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Post by Chani {♥} on May 12, 2010 20:01:07 GMT -5
Kevin inhaled sharply, involuntarily, when Amaya smiled at him. But before he could wonder if she had noticed, she had run off for the other vampires. He went to see to Kassara, who was now climbing through the rubble of his far wall and brushing off her fine clothes. She met his indifferent gaze with an icy one of her own.
"So, is that the way it must be?" she said coolly, as if he hadn't just put her through the wall of his smithy. He smiled.
"Now you're catching on," he said. Then he was solemn-faced. "The vampires got here pretty quick. Did you have anything to do with this, Kassara?" She laughed.
"No," she finally answered when Kevin didn't appear amused. "If I want to kill the girl, I"ll do it myself. I'm one of the oldest vampires in Idaitokai." She smirked. "There'll be more, more than even your precious slayer and her scrawny mage can handle. You would do well to follow me." Kevin only glared. "Don't be silly. I'm the only one in this godforsaken place you can trust right now and I know it better than most." She shook her hair out of her face and moved for the door.
"I know the city well enough," he said, stopping her in her tracks. He hadn't budged. He was looking at the floor. "Thank you for getting us inside, but I think our business with you is over." He straightened up and brushed past her. "Goodbye, Kassara."
He was standing in the open door. Kassara's hands shook with fury, and then she crouched like a cat and pounced. It was too bad she never made it to Kevin...
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Post by Angel ♥ on May 13, 2010 11:28:12 GMT -5
Anyone would have thought that, with all the trouble they had been going through to kill her, they would have thought to send stronger vampires. Then again, their tactics may be to tire them out and then send in the real fighters, though Amaya had to hope that they weren't that well organised. Vampires didn't tend to act in numbers, and when they did it was a disorganised brawl. Then again, the last few days had taught her that it was possible to cooperate. Someone powerful was pulling the strings behind the scenes, and it was doubtful that after such a coordinated attack on the mansion that they would be so lapse as to let her escape now. They were pinned in the city, if they decided to attack in force the only thing that would save them would be sunrise, which, with Jagger on their side, could be as dangerous as it was life saving.
The red mist descended over her mind once again as she stepped outside, anger bubbling just under the surface of her thoughts. One of them ran at her in a reckless attack, one which Amaya side stepped gracefully, lifting one of her blades to sever his head from his body effortlessly, not pausing to glance back at her kill as she moved to fight with the next vampire. Her moves were fluid, like a brutal dance, dark blades flashing in the moonlight, soon coated with a thin layer of blood.
Fury flashed in her eyes as she slammed a vampire back against the wall just next to the door to the building, ignoring Jagger as he moved to stand in the doorway. "Tell me who is behind this." Her voice was low and dangerous, blade held across the vampire's throat, a thin trickle of blood running down his neck. He wasn't in the mood for cooperating, instead snapping his teeth at her. Well, she wasn't going to stand for that, and Amaya didn't give second chances. She plunged her blade through his heart, the vampire yelling out in pain before she took his head off, turning away as blood sprayed...everywhere.
Only then did she step back and glance over at Jagger, catching the end of his conversation. He wouldn't go away with Kassara? She was leaving? Good riddance. Amaya, however, doubted that she would leave that easily. She wanted Jagger and he had said no, a woman like Kassara wasn't going to let him get away with that.
"Jagger, move!" Amaya was at his side, suddenly dragging him back away from the doorway as the female vampire leapt at him, the slayer turning back to face her just in time to raise her sword, hooking it under so that it pierced her neck at the vulnerable point just under her chin, angled upwards so that it broke out again through the back of her head.
"You obviously don't know who I am." Amaya growled to her as she dragged her sword back, knowing that she would live long enough to at least hear her. "I am Amaya Ashikawa, and I don't take kindly to people attacking my friends." She sheathed one of her swords as the vampire began to fall, catching her by the neck, practically throwing her back away from her. "Don't mess with me." She was pinning Kassara down where she had landed, leaning over so she could whisper something into her ear. "And, for the record, Jagger is mine." With that she pulled back and brought her sword down, severing her head from her body. Just one more dead vampire.
Amaya was wiping the blood from her cheek as she stepped outside again, glancing around. "More vampires? Or are we safe to clean this mess up and get inside?"
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Post by Chani {♥} on Oct 12, 2010 13:07:41 GMT -5
In Amaya's hands, Kevin was putty. He quickly shifted away from the door when she called out to him without asking any questions. If anyone else would have put their hands on him, they would be hard put trying to move him, not to mention dead. He turned and watched Amaya shove her blade through Kassara's throat with wide, alert eyes and moved swifty and silently behind Amaya, like vampires do. He glanced at the pain in Kassara's eyes -- where her pride and life were both being severed -- and turned his gaze aside... not for pity, but for a silent hope that he wouldn't end the same way. Then again, if he had to die, he would rather do it at the end of Amaya's blade, staring into the fiery amber pools of her eyes for a final time, than anywhere else.
When Amaya leaned in and whispered something, it was almost impossible for him not to hear her. She and Kassara were no more than a couple feet from him. The words danced in his head for a bit before he totally comprehended them, and when he did he felt like jumping up so high he could thank the stars in person. He somehow held his composure, however, and slipped back outside right before Amaya severed Kassara's head entirely.
For years, he had cooped up anger, depression, self-loathing, and a slew of other emotions. Decades he had hidden all those awful feelings, and still he found that this one happy sensation was harder to obscure than all of them put together. It was easier to contain when he reminded himself that, no matter how bad he wanted it or she wanted it, there would never be a future for them. But even that thought wasn't enough to completely dampen the euphoria and adrenaline pumping through his veins. He had a strong urge, as he looked at Amaya coming out of the smithy behind him, to throw her up against the wall and kiss her. But thankfully, his desire to live a little longer was stronger. He glanced at the katana in her hand and unsheathed his own.
Then, Yasakazu walked up, blood spattered all over his robes, some in his hair, and there was a small cut on his cheek. His hands were still glowing just barely from his last spell.
"I think we're safe for now," he said quietly. "What happened with Kassara?" Kevin shook his head, not caring to explain to the mage-slayer when they were so short on time.
"We don't have time for that now, we have to move quickly," he said, his mind shifting out of the heart-shaped clouds and setting into vampire-mode. "They're going to be guarding the city's perimeters by now." He rubbed the back of his neck anxiously. "We might have to defend from the smithy until sunrise." The idea was horrible and he felt even worse suggesting it because their circumstances were his fault. He hissed inwardly.
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Post by Angel ♥ on Oct 12, 2010 13:41:51 GMT -5
Amaya’s chest was heaving, though that was from the effort that it was taking to control her anger rather than physical exertion. She was quite a sight really, splattered head to toe with dark blood, fire burning in her amber eyes, blood dripping slowly from the end of her katana. Her gaze snapped to Yasakazu as he returned, , drawing in a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself and reign in her thoughts as he said that they were safe. Safe? That wasn’t a word that she’d use for their current predicament. There was a hint of disappointment in her eyes as she sheathed her other sword, cracking her knuckles. She would rather there be more vampires to slaughter, more blood to spill to quench this blood lust which had descended over her mind. All the anger that she had been trying to keep under wraps, all the hurt and grief had bubbled over and flooded her mind, and it was almost impossible for her to regain control.
“We won’t get out of the city tonight. We’re all tired, and we don’t have enough supplies. It would be more intelligent for us to hold out here.” She nodded, putting a blood stained hand to her forehead in an attempt to focus herself. They wouldn’t get far in the state that they were in. They needed rest, a good meal and a wash. Her gaze swept over their surroundings one more time, checking the shadows, before she turned to move back into the dark building. “How many doors does this place have? We can bolt the shutters over the windows, move the tables up against the doors, and hold out in one of the inside rooms. When the sun comes up me and Zu can make sure that nothing is still here then we can rest and work out what to do next.” She nodded, brushing her hair back from her face in annoyance.
Right now Amaya needed to keep busy. There were too many thoughts swimming around in her head, too many emotions for her to even begin to try to make sense of them. “At least we have plenty of weapons.” She murmured quietly before turning to look around at Jagger, oblivious to the fact that he’d just heard what she’d said to Kassara. Yes, she may just have laid claim to Jagger, but she wasn’t about to admit it to anyone, she couldn’t even admit it to herself. It was too much, on top of everything else it was just too much for her to think about. “What do you think, Jagger? Will we be able to hold up here?” She asked, her hands moving to rest on her hips.
“We’re in for one Hell of a night.” [/size][/right]
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Post by Chani {♥} on Oct 12, 2010 14:05:18 GMT -5
Kevin sighed his relief when neither Amaya nor Yasakazu took the opportunity to blame their entire situation on him, though he was sure that the latter would find a way sometime during the night. The slayer-mage was apt to point out any of Kevin's shortcomings, perhaps to make himself feel more sufficient. Whether he did it for his own ego or Amaya's admiration, there was no telling.
"Yes, I think we can," he answered, trying to avoid Amaya's eyes. If it had been hard before, it was impossible now. As a vampire, he'd been dedicated to making his home and place of work safe. He tended to be even more paranoid than the rest, because he knew better than most what skilled slayers were capable of. "There are only two entrances. This door, and a secret back door. I'm not sure if they've discovered it or not, but it's likely." He glanced back at the door they had just came out of pensively. They'd destroyed everything. This place was the only life he'd had for years and years, and they'd just ran through and wrecked everything. They'd stolen the weapons, broken the furniture he'd built with his own hands... His eyes flickered dangerously and the anger seemed to pull him back to the present. "Let's go inside and barricade this place. They've left us plenty of materials for that much. The window-panes are metal. With your help, Zu, we can weld sections of metal over them in minutes."
Yasakazu was reluctant to agree to anything that came out of Kevin's mouth, but he had to admit (to himself and only himself, naturally) that it was a good idea. He followed the vampire inside the house, wondering exactly how many windows there were in this place. He didn't want to exhaust himself before the fight even began.
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Post by Angel ♥ on Oct 12, 2010 16:12:45 GMT -5
Amaya knew exactly what Jagger would be going through right now, she knew just what it was like to walk in to find your home, your whole life, wrecked. It was heart wrenching, and she knew that anger would be rising in him. Anger was good; they could use that, just as long as he didn’t lose it. They needed to do their best to keep their heads and not let the anger take over. Let it take over and you would make mistakes and get careless, and they couldn’t afford carelessness. “I know, Jagger, but you’ve gotta suck it up.” She told him oddly gently as he looked around the room, a half smile touching to her lips. The brief softness in her eyes looked out of place amongst all the blood and destruction.
It didn’t last for long, the guarded stoniness swiftly returning, Amaya moving to step inside, nodding to Jagger as he spoke. “Zu, you can fix the windows while Jagger shows me this back door. Hopefully it’s still a secret and we can use it to escape if things get too hot.” She nodded to the mage, brushing her hair back from her face before wiping the blood from her hands on her trousers. She moved through the dark room, expertly picking her way around the wrecked furniture, her footsteps silent. She was at home creeping through the darkness; she spent more time stalking through the shadows than she did out in the day light.
She moved to the back of the room before stopping, pausing to look back over her shoulder at the vampire expectantly. Zu would be fine on his own, and he would shout if there was another attack. For now they would still be figuring out that this initial attack had failed and deciding what to do next, and they needed to use all the time that they had. “Come on, Jagger, I don’t have all night. Let’s get this sorted before they realize that we’re not dead.” [/size][/right]
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Post by Chani {♥} on Oct 12, 2010 17:08:18 GMT -5
Most of the time, Kevin hated receiving sympathy of any sort. But again, Amaya was different. It was a rare kindness from her and one he appreciated more than words could say, though he did nothing to show it. It seemed she was the exception to every rule.
"You expect me to lift these sheets of metal and weld them down simultaneously with no help?" Yasakazu objected indignantly.
"Work something out or we'll all die," Kevin said simply, wheeling toward the back of the smithy. He held the door open for Amaya and led her into the half of the building that he lived in. They were in a kitchen, or what had once been a kitchen, anyway. The table had been shoved against the wall on its side, a chair with one broken leg lied where the table had once been, the wood stove had the door torn off of it, and the shattered remains of a porcelain vase was on the floor. Kevin tried to keep his mind set on the task at hand as he looked at the broken debris that had once been his kitchen, but it was difficult. "They didn't find it," he said as calmly as he could. "It's under the wood stove. They would have had to move it to see the trapdoor." He walked over to the wood stove and eyed it. A faint expression of sorrow crossed his face before he leaned over and wrapped his arms as much around the stove as he could before tearing it from the wall with vampiric strength. The metal groaned and shrieked. He set it aside like a father would set his child down, rather than throwing it to the side. There was a keyhole set into a trapdoor. "And they would have ripped this door off the hinges, too." He tried to be optimistic. "Well, there's one bit of good news." He looked at Amaya, hoping he didn't look as vulnerable as he felt right now.
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Post by Angel ♥ on Oct 12, 2010 17:24:28 GMT -5
”Shut up, Zu, this is probably the only time in your life you will have to do manual labour. At least do it without complaining. Or, you can leave it, and we will all be slaughtered in here.” Her voice was sharp and heavy with sarcasm as she turned her gaze on the mage, obviously in no mood to be dealing with the mage’s whining. “Figure it out.” She mumbled before turning to disappear through the door that Jagger held open for her.
She was glad of the quiet stillness in the room, letting her guard drop ever so slightly as the door clicked shut behind them. There was a kind of sadness in her eyes as she lingered in the kitchen, reaching out to let her fingertips brush over the work surface, as though trying to imagine him cooking here. Well, not that Jagger cooked…but in her mind it was a rather nice scene. This was his home, had been his home, and it had been torn apart as hers had. She turned her attention back to why they were there as he said that the secret door remained a secret. “Well, at least we have one thing working in our favour.” She murmured, moving over to stand by him as he set the wood stove aside, her gaze on the trapdoor. “Unlock it. We will seal the door when dawn comes, we will make them think that we are still in here, then when night falls tomorrow we’ll escape through there.” She murmured, though her heart didn’t really sound as though it were in planning. She was tired, the anger was fading and it left a void behind that ached, a gaping hole inside her that she had no idea how to fill, and being here only made it worse. Being stood so close to something that she couldn’t have, surrounded by another wrecked life.
“I’m sorry.” She whispered, closing her eyes for a moment to hold her tears back before turning her gaze up to him. “You should never have come for me, and none of this would ever have happened. You would still have your life here, intact, rather than…ruins. Everything I touch seems to turn to ruins.” [/size][/right]
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Post by Chani {♥} on May 24, 2011 18:11:45 GMT -5
Jagger looked concernedly at Amaya's expression. It broke his heart to see her like that. He found himself biting his lip, trying to hold back everything he wanted to say. This was a delicate situation. She was weak, he was weak. He should watch what he said... but he couldn't. He turned, putting his hands on her shoulders and staring into her amber eyes with his emerald ones.
"Amaya, no," he whispered, looking at her soberly. "I had nothing. I didn't have a life, only a cursed half-life. I had nothing to lose when I left that night. I lost nothing." His serious expression faded and something different replaced it. Passion. "What I didn't know when I left that night is that I would gain something, but I did. Amaya, you... are precious to me. Even if I'll never have you, I would be nowhere if not where you are. I will follow you to the ends of the world, to the end of my life. Even if you feel nothing for me." He looked at the floor and said more to himself than her: "How could you?" Then he looked back up at her, caught in her gaze for a moment before he mustered the strength to continue. "When I meet my end, I will do so effortlessly, because nothing, even death, is more difficult than living and not breathing, loving and not being loved. I will make you happy, one day, even if it means the end of me."
Jagger leaned closer to her, watching her expression carefully, looking for something. He needed to know if she wanted him just as badly as he wanted her and this was the test. He leaned in closer and closer, all the while watching for some tell-tale expression. Disgust, hatred, anger...
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Post by Angel ♥ on May 24, 2011 18:30:20 GMT -5
She could have fallen into those emerald eyes. He was holding something back, she could see that he was still holding something back, and she wanted nothing more than to break down that wall and see the man that he really was. She had caught a glimpse here and there, a snapshot of the man that he had once been, and then it was gone, disappearing back behind that damned wall. This was one of those moments where she got a glimpse, where she got to speak to him and know that what he said was the truth; why did this only happen when they were pressed for time.
"Jagger..." She spoke his name as nothing more than a whisper, as though she had no idea what to say to that. Words just wouldn't come, she couldn't voice everything that she wanted to tell him. She wanted to pour her heart out, to utter words that she would have scorned anyone else for saying; every cliche of love. None of it seemed to be enough, it paled in comparison with the complex and fierce emotion that burned in her chest. "The end of you could never make me happy." She murmured, shaking her head ever so slightly. "Jagger...I..." She trailed off, unsure of what she had been planning on saying to him. How could she tell him something that she couldn't even explain? How could she try to explain when she had no idea what it was?
In that moment, the whole of her world revolved around him. All she could smell was him as he leaned closer to her, that masculine scent of fire, sweat and steel. Her heart was racing as he drew ever closer, his breath tickling her skin. Closer; her skin tingled, almost as though in anticipation. Closer; she couldn't stand the anticipation any longer. It was only the slightest of movements, Amaya lifting herself up on her tiptoes to close the gap between them, her lips touching to his lightly.
"Just...just don't you dare leave me." She breathed against his lips, allowing herself just a moment of vulnerability.
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Post by Chani {♥} on May 24, 2011 18:52:46 GMT -5
For a moment, it was almost as if Jagger could feel his heart beat again. He felt something close to human. He knew his time with Amaya like this was limited, so he kissed her passionately, forcefully. He wrapped his arms around her as if he could shield her from the rest of the world, if only for a few moments. When the kiss was broken, he pressed his forehead against hers, watching her lips as she spoke.
"I won't," he said, grabbing her hand. "I won't ever give up on this, Amaya." His last statement was both a promise and a threat. He knew that the proud Ashikawa part of her wouldn't like this, but she had confirmed something for him tonight. He could never insist on his feelings for her if they weren't shared; that was just selfish. But now he knew that what he felt for her was mutual and he would not give up until he had her. Not in pinched, vulnerable moments that they stole from their chaotic lives, but forever. He stared into her eyes, yearning for another kiss but he knew they had no time. He brushed his lips against her cheek and then faded into the darkness, as vampires do, to go help Yasakazu set up the fortifications.
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Post by Angel ♥ on May 24, 2011 19:04:52 GMT -5
She seemed comforted, somehow, by his response, both the kiss and his words. Words were cheap, but you couldn't hide anything in a kiss, and suddenly she knew everything that she needed to. A rather contented sigh slipped between her lips as he let his forehead rest against hers, her eyes closing so that she could enjoy the brief peace of the moment. Fleeting as it was, she drew strength from what had passed between the, drawing the resolve that she needed to get through the night. They were going to live through this siege, and get out of the city, and then they could figure out what to do from there.
She remained still, as though frozen to the spot, as he left, concentrating on drawing in slow breaths. What was done couldn't be undone, and she had no time to deal with these emotions now. Her eyes blazed as they opened, Amaya mentally closing the door on what has just passed, locking it away for consideration when she had more time. Right now they just needed to survive, they could thing about everything else tomorrow.
The slayer pushed her hand back through her hair as she moved to tug the door open to check on their progress. It couldn't be much more than an hour until dawn, they just had to hold out that long and hope that they didn't sent human guards through the day. "Well?" She questioned as she stepped out of the room, stepping back into the facade of false confidence that she wore like armor. "Are we going to live until dawn?"
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Post by Chani {♥} on May 24, 2011 19:21:36 GMT -5
When Jagger entered on Yasakazu, the mage was fussing over a sheet of steel. He was trying to position it accurately so that he could smelt it, but it was too heavy to hold in place properly with just one hand. His forehead was beaded in sweat and his expression was frustrated. Jagger smirked and watched him for a moment. When he smelled Amaya coming, he pulled his eyes away from this satisfying view to watch her, stepping in with all the grace and beauty of a butterfly. He held back his thoughts, knowing they weren't appropriate for Yasakazu's ears. Instead he gave her an approving glance before walking over to where the slayer-mage was.
"Need a little help?" he asked with a lop-sided grin. Yasakazu frowned at him in exasperation. Accepting help from the vampire was against his pride, but he was too flustered at the moment to care.
"That would be fantastic," he said bitterly. "What were you doing back there, anyway?"
"Showing Amaya some ballads I wrote while I was attending the university," Jagger responded sarcastically, holding up the sheet of metal as Yasakazu began to smelt it with magic. "Hey! Watch it!" he shouted as he felt some heat on his hand, adjusting it quickly.
"It'll grow back, vampire," Yasakazu muttered, smiling grimly.
"Not if it's burned off, you moron!"
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Post by Angel ♥ on May 25, 2011 16:39:44 GMT -5
Half a minute, they couldn't even be in the same room for half a minute, if that, before they were at one another's throats. She rolled her eyes, moving to shove a heavy work table up towards the door, grumbling to herself under breath. "Fine, fine, you two rip each other apart and /I/ will make sure that we all survive until morning, yeah? Damn children." She shook her head, pushing the table up against the door to stop it from being opened, leaning against it once it was in place.
She closed her eyes as she listened to them, taking a deep breath and mentally counting to ten to resist the urge to smack them both around the head. "Zu, what we were doing is none of your business. Your business is helping make sure that they can only come at us one at a time. If you can't do that then go and sit in the back room and be quiet. You too, Jagger. You two argue like an old married couple."
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Post by Jagger on Nov 15, 2012 17:14:11 GMT -5
When Amaya reprimanded them, Jagger couldn't help but laugh despite himself. Yasakazu just muttered to himself inaudibly. He seemed to be in an especially bad mood and Jagger decided it was in his best interest not to push it. They continued their work in silence, save for Yasakazu's occasional complaints that Jagger wasn't holding the metal still or that his arm was in the way. Somehow, Jagger endured it. He took a mental retreat to the kitchen, where he had kissed Amaya moments ago.
When they were finally done, Yasakazu was panting and rather sweaty. He was exhausted.
"Are you alright, Yasakazu?" Jagger inquired genuinely, his voice low. He knew if Yasakazu thought Amaya could hear them that he wouldn't answer honestly.
"I don't want your sympathy, leech," the slayer-mage snapped vehemently. Jagger watched Yasakazu turn on heel and leave with a confused expression. He wouldn't normally let Yasakazu get away with insulting him like that, but he was too busy trying to figure out where all this animosity had come from. Sure, they had never gotten along, but he didn't remembering Yasakazu being this hostile before.
Jagger let out a sigh. "Idiot," he muttered before shrugging it off and going to find Amaya.
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