★Bite Me★

XXII

Akuma
Damien leads us through the dark woods, Connor and I following behind him hand in hand so Connor doesn't loose his balance. It's a short trek to the small town where Damien leads us carefully through shadowed back alleys to an apartment building. In the front parking lot Damien has parked his black Lincoln, motioning to it boredly as he pulls the keys from his pocket. I climb into the passenger seat, watching as Connor slides into the back seat. Damien tosses our bags into the trunk and climbs into the driver seat, inserting the key and starts the ignition.
"Ready kids?"
Damien hums boredly, a glint of amusement lighting his dark eyes.
"Ready captain."
Connor muses back and I roll my eyes, directing my gaze out the window as Damien pulls out of the small lot. It doesn't take long to get out of the little village and the small houses and market stands fade into rows of trees and later wide, expansive fields glowing with the remaining rays from the sun. Somewhere along the way the gentle movements and passing scenery lulls Connor to sleep, his breath deepening and heart steadying into a slow rhythm. Eventually Damien releases a heavy sigh, lightening the heavy atmosphere that had settled over the car's interior.
"Ready to be back in the capital?"
Damien questions softly, his eyes flickering over to me for only a moment.
"It's been a while."
I respond vaguely, earning a raised brow from him.
"Not ready then."
He grumbles and I shrug, averting my gaze to the window.
"It's different now,"
He reassures quietly and I close my eyes, nodding.
"I know it is. That was a long time ago anyway, I'm not worried about going back."
I say and he nods, seeming reassured. I lean my forehead tiredly against the window and sigh, memories resurfacing slowly. Damien is only concerned because I haven't been to the capital properly since I was much younger, still a teen. After my parents death I was sent to live with some relatives in the capital and in short, it was a less than pleasant experience. I moved back into my parents abandoned home as soon as I was old enough and haven't been back to the capital for more than a few days since then.
"Why don't you rest a bit?"
Damien suggests, re-situating himself in his seat.
"Going to be a long night."
He elaborates quietly and I nod, getting comfortable.
"Alright. Thanks Damien."
I mutter as I finally settle in, my curled legs pressed against the center console. Damien drops his right hand from the wheel and rests it on my knee, a wave of relief and calm washing over me. I allow his ability to take its course, not fighting him off although it would be easy as I am a higher rank than him.
"Rest well my Mistress."
His soft words reach my ears before I fall into a gentle state of sleep.

Connor
I wake with a start, an electrified shudder running through my body. I snap my head up to see Damien's fingertips tapped against my knee, our eyes meeting only momentarily in the rear view mirror. He pulls his hand back towards himself, settling it atop Akuma's knee that pokes up from her seat. I shift to peer at her, curled up delicately with her chin in her palm.
"We've reached the city. I figured you'd want to take in the sights."
I nod and utter a quiet thank you, situating myself to look out the window. We drive through an industrial area, factories and warehouses lining the street we drive down. In the distance taller buildings emerge, sleek and elegant. I slide into the center seat, gawking at the scene ahead through the windshield. Damien has a small smirk on his face, his eyes flicking to mine in the rear view occasionally. The buildings become more clear as we draw closer, pristine and mostly built of a glistening white material. The city is accented with a similar black material, framing and other details composed of it. Akuma stirs a bit, causing Damien to move his hand back to the wheel. Akuma pushed herself into a sitting position as the streets fade to a darker asphalt, the quality improving as we pass the first of the grand buildings, the bulky factories fading to elegant eateries and businesses. The city is lit with shining white street lights, everything alive and bustling despite the fact that it's the dead of night. Huge electronic screens reside upon the larger buildings, light streaming from the majority of the sparkling buildings' windows. Vampires bustle along on the sidewalks, some taking a leisurely pace while others hurry. Through shop and restaurant windows more show, going about their normal day, doing normal things.
"This is the common people's dwelling."
Akuma muses quietly, rubbing sleep from her eyes.
"Although, there are more nobles here than in the outer suburbs or lesser working places. Noble's tend to hold themselves to quite high standards."
She continues, sitting up fully to gaze out her own window.
"The closer you get to the Capitol, the more nobles we will encounter."
She finishes lazily and I nod, releasing a quiet hum of acknowledgement. We drive through the city for a while longer, the buildings becoming denser and taller as we go, but eventually begin to thin out. Finally Damien turns onto a road lined with pristine, beautiful mansions, all lit and glistening.
"The noble suburbs."
Akuma mutters, seeming less than impressed. I quirk a brow at her but then back to the window when she ignores me, startled when we finally turn into a driveway. The manor is huge, two stories of gorgeous white marble accented with glistening black onyx. The yard is wide, plenty of space between it and the houses on either side.
"Wow."
I can't help but hum softly, earning a small smirk from Damien and a soft smile from Akuma.
"Ready to head in?"