide it. He might not have even of been old or a man for all they knew.

“I call him Professor, but I don’t know why.”

Ash crooked an eyebrow at her. “You don’t know?”

“Oh dear, I mean that I feel as if I know him from somewhere, that when I look at him the name just rises out of the depths of my mind but I don’t know why.”