Crimson Dreams

We were going to the river walk to end this once and for all. Hayden was stilled worried I was in a black out state and as soon as I fell asleep I wouldn't remember any of this. It had happened the last time I called both my sides to the surface. We had taken the same SUV that we had been taken to Pyro in. Drove to a local fast food place about two miles from the river walk and parked it. Ethan was still undergoing his change and for three nights he would be really and truly dead before rising to restart his life as vampire.

Hayden had told me that once Ethan rose a vampire and decided he didn't want the undead life then he would kill him. I hadn't argued because I knew it was the right thing to do but I had wanted to argue because Ethan was my friend and I didn't want to loose him. As we got out the SUV, Hayden came to me and wrapped his arms around me from behind.

"There's a powerful vampire down there and it isn't Raphael."

"Do you know who it is?"

"No. Do you feel him?"

"No and if I try to then he will feel me."

"Only one way to find out then isn't there?"

I nodded as he moved to my right side and put his left arm over my shoulders. He flexed his power just enough to for it to encircle me. He had already told me one of his abilities was power negation which was the power to hide his power and seem human. He could also do it for other vampires so long as they were touching him. His aura swirled in front of me and I reached my hand out to it. The colors of our aura swirled even faster as my hand went through it.

"Why hasn't anyone noticed that we have a claim to each other?" It had just occurred to me that no one considered us dating but rather me his student.

"I didn't think you would want anyone to know before your master knew." His answer was logical if Alex was really a master of me. Seriously I felt like we just worked together.

"Every one thinks I am a student Justice Hunter."

"Huntress my dear. I have first hand knowledge you are a woman."

"It's the twenty-first century, honey; I could have had a sex change."

He stopped mid step and I almost tripped with the abrupt change. The seriousness of his face made me smile as he pondered of whether or not I was born female and the ramifications of me having been born male. I waited patiently for his answer while watching the emotions play across his face. Finally he waved a hand in the air as if washing away some thought and started walking again.

"I fell in love with you the way you are and for you and not what's between your legs. Though if you decided to get one of mine sewed onto you than the bedroom would become very stale indeed."

"You would stay with me but not have sex with me?"

"Yes."

"That was a very good answer. You covered your ass from every angle on that one."

"It's my job."

"Was it a lie?"

"Does it taste of a lie?"

I shook my head and looked to the river walk entrance. We were less than a block from him and I sensed nothing not a vampire or a demon. Hayden said he had sensed a very powerful vampire but it wasn't Raphael. As we reached the gate I took a deep breath before climbing over. Hayden held my hand and made it look like he was helping me over the gate before jumping over it himself. He had actually held onto my hand so that anyone waiting to attack us wouldn't know it was us until we were ready.

We were walking hand in hand towards the river when the air behind me shifted slightly. Hayden let go of my hand and we both hit the ground before rolling away from each other. At the same time he pushed his aura into the man and sent him fifteen feet behind us. His power of concealment broke just as the man started to stand. From what little I could see of him he was six foot with his hair cut very close to his head until he looked almost bald. I felt Hayden's rush of power start to build as he prepared to attack the man again just as the man turned slightly towards the streetlight.

He was shirtless and the light fell upon his chest in a strange orange glow. There was a spot of blue and red along his chest with letters under it. His turn had brought another man out of the woods and I had one of those seconds where the time stands still and you have all the time in the world but in reality there is no time at all. With everything I had I flung myself towards the man under the streetlight.

"Hayden No!"

Hayden couldn't stop himself and I closed my eyes as I stood in front of the man. I felt Hayden's shot graze my arm before turning into a fine mist of his aura and returning to him. I let go of the air I had been holding and fell into Polo’s arms. He caught me before pulling me into his arms and cradling me to his chest.

"You idiot. You could have gotten yourself killed." His voice was angry but more relieved than anything. "If he had been just a little slower or a little off on the turn then you would be dead."

Hayden kneeled beside Polo as he held me and ran his hands through my hair before pulling my arm to him. I cried out against Polo’s chest and Marco growled at Hayden. Hayden ignored him as he sliced his wrist with one fang and then let the blood drip over the wound on my arm. I shivered at the heat as the wound fixed itself and healed with nothing more than a bright pink line.

"In' a few days it will be gone all together." He looked at Polo. "Sorry about attacking you. I thought you were one of Raphael's."

"We didn't sense Alex or else we wouldn't have attacked you first." Marco kneeled on the other side of Polo as he spoke to Hayden. "We thought you were Pyro's."

"Pyro paid dearly for everything he did." I mumbled as I pulled away from Polo. Pyro had deserved it all but I still felt sick at what I had done to him. "I made sure of it."

"Raphael is dead as well. He found Alex and congratulated him on training you and then threw your bloody clothes at him before saying he could have done better." Polo let me go but I felt the reluctance in his arms.

"Alex fucking lost it and killed him in a very brutal way." Marco finished the story.

"At least I know where she learned it." Hayden said as he pulled me into his arms.

Marco and Polo looked from me to Hayden in shock. It was unusual for me to be affectionate to anyone but I never showed affection to anyone outside of our family. Not even Ethan got this kind of affection from me. Hayden made no effort to stake his claim so I followed suit. They would have to wait until later to know everything about mine and Hayden's relationship.

"Where's Alex?"

"He went south to be with a friend and grieve over you."

I jumped out of Hayden's lap and started running for the gate. I was over the gate before any of them started moving. If Alex went south that meant he went to Nathan's. Alex wasn't going to grieve my death the way they thought. He was going to start a war with all the surrounding masters and anyone else he thinks may have helped Raphael. Despite my not wanting to go to Perry I could not let Alex start a full out war for no reason.

Hayden reached me first but he didn't try to stop me. Instead he un-armed the SUV and hopped into the front seat. I jumped into the passengers’ seat and shut the door before rolling my window down as Marco and Polo came to my side of the vehicle.

"Gather our people and move them to my 'Ashley' house. Hayden and I will be back soon with Alex. No one leaves once they reach my house. For any reason." I turned around and looked in the back seat at Ethan. "Marco, get Ethan out the back seat and take him with you. Put him in the basement with no human contact. He still has three more nights but I won't take any chances. He was a special human so the vampire could react differently to him."

Marco's eyes got big at the news I had allowed Ethan to be turned but he nodded and opened the back door before pulling Ethan out. "We have a car in the parking lot across the street."

"Polo, do you remember where I broke my ankle?"

"Yes."

"About two miles before that place there is a blue house with black shudders. Do you know it?" When he nodded I continued. "The women are being held there. Go free them and take them to my house. They are going to need some serious mind fucking and possibly some healing. If they are pregnant than they need to be taken somewhere until Alex clears my next plan of action."

Polo nodded as Marco shut the door and bowed his head to me before his eyes rested on Hayden. "Anything happens to her and it will be worse to you."

"If anything happens to her then I am already dead and your threat is mute."

Marco bowed his head to Hayden and then ran across the street with Ethan in his arms and Polo right behind him. Hayden pulled on to the interstate.

"Marco and Polo are pretty fond of you."

"I'm like a sister to them."

"Marco, maybe." He chuckled as he took my hand. "Polo, no. Besides, last I checked, you don't do things with your sister like he has done with you."

"You knew it was him from Thanksgiving night?"

"I did as soon as I kneeled beside him to heal you."

"But you didn't re-act when they clearly showed you that I am not yours."

"I noticed it but I didn't react because I was more concerned with you. I also didn't react because you love them. You have never told them you love them but I could smell your love for them. When you pulled away from Polo and sat in my lap I smelled that love again but stronger."

"If you smelled it than they smelled it as well."

"Is that a problem?"

"Just that I wanted everyone to find at the same time and not a few before the others."

"Is that the only problem?" His hand released mine and moved to the steering wheel. He was purposely not looking at me as he focused really hard on the road.

"I'm not sure how Alex will react to this."

"How so?"

"Before I met you Alex told me he would kill anyone that would take me away from him. You will take me away from him."

"I will take you no where you don't want to go."

"But I do want to go with you." I sighed and looked out the window. "He told me that he hoped someone would one day make me happy even if it wasn't him."

"So he recently told you he loved you as more than a daughter?"

"Yes. And my reaction to his attempts to show me that shocked us both. That's when he told me he hoped someone would help me get over my problems and I could be happy, even if it wasn't with him."

"How did he try to show you his feelings?" His voice was calm but I heard the steering wheel sigh in protest.

"You know how."

"I want to hear you say it."

"He," I took a deep breath to calm myself. "we, tried sleeping together."

"And what was your reaction?"

"Nothing."

He finally turned to look at me. "Nothing?"

"Same thing I have felt with everyone else except you. Nothing."

"And why did that shock you?" His tone was the same but his grip loosened in degrees.

"Because I had a crush on him before the whole thing with Nathan. It shocked me because I thought I would have felt something."

"If you felt nothing until me then how did I smell yours and Polo’s release in your apartment?"

"Polo and I played kissy spar a lot before I went to stay with Nathan. When I got back from Nathan's he started sparring with me again. One night he made the once usual shift into kissy spar but I stabbed him for it. I haven't kissed anyone, until you, after Nathan. I couldn't. And the only time I felt anything was in those few moments leading up to sex."

"Like the foreplay?"

"Like the rubbing on each other through clothes and gentle caresses before the actual action starts. That’s how Polo and I had release without sex. He was the only person I trusted not to break the boundaries and just let it be."

"You'll have to show me that one night." He said as he took my hand.

"Later tonight sounds good to me." I smiled as I finally looked at him. "Can you make our claims visible now and no more hiding them without talking to me about it first?" I pointed to our exit.

He squeezed my hand before dropping his shield over us and taking the exit. He didn't know I was about to come face to face with my nightmare and that somehow having his claim visible made it feel less like a nightmare. Still a scary dream but one I could handle with out tearing my mind to shreds.

"So what’s the plan? And why the rush to get to Alex?"

"Alex has come down here to start an all out war over my death. Only I can stop it because he wouldn't believe anyone with out seeing me. After we stop this war then we free you from your wife and you and I can move on with dishing out Justice."

He turned to look at me for so long the SUV started to drift into the other lane. "What?" He straightened the car out but kept looking my way.

"I am going to join you."

"Not that I am objecting to the idea but why?"

"Because it's part of your life and I want to be apart of your life. What we do is the same so why not join forces with you?"

"You realize you'll be the Justice Huntress right?"

"Suites me don't you think?"

"I do." He leaned over and kissed my forehead. "I must warn you that I travel a lot."

"And I will be right there with you."

"I don't do dishes."

"I steal all the blankets and throw all the pillows off the bed."

"Then we'll make it."

I pointed to the left and had him park the SUV against the curve. I looked out the window at Nathan's house. Everything still looked the same right down to the length of the grass blades. It was all wet but it was still the same. The white pebbled path reflected the moonlight as it snaked from the road to the front steps.

"Your claim is visible?" I asked to be sure.

"Yes."

"Stay here while I go get Alex."

"What? Why ca-"

I cut his words off as I crawled into his lap and pressed my lips to his firmly. His arms fold around me as he opened his mouth for me to deepen the kiss. I nibbled on his bottom lip before sliding my tongue into his mouth. He moaned against my lips as I sucked on his tongue and pressed my body against his firmly. He bit lightly onto my bottom lip and pulled back from the kiss. His fangs grazed my lip until I tasted my own blood before his tongue licked up the blood.

"You haven't won without an explanation."

"I am going in to get Alex and coming right back out. It would show badly on our power if I walked in on war preps with someone not of our line."

"I will accept that explanation but if you aren't back out here in ten minutes then I come in after you."

"Deal."

I kissed his lips quickly once more before hopping out the car and taking a deep breath. Did I love Nathan? You'll always love your first. Would it hurt me to see him again? Yes. Would I survive it with no marks on my heart? So long as I came out to Hayden. I hadn't told Hayden whose house this was and I did not intend to either. Hayden would have come in here with powers full force and god help anyone who looked scared or confused. And I had to do this for myself before I could give every single part of me to Hayden.

I could feel Hayden watching me as I stepped onto the white pebbles. I knew the house was warded by a witch so you couldn't feel the powers of whoever was inside unless you walked over the threshold. Just like the smell of apple blossoms would fill the house if you stepped on the pebbles while armed. Once my foot touched the pebbles I was committed to this. If I didn't go through with it then Nathan and Alex were coming for blood. I still had three blades tucked in my bra. The rain had washed most of the blood off of me but you could still smell it and there was still some left in my hair and other choice places where the rain hadn't gotten too.