Written by: Miyu, Vampire Princess

AUTHOR'S NOTE:
Thanks to Mona-chan's suggestions, I have actually come up with an Akito X Hana fanfic. *glomps Mona-chan* I hope that you will enjoy it. The point of view shifts so please pay attention to the name in brackets [...].

Part One - IN HIS HANDS

[AKITO]

Why do I feel as if I'm loosing my nerve?

And to HER of all people?!

The girl sitting in front of me is quiet, staring at me with dark, curious eyes. She's a strange one, weird in ways that almost make me feel normal. Almost. It doesn't quite feel possible.

Stranger still is that she's managed to figure out my family's curse. The curse of the zodiac. I blame Honda Tohru for her presence today, but I've been told that the silly girl had no involvement in this. Both Hatori and Shigure have said so. She figured it out on her own.

Impossible! The bastards are lying through their teeth to protect that bitch!

Still, a small part of me believes them. A very small part that can still feel compassion, love and other annoying feelings that I tend to ignore.

But I can't ignore them any longer.

Why? When I have been able to show indifference to everyone and everything else, why does this homely, little witch intrigue me?

Her posture is perfectly straight, her body relaxed and her demeanor calm. I sense no fear from her. None. Nadda. That alone serves to stoke my fire. Everyone fears me. I MAKE them fear me! Yet this girl remains unfidgeting under my scrutinizing gaze. Her own eyes, dark as night, are focused intently upon my every move. There's caution there, as there should be.

But still no fear.

Bitch! Don't look at me as if you know me! You know nothing about me!

Nothing about my loneliness....

About my longing desire....

"Leave us," I command my cousins. They are the oldest of the living jyuunishi, Shigure and Hatori, and possibly the two closest to me after Kureno. Still, they've said their peace. Now it is time for us to be alone.

"Akito...?" Hatori is always quick to question. I wonder though, is he worried about me, or about the bitch kneeling on the floor? Perhaps both. Maybe neither.

"Leave. Us." I wave a hand at them, turning my back on them. I hear them standing and walking to the door. When the door is opened, then closed, I turn my attention back to her. I try to scowl, but fail to twist my lips into anything more than a smirk.

I've also been told that she has an uncanny ability with electricity. I have yet to see proof of this, but perhaps it explains her relaxed attitude towards me. Even now that we're alone. Does she believe I am frightened by her power? Foolish wench! I AM power. You don't frighten me!

You intrigue me.

And that's why you're here, Hanajima Saki.

Why YOU will remain by my side tonight.

[HANAJIMA]

I was not surprised by his summons. Yuki and Kyo had made it very clear that anyone who discovered their family secret eventually answered to him. He was their head of household. They talked about him as is if he were a god, but neither spoke of him with any reverence.

Still, when I revealed my newfound knowledge to my two classmates a week ago, I was well aware of the consequence.

Well aware of HIM.

Akito. The truest mystery of all.

I had only heard of him from Tohru once. She spoke his name with such awe - a definite difference from that of Yuki and Kyo - that I believed him to be someone truly intriguing. The look of fear that would often accompany his name from my two Sohma classmates, caused me to think that perhaps he was a force to be reckoned with.

So far, I have not seen anything of what my friends have seen.

At first glance, he is not as formidable as one would think. He's taller than myself by a few mere inches, and frail. His pallor indicates a sickness that has troubled him his entire life. His curse, perhaps.

His resemblance to Yuki is very striking, breathtakingly so. But there is a definite difference. There is darkness in his aura. A well of despair in his soul. His cold, calculating eyes hide it. And hide it well.

But I alone can see.

After a second glance, I find it a bit difficult to keep my calm. Hatori and Shigure are standing outside of the room at Akito's command. I felt a small bit of reassurance in their presence, even though they stank of fear.

Being alone with him is much different from simply being in his presence. He paces around the room in inconsistent patterns. Unpredictability. His eyes are like dark caverns waiting to be explored, but the wall he's created around himself is neigh impossible to pass. Defensive. Impenetrable. A tense air fills the room and I find no comfort in feeding off his denpa. Alone with him you are immersed in his world, in his life and all his emotion.

Yes, emotion.

He seems devoid of those things, doesn't he?

And he has yet to say anything to me. Not above me, or at his cousins, but at me.

I don't like being ignored.

True he can't ignore me now that we're alone, but he still refuses to speak, instead sitting on the edge of his futon and eyeing me with a smirk. His eyes are dark, trying to assess my person. I can feel his curiosity in his aura. And there's something else. Something I can't determine. It's sitting just below the surface. I want to know what it is.

I want him to talk to me.

"You do realize the predicament I present to you right now?" I ask him, breaking the tense silence that has settled over us.

His smirk disappears, but he still says nothing. With a light sigh I continue. "I understand that not many outside of your family know about your curse. I can assure you that I am no threat."

"You're a bigger threat than you imagine."

His voice, when it reaches my ears, is soft and gentle. Not the tone I was expecting from him. My eyes narrow as I try to assess him again. There's no change to his aura. Curious.

"I'm afraid I do not understand."

He snickers, his body adjusting itself slightly on the futon. "You don't need to understand."

"But I want to."

His eyes narrow. "There's no possible way you CAN understand."

"Try me."

His eyes widen at my words. It's an offer, plain and simple. One that I cannot retract. I'm slightly surprised by my own boldness. His eyes bore holes into me now and I am starting to feel uneasy. All these slight changes he goes through and not a single alteration is made to his aura. I am at once awed and in fear.

I've never met anyone like him.

[AKITO]

"You think you can understand me? My curse?"

It's laughable. Truly laughable. I'm well aware of the offer she's made to me. No one, not even in my own family, has ever given me the choice. Where I should probably feel something akin to sympathy, I can only feel pain. I laugh to hide my pain.

"I don't see what's so funny about my situation," she says plainly, and there's a definite hint of anger in her voice. What's this? Have I finally been able to press a button?

I can't help but grin devilishly. I can feel myself giving in to my anger. It would be so much easier to deal with this if I did. Yet, I'm loath to completely give myself over. Instead, I decide to play with my prey.

"I hold your life in my hands."

"And you find that funny?"

"Hilariously so."

"Then, please, share with me why it's so funny."

My smile dies and I slide from my futon and onto the floor. "Does it mean that much to you?"

She shakes her head slightly. "No."

I pause, looking at her with obvious curiosity. "Then why do you ask?"

She shrugs. "Because I simply want to know."

My smile returns and I crawl over to where she's sitting. The green cushion is hidden underneath her black skirt. My eyes skim over where her legs are under her skirt and upward over her flat abdomen and adequate breasts. She's finely built although I'd never say it out loud.

Finally my eyes meet hers and my smile widens. The small shift in her position tells me she's affected by my nearness. Good.

"It's funny," I tell her, looking directly into her eyes, into her soul. "Because I hold your fate in my hands. I have unimaginable power within these walls, and without. Your life means nothing to me."

She sits deathly still as my hand reaches for her cheek. "I know your secret."

My fingers lightly touch the skin of her cheek, moving back and forth

aimlessly. "I can keep you from talking."

She blinks. "How would you do that?"

"How indeed," I snicker, leaning my body closer to hers, our faces mere inches apart.

"Would you erase my memories?"

"Perhaps."

"Turn me into a slave?"

My smile grows, my fingers now moving downward to touch the skin of her throat exposed by her dress. "I can only imagine."

"But I have something you want."

Her words, though plain and simple, send a jolt of electricity through me. Or is that her power? In any case, I'm tired of playing now. My anger returns and I stand so abruptly that she leans back as if she's been surprised.

"I do have something you want," she repeats. Is that satisfaction in her voice?

"What of it?!" I bite back angrily. The darkness surrounding me is closing in fast. I fight it, but only a little. I pace a little before returning to my futon. I lay down, more out of weariness than anything. My emotions are choking me again and all I can see is the darkness.

"Akito?"

"What," I shout back.

"Is it too much for me to know my fate?"

I look at her then. Her eyes are no longer shadowed, but open and aware. I can see her emotions swirling in their dark depths. Somewhere within me I know they match my own. But why?

She doesn't know me. How can she know how I feel?

YOU DON'T KNOW ME!

"You really want to know? You want to know about me? About your fate?"

She nods.

Reclining on my futon I stretch my tired form on the mattress. I immediately relax into the cushion, my breathing calming and the darkness receding for a short time. Reaching a beckoning hand out to her I say:

"Then come to me...and find out."

[HANAJIMA]

Ah. Finally, an answer to my own challenge.

I was wondering how long it would take him.

His aura is different now. It's almost completely absorbed by darkness. But there is still a hint of light surrounding him. It's faint, almost invisible in the darkness.

Is this his anger? His fear? Are they smothering his other emotions?

He's already shone me that he can be unpredictable. Therefore I carefully climb to my feet and slowly make my way to him. I stop within a few inches of his hand. I had already offered my help, and he tasted a little of my power. I should not be afraid. And I'm not.

I'm intrigued.

He's a complex being, far different from any other Sohma I've met. As the head of the household, I suppose it is as it should be. Still, I am curious as to why his aura is so dark...why he withholds his emotions...why he...is.

And I know what he wants from me. He has not said it out loud, but I can see it in his aura. This is the only thing that I am uncertain about. I can give him anything he wants, and everything he doesn't.

But can I give him what he REALLY wants?

I take his hand and allow him to move me closer to the futon. So close that I have to sit on the edge. The position is awkward, and when he makes no attempt to move himself back on the futon so that I may sit comfortably, I'm forced to sit on one leg with my foot tucked under me while the other foot rests solidly on the floor.

He releases my hand, settling back into the futon on his back. As if of their own free will, my hands move to his face, cupping his strong jaw and soft skin in my palms.

"Tell me." I place one of my palms against his cheek, the other caressing his face gently. "Show me."

With that he sits up, his lips sweeping over mine. His body makes no other move towards me. In this, I am both comforted and annoyed. I had thought that the darkness in his aura would force him to be rough. Not that our kiss is gentle by any means. Still, I suppose I had been hoping for...well a little more.

Grunting, he wraps his fingers around my upper arms. His grip is tight enough to make me wince. Our kiss breaks as I feel myself being lifted. Eyes wide, I see myself flying until I finally come to rest on the sheets of his futon. Did he just do that? Where did his strength come from?

When I finally come back to myself, he's above me, holding his weight on his hands and knees. Our eyes meet, locked in a battle of emotions. I release some of my denpa, causing another shock to go through him. It's as strong as the last, but he makes no move other than to smile.

[AKITO]

"Are you trying to scare me, witch," I ask. My voice is smooth with a touch of the devil in it. Strange that I'd notice that myself. "I thought you wanted to know about my curse. About my fate."

Her lips are suddenly dry, and I resolve the problem by kissing her again. When I release her lips, she looks up at me with doe eyes. Not frightened, but clearly uncertain. Her breathing patterns have changed just slightly and I feel my own quicken.

"Well?"

"I do want to know," she replies. "Tell me. Show me."

Show her? Oh if only I could!

Maybe I can.

I crush my lips to hers again, pressing all of my weight into her. This is something I can do that my cursed relatives cannot. I can touch and be touched by someone other than a fellow jyuunishi. While I'd never truly experienced it, I find it to be...rather pleasing.

She's soft beneath me, suppliant, but I can feel the tension in her body, feel her power sizzle around her. It's a minor shield against me, but it is a reminder that she does hold some power...even if it's not over me.

Or is it?

I let that tingle flow over and through me, fueling the fire that has started to burn in my soul. It will be extinguished before the night is out, of that I am certain. But before it is done, I will have my moment.

My desire.

My arousal is barely straining, but I can hear the blood pumping in my veins, hear it thudding in my ears. It echoes my heartbeat as our lips press closer together and our tongues begin a fencing duel.

As I feel her arms snake around my shoulders, her fingers lightly caressing the nape of my neck, my entire body jerks and I can feel myself harden even more. I've never been consumed with such an overwhelming passion. The darkness in me recedes a little more and an unfamiliar warmth fills me. Is this her power again?

The kiss breaks and we stare at each other. With her flushed face and gasping pants, she looks very wanton. Very desirable. Her dark eyes flash an emotion I'm not familiar with. I want to know what it is. I want to know her.

Kami how she intrigues me!

Her mouth opens to speak. It does so several times, her power flaring and disappearing intermittently. I feel the sting of the electricity, gasping again as I revel in the strange pleasure-pain.

"What...is it...you want...from me?"

I allow all of my weight to fall on her again, bringing my lips to her ear. I place kisses along her exposed neck, my teeth finding sensitive flesh and biting mercilessly. Her breath catches but she does not cry out. Pity.

"I want you to love me. For just a moment. I want to be loved."

[HANAJIMA]

There's little I can say to him. His crushing weight is pushing the last of my breath from my body. His skin is tepid to the touch, not quite cold, but not warm either. Just the feel of him against me through the fabric of our clothes causes me to shiver.

His mouth returns to kissing me as his hands begin roaming my covered body. One hand cups my right breast while the other caresses and traces lines and curves all over. As my body relaxes, allowing him to do whatever it is he pleases with my body, I return to that one uncertain thought I had before. Can I give him what he really wants?

My body, certainly.

But...love?

Love is a strange thing, even to me. Unlike my friends, I have not had boyfriends. I have not had close relations with a person of the opposite sex. I know the basics of the goings on, but I've never felt the emotion with people other than my friends and family.

Can I feel it with him?

I suppose there's only one way to find out.

His kisses rain down upon my neck, both of his hands now cupping the full weight of my breasts through my dress. I feel his fingertips slide upward, his nails scrapping the skin just above my collar. I sigh as his lips find a spot on my shoulder that causes me to loose the air in my lungs. Meantime, he grabs the color of my dress and rips it open, tearing the material to reveal my upper body.

"There is a zipper in the back," I inform him, surprised by his action but not upset.

"This is more fun," he replies, his lips never leaving my skin and his kisses trailing downward towards my breasts. My bra still prevents him from seeing me, and as he grabs the front of my bra I raise a hand to stop him.

"The clasp is in the front," I tell him.

He pauses, looking down at our hands. "So it is."

Unhooking the clasp, he peals the black material of my bra aside and his eyes widen as he gazes upon my breasts for the first time. He looks like a kid in a candy store who's just spotted his favorite candy. Licking his lips, he lowers his head again, his tongue licking the underside of my left breast before sucking the nipple into his mouth.

I try to remain logical but it's increasingly difficult. His hands continue to explore my naked flesh. One hand kneads my right breast quite rough, while the other is under my skirt, stroking the skin of my inner thighs and causing me to moan. Part of me fights it, but it's short lived when his fingers slide inside my panties and stroke my clitoris. He flicks the nubbin with his finger and then scrapes it with his fingernail. My hips lift into his hand and I press my head back into the futon mattress.

My own fingers burn a trail across his shoulders and down his back as he witches from one breast to the other. One finger slips inside my wetness and I feel my body tense. What an intense feeling!

My hands cup his buttocks through his yukata, and I press his hips to my belly, feeling the fullness of his desire. He groans, pushing his hips into me, starting a rhythm with his hips, his fingers and his tongue that make me completely mindless in its fervent sensation.

I give myself completely to him. My body, my heart and my soul. I can do nothing else as I feel him add another finger, feel them slide across those sensitive nerves. Liquid warmth spreads through my body and I do something I have not done since our meeting began.

I scream his name.

[AKITO]

Never before have I heard such a sound.

"Akito!"

It brings a smile to my lips as I release her nipple and pull my fingers from her pussy. Licking one of my fingers I offer her the other. She opens her mouth accepting it willingly. As her lips wrap around my finger, I slip it out slowly, my painful erection throbbing at the erotic sight.

My lips take hers again, both of my hands working to remove her panties. I've heard people say that a woman's first time is supposed to be special, but I have no concern for that. She wet and willing and I'm hard and impatient.

I want to be loved, dammit!

She lifts her hips, allowing me to pull her panties down. I toss them aside. Lowering myself in between her legs, I use one of my hands to part my yukata. Her hands stop me and I look at her.

"Bitch! Why are you stopping me?!"

"I want to see you," she tells me. "All of you."

Growling I sit up on my knees, ripping at the tie on my robe. As the knot slides apart I pull my yukata from my shoulders and let the material slide down my arms. As it falls to the bed, I grasp it in my hands and toss it aside. For a moment I sit gloriously nude before her. When the moment passes, I press myself into her again, parting her folds with my fingers and rubbing her slick slit with the head of my aching penis.

Holding my weight on my forearms, I pull back, pushing my hips forward. My head pierces her opening, sliding inside until it reaches a barrier. She moans, half in pain, half in pleasure. Growling, I slide myself out a little before pushing myself in to the hilt.

I expect to hear her scream in pain. I would've liked to have heard her scream my name again. Instead she raises her knees, wrapping her legs around my hips. Her hands reach for my chest, gently stroking the skin there in tiny circles. Tiny pulses press along my skin. Her power, I realize. She's relaxing my muscles and stimulating me all at the same time. Is this supposed to be comforting?

Is this her love?

My moves are neither tentative nor gentle. I thrust into her hard, keeping the pace until I feel her knees tighten at my hips. She moans and I thrust faster, pushing myself as deep as I can go. She feels good around me. So tight and hot. Her hips push back, trying to keep up but she eventually gives up. Using what's left of my energy, I pound into her mercilessly, moving as fast as I possibly

can.

Light, bright and commanding, washes over my senses, bringing with it a warmth I have not felt...ever! Her vaginal muscles clamp down on me as she screams my name again. I hear her through the thick haze of my mind. I can feel myself smile, feel my seed pour inside of her.

As the warmth recedes I collapse on top of her. Our breathing slows in unison. The sweat on our bodies cools, causing a chill. Pulling out of her, I reach down to my blankets and pull them over us.

The witch barely moves, not opening her eyes. As I lay down, her left arm reaches for me, lying itself across my middle. She's snuggling me. Well sort of. It's close enough. I try not to flinch, forcing my body to relax. My eyes close almost instantly and I can feel the tug of sleep on my consciousness.

I will have her removed from my sight first thing in the morning. Her memories will be erased. But for the time being, I want her by my side.

I want to be loved.

~TO BE CONTINUED~