Nightwalker Fan Fiction ❯ 13th Night - Mind Games ❯ Part 1 ( Chapter 1 )

13th Night - Mind Games

Cain's castle looked just like he remembered it. In all those years since he has left Transylvania nothing had changed. It was as though time hadn't touched this place at all.

The heavy, iron gates opened slowly as Shido approached. He strolled down the long cobblestone road toward the mansion, deliberately slow. The moon cast a pale light over the gardens; the air was heavy with the sweet scent of moonflowers. Both, the sight and the smell stirred up memories in the young vampire.

Suddenly he wasn't sure if it was such a good idea to come here. He had been avoiding Cain for many years, and for good reasons. But meeting is former master and mate again had affected him more than he cared to admit. Shido wondered if Cain had been secretly watching him all along. He had assumed that time had dissolved all bonds that once existed between him and his master, but the ease with which the older vampire had tapped into Shido's mind had made it clear how much control Cain still had over his childe.

"Welcome back!"

Cain's voice startled Shido, as he walked through the front door into the entrance hall. The night was still young ands he had expected the master vampire to be out, hunting.

Cain stood at the top of the stairs, tall, striking, and surrounded by an aura of power and dominance. "I have been expecting you."

The confidence with which the blond vampire delivered those words was exasperating. Shido forced down an irritated growl.

"Have you finally come to your senses and decided to return to me?" Cain asked, as he gracefully drifted down the stairs, hovering just barely above the floor.

The younger vampire gave an angry snort as he glared up at him. "Do you really think that I would ever return to you, after what you did you Ryho?"

"What I did?" Cain raised one eyebrow in amusement. "Have you forgotten that you were the one who brought her across, not me?"

"You left me no choice," Shido snarled, fist clenched in rage.

As he passed the younger vampire, Cain stopped for just a brief moment to behold him. "There is always a choice," he declared calmly. Unlike his hot-tempered childe; whose emotions could flare up as quickly as a storm on the open ocean, the golden-haired vampire rarely lost his composure. "Let's sit down and talk."

Shido followed him into the drawing room, and complied wordlessly as Cain gestured for him to take a seat in one of the overstuffed velvet chairs. The blond settled into the chair across from him, draping one long leg over the other.

"So, tell me…," Cain asked. "Why are you here?"

"I want answers," the purple haired vampire replied. "I know you can't give me back my memories, but I want you to tell me who I am; who I was before you turned me into a vampire. At least that much you owe me."

"Answers, huh?" A predatory smile curved Cain's lips. "But are you prepared to pay the price?"

"The price?" Shido echoed, as he glared at the master vampire.

Cain's smile turned even more sinister. "You didn't expect that I would just tell you what you want to know without getting anything in return, did you?"

"And what do you want?" Shido's were dark with suspicion.

"Do you really have to ask? I want you, of course; unconditionally."

"I told you already that that is out of question," Shido shook his head resolutely. "I will not return to you, not after what you did to me."

"You keep saying that. But can you even begin to imagine what you did to me when you left?" Cain snarled. His amber colored eyes sparkled with fury. He didn't bother to hide his emotions at that point.

"Is that why you played with my mind, and made me think Ryho turned away from me? Because you wanted me to experience the same pain you felt?" Shido hissed back at him.

"She is just your childe, Shido. We were mates. We were bonded. How can you even assume that you could feel the same for her as I felt for you?"

"You arrogant bastard." Shido lunged toward the older vampire, grabbed him by the collar of his impeccable white shirt and pulled him out of his chair.

Cain gave a condescending snort. "Do you really think it is a good idea to attack me when you want me to answer your questions? Besides, I told you already, your powers are no match for me." A sudden spark in Cain's eyes was all the warning Shido got before he was thrown backward. He crashed into the wall behind him, and before he was able to recover from the impact, the golden haired vampire was over him, trapping his body against the rough stone.

"Let go of me," he demanded angrily. He tried to push Cain away, but the older vampire simply caught his wrists and pinned them over his head against the wall.

"So, what are you going to do?" Shido growled. "Are you going to take what you want by force, because you can; because you are stronger and more powerful?"

"I'm still hoping that you will come to your senses."

Shido snorted. "Never!"

Cain looked down at him; a soft smile curving his lips. "Never is a very long time, especially for somebody who lives for eternity. I can wait. I'm sure you will come around eventually."

Shido gasped as the older vampire suddenly dipped his head and covered his mouth in a slow and gently kiss. There was a faint taste of blood on those full lips. Cain must have feed not too long ago. But there was also another, stronger flavor, a taste that he had almost forgotten. It threatened to ignite a fire in his veins that he hadn't experienced in a long time. Shido closed his eyes. He had to force himself not to respond. He was shocked how easily Cain was crushing his "defenses". One kiss and I'm trembling. It really was a mistake to come here.
Finally he broke the kiss and turned his head. He could have broken Cain's restraining grip easily, but he didn't. Instead he just glared at the golden-haired vampire.

"Remember what we once had, Shido." Cain released the other vampire's wrists. He raised his hand and softly brushed his thumb over Shido's lips. "Remember how it felt when we loved each other? There was so much passion between us. It can be like that again…"

"No!" Shido shook his head to ban those memories from his head. "It won't ever be like that again," he stated firmly. "Things have changed, I have changed. I have a new life now."

"A life amongst humans." The golden-haired vampire gave a disgusted huff, as he turned away.

"So what?" Shido asked.

Cain didn't say anything to that. Instead he walked over to a small table by the window and filled two goblets with blood from a crystal decanter.
Shido's eyes narrowed when the blond offered him one of the glasses. He slapped away the hand with an expression of disgust, spilling some of the blood over Cain's white gloves.

Amber colored eyes narrowed slightly in irritation. "Stop acting like an ungrateful little brad, Shido. You don't even know how much trouble I went through just to get this blood for you."

Shido looked at him. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"I'm well aware that you refuse to hunt, or feed on somebody else's kill. But letting you starve while in my castle would make me a terrible host now, wouldn't it? So I had no choice but to find an alternate food source for you. This blood came directly from a hospital's blood-bank. Don't you think I deserve at least some credit for my efforts?" Cain re-filled the glass and offered it to the younger vampire once again. This time Shido didn't refuse the drink.

The older vampire settled down in his chair again and gestured for his companion to do the same. He took a careful sip from his own glass and wrinkled his nose in distaste. "It's awful," he remarked. "I can't believe you'd prefer this over the taste of fresh blood from a still warm body."

"I don't care about the taste as long as I don't have to kill for it."

Cain snorted. "Tell me, why are you so desperately holding on to that foolish notion, that there is a part of you that is still human? Trust me, there isn't. You are no more human than I am. And quite frankly I don't understand why you would even want to be associated with such weak and pathetic creatures."

"Because it's the only way I can live with myself." Shido replied quietly. "Unlike you, I don't consider myself superior to them. I might not remember who I was, but I will never forget what I used to be. I know I can not change the past. But I can try to make amends for what I did back then."

"Listen to yourself, Shido. You really have changed," Cain huffed. "Living amongst them for so long, you have become weak and pathetic yourself. That's all the more reason for you to stay with me, here in Romania. Let me teach you again everything you have forgotten. Let me remind you of what it means to be a real vampire; strong and powerful and proud."

"I have no desire to be turned back into such a creature." Shido emptied his goblet and put it down on the table.

For a few moments Cain looked down, lost in thought. He traced the rim of his glass with his fingertip and nobody spoke a word. Then he looked up, regarding Shido silently for a few more seconds before he spoke. "To tell the truth, I don't believe that you came here only looking for answers about your past."

"What?" the younger vampire asked puzzled.

"I thought you no longer cared about your long lost memories? Isn't that what you said?" Cain looked at him questioningly.

"I lied then," Shido admitted.

"Is that so? Or perhaps you are lying right now, to yourself, about your true motives for coming to Transylvania."

"Which would be?"

"I think you came, because in your heart you know that this is where you belong. You can deny it all you want, but eventually you will realize that your place is by my side. I'll be waiting for that day."

"What have you been feeding on, Cain?" Shido laughed sarcastically. "You are delusional."

"Am I really?" the golden-haired vampire asked softly.

Shido blinked and tried to stifle a yawn.

"Tired, or is it just that I'm boring you?" Cain sounded faintly amused.

The younger vampire blushed slightly. He wasn't sure why he was so tired. The time difference between Japan and Romania should have nothing to do with it, since a vampires' sleeping cycle wasn't affected by time but rather by the rotation of the sun and moon.

"Perhaps we should finish this conversation tomorrow night," the blond offered. "You will find your coffin in your old sleeping chamber."

Shido inclined his head in acknowledgement, but when he rose he was suddenly overcome by a wave of fatigue. It was hard to even keep his eyes open, and he had to fight to stay awake.

Cain was on his feet and by his side in once fluid motion. "Let me help you; you are obviously exhausted."

Shido snarled as the older vampire swept him off his feet. "Set me down at once," he wanted to say, but he never got those words out. Cain's voice, deep and silky, reached him just before his mind dipped into oblivion. "Sweet dreams, Shido."

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T.B.C.

Author's Note:

Feedback is greatly appreciated, constructive criticism is welcome :-)