BloodBorne Ch. 03

"Being honest?"

"Being a pri-" Draco stopped himself in just enough time. Xion looked panicked and sad; the last thing she needed was another person spouting off insults. "Being yourself."

"That is not how you treat a charge," Alexis admonished. "She's been through enough."

"Yea, as always, I'm the fucking bad guy." Liam shook his head as she remembered Xion was in the room. Hell, he was fucking up everywhere today.

"Go fix it," Alexis commanded, "The last thing we need is to protect someone who becomes a problem because she hates you too much."

"Fuck that," Liam muttered. Though he was the one who messed up, he wasn't about to apologize. "She'll get over it."

"I'm not going to ask again," Alexis warned.

"You didn't ask the first fucking time."

"Dude," Draco said.

"Fine, fine!" Liam angrily shouted. "I'll go play nice." With a shake of his head, he stalked out of the room. This was exactly what he needed; who didn't want to deal with someone like Xan?

* * * * *

In the quiet, moonlit room, the air was still and dank. A small, dark spot on the ground slowly grew, swallowing the damaged wood. Like a growing shadow, the spot increased in size, slowly oozing a thick substance as slick as oil, but thicker than molasses. It pushed through the floorboards, much like body lotion through a sieve; slow and clumping, eating through the free space of the damaged floor. The substance grew to the size of a fetal-positioned adult before it thickened even more, taking on the physical characteristics of cooling tar. It began to bubble and boil, and soon, piercing structures formed to push out of the cloying substance. Shards of opaque and cracked material fused together and soon, a small bone was formed. More material formed and pushed through, only to fuse and form more bone. Dozens continued to fuse and the bones began to merge. The substance on the ground shifted from midnight to a deep crimson; boiling, congealing, viscous blood. The bones soon created a full grown skeleton; it lay supine and still.

The boiling, blood-like substance moved and shifted to cover the skeleton. A thick coating covered the bone as it continued to boil. A low, soft whine filled the room as the boiling substance began to sizzle dangerously. The skeleton trembled and shook as the layer of substance thickened and dried on it, only for more of the viscous material on the ground to shift and cover the skeleton. The cycle continued until only a trace amount of the substance covered the floor. Sounds, no longer soft in nature, projected through the dark room, harsh and tortured as desperation bounced off the dank walls. The air grew thicker with hot, humid air, a reaction from the happenings on the ground. Dried remnants flaked off the newly formed red, tender musculature that gradually grew to cover the bones and vital organs forming inside.

Every new, fresh nerve exposed to the sharp edges of the dried substance screamed in protest, forcing the tortured cries to increase in volume. Still, the viscous layer continued to cover the writhing body, only to dry and continue the unbearable agony. Shaking hands scratched at burning bits of newly formed flesh; the tender blisters and raw skin did not hinder the mission. Angry red tender skin clung to the floor as the body tried to escape the grasp of the pain holing it down and a new, fresh, agonized scream was emitted when the fine layer of skin remained fused to the floor when the body rolled over. Rivulets of blood rained down a battered back. The pain was unbearable as sharp, prickling stings bombarded the senses with the emergence of fine hairs as sharp as needles from the still raw skin. The cloying scent of burning and decaying flesh forced a disgusted gag. Any other form of movement was virtually impossible as every muscle trembled viciously beneath the tender skin that tore from strain. The torn skin did not heal itself, and remnants from the dried substance seeped within the open wounds to create a constant burning.

A dizzy head lifted. Blue eyes blinked back the harsh light of the moon. A battered, shaky breath escaped and bled into a more guttural, feral pant. The breath of a wounded animal. Long, excruciating minutes of torture passed before the pain ebbed to a throb. As shining blonde hair continued to grow from the body's head and rest against tender shoulders, the body began to tremble. Green, misty waves wafted off the contours of the skin, creating electrical surges in the air that seemed to pop off every single molecule of water trapped in the atmosphere. As the electricity intensified, the pain continued to lessen. Memories of a life past and ended rushed through, both strengthening and enraging. Slow, deliberate movements pulled the body up to stand and a quick glance at the bare window granted a rugged reflection. But those blue eyes didn't see its image; no, it saw the determined fighter plunging wrist blades into its chest.

"Ah fuck, not again."

Wobbly legs carried the shaking body to the lone stool in the corner. On it rested a set of clothes. Beside the stool was a tiny refrigerator that was immediately opened to reveal dozens of blood bags. Thirst and feral needed demanded the blood; the body made quick work of using its teeth to tear into them and moan at the sensation of the thick liquid coating its insides. Pulses of heat shot everywhere and eyes closed in sweet ecstasy. A rush of energy relieved whatever pain was left. There was no longer any discomfort. The clothing on the stool was soon put to use, covering the pink flesh that had become rejuvenated by the recent meal.

Rebirth.

It was always a bitch and a half.

* * * * *

Liam had a good mind to leave Xan to herself to lick her wounds but had been ordered by Alexis to set things straight. Hell, she needed some time to reflect on the way she was living her life. His words were harsh, but they were true; Xan had a child to consider, and her needs should have come first. At this point, it didn't even matter; there was a bigger situation to contend with, and Xan's cooperation was beneficial to solving their problems.

What about his problems? Sure, he didn't go around picking fights with demons or even get himself hunted by Sherlaine, but he did have his own issues to deal with. He was still mourning Nadia and had to deal with the ramifications of moving on. There was also his personal life - hell, what personal life? Unless there was a big bad to fight, Liam sat on his ass all day, playing video games with his internet friends. He really should have lived for situations like this, and he would have... if only the person he set out to protect wasn't such a pain in the ass.

He didn't bother to knock as he opened the door to Xan's room. A momentary flash of her naked body made him pause. Shit, he really needed to get a hold of that. Yes, he saw her naked, and yes, he liked what he saw. Too much. But he wasn't going to let it be a distraction any longer. It was time to get down to business. Liam took a steadying breath to calm himself before taking a step into the room. Xan stood in the center, silently working through several martial arts exercises. She looked extremely peaceful and her movements were much like a dancer's in the way her positions transitioned into each other. Xan was focused; she seemed to be in a trance-like state, which told him that she'd somehow found some sort of Zen. Damn, she was sexy even when doing something as menial as... what the hell was she doing to tai chi? "Your form is shit."

Xan paused in her transition as she let out a tired breath. As much as she would have loved to go another round, she really wasn't in the mood to waste the last of her patience on the person who'd robbed her of the majority of it in the first place. "Thank you, Mr. Miyagi."

He almost smiled at that. "If you're going to train, you have to do it right."

"Is this the part where you take me under your wing and we have a tender 'Karate Kid' moment?" She shook her head cynically as she dropped her stance. Apparently she couldn't even relax in peace. "Do I look like Hillary Swank to you?"

Liam tilted his head in though as he stared at Xan. He waited until she quirked an eyebrow in irritation before he said, "Hillary Swank, no. Ralph Macchio on the other hand..." He felt an intense surge of satisfaction at seeing the enraged glint flash in her eyes. She was even sexier when she was pissed. "Maybe in his younger years. You do have the skin tone and hairstyle."

"Que te jodan." Fuck you.

Oh how he wished. "We have a fitness room."

"Where?" Xan placed her hands on her hips in anger when Liam only turned on his heel and walked out of the room. "Do I look like fucking dog?"

"Are you coming or not?"

God how she wanted to rip his eyeballs out! She begrudgingly followed, but kept a wide distance between them, which probably wasn't the best idea. From her vantage point, she was able to appreciate the breadth of his shoulders and the strength they seemed to exude. They tapered down to a narrow waist and what had to be buns etched by Michelangelo himself. Mierda, his swagger screamed sex and that bright copper hair of his...

Xan shook herself out of her outrageous thoughts. What the hell was wrong with her? The man was an asshole and a world-class prick. Keeping Xion safe was the main goal, not her oddly activated libido. She focused on the twists and turns she had to make to get to their destination; she didn't want to have to ask him the way after this. The last thing she needed was to come off as some female with no sense of direction.

It took less than five minutes to get to the room and Xan was very happy that she'd learned of it. This was better than a high class gym. The room wasn't as large as any of the other rooms she'd seen, but the space was used ingeniously. To the left of the entryway, adjacent to the wall rested a weight rack that looked shiny, but well worn. Various weight machines were spread out throughout the room and there was a weird contraption to the right of the doorway; it looked like the frame to a telephone booth and inside it was a simple metal bar anchored a foot from the top of the frame. There were also hanging straps and for a second she thought of an ancient torture device... Or at least some kinky sex box. She wouldn't put it past these men; they had to get their kicks somewhere. The oak floors were glossy, which made her wonder if the room ever had any kind of traffic. Probably not considering the fact that the treadmill toward the back of the room had a lot of marks on the belt. "Nice digs." Not that she should expect anything less from a house like this.

Liam wasn't in the mood to chit-chat. "On the mat."

"Excuse me?"

Liam took his time approaching the woman who'd quickly become the bane of his existence. He liked the sassy tilt of her hips as she looked at him, and that pissed him off. "Did you finally choke on all that back talk?"

"In your dreams, cabron." An uncomfortable knot formed in her stomach when he stood directly in front of her. The tips of his sneakers touched hers, and she had to tilt her head back to look at him. She never noticed the silver chips in his eyes, or the impossibly long lashes that framed them. His scent, very earthy, and a little bit like lemon, wafted toward her. Her heart raced, her palms began to sweat, and an unfamiliar heat began to spread through her lower abdomen. She needed to take a step back, but wouldn't dare let him know that he had an affect on her. She had to stop looking at his eyes.

Xan nearly choked on a gasp when her gaze traveled down to his mouth. Meirda, that was a bad idea. Liam's lips were pink despite the hard line of his mouth. She wanted to touch them, to feel them against hers. She wanted-

"What the fuck are you looking at?"

The exasperated tone of his voice immediately annoyed her. She wanted to kiss him in thanks. "Nothing special, pendeho."

Liam kept himself from smiling. He knew that she'd been staring at his mouth and the light flush that took over her face as she unconsciously licked her lips nearly made him pull her in for a taste of those full lips. She was lucky that he wasn't his brothers and had no intention of bringing his work home - sexually, anyway. It didn't matter how much he wanted her. "Get on the mat."

Xan frowned as she took a step back. His nearness was having too much of an effect on her. A quick glance around the room revealed a large blue protection mat in the back corner of the room. She chose to wordlessly obey his orders. Once on the center of the mat, she turned to look at him. "Happy now?"

"Delirious." Liam followed her onto the mat before raising his hands into a defensive stance. "Hands up."

"You want to fight me?"

"I want to improve your skills."

"Excuse me?"

He wasn't about to tell her that she was one of the very few women he'd ever found himself impressed with, especially when it came to self defense. Nadia wasn't much of a fighter, but she did do pretty well with cookware as a weapon - "If you want to call yourself a fighter, you'd better fight like one."

"Hold on just-"

"You can hold your own at a Dymos when you're up against your friend," he almost winced at the flash of pain in her eyes, "but demons like Sherlaine only let you hit them because they want you weak when they destroy you." He threw a slow punch, knowing that she would instinctively move to block it, and took hold of her arm when she did. "Drop the shoulder and tighten your arm like this." He continued to hold onto her hand while he moved her arm to complete the block. "This is when you follow through with the strike to the chest."

Xan nodded as she forgot about everything else and concentrated on her lesson. Liam continued to feign attacks only to stop and correct her defensive moves. Luckily she was a quick study and only had to be shown a move twice before moving on to the next. In no time, she'd improved her defensive fighting.

Liam was impressed by her quick grasp of his lesson and decided to mover her to offensive attacks, her strong point. And strong she was. Xan launched constant attacks, searching for a weak spot to dismantle his defenses. "Good," he encouraged when she adapted to his style and attempted a jumping back kick. "The best thing you can ever do in a fight is adapt to your opponent."

"It helps that you're predictable." He was the furthest thing from predictable, but she wasn't about to inflate his ego.

"Now you've got some mouth."

"I'm not stupid enough to piss a teacher off during a lesson."

"No, just stupid." The remark earned him a smack to the head that made him laugh. Based on the lack of force behind the strike, he knew that she was a willing participant in the verbal combat they'd begun. He continued to feign attacks, testing her retention of his teachings and gradually pushed harder to advance her skill. He liked the way her body moved and without the band holding her breasts down; the pert orbs bounced mouthwateringly. There was also a fine layer of sweat on her skin that seemed to sparkle beneath the bright lights.

"My eyes are up here." Xan made the remark as she shoved him backward. He was too close; the heat permeating off his large body threw her off and made her want to press herself against him. She didn't like that. Anger washed over her and pushed her to intensify their sparring. Liam hadn't expected the change and took a long moment to adjust to the transition. "Don't slow down on me now, old man."

"Don't flatter yourself, baby."

She didn't like the warm fuzzy feeling that came with the word. Annoyance welled within her once more and she pushed even harder, changing her tactics. She figured that if she concentrated on getting a blow in, then she wouldn't have to worry about the enraging feelings flowing through her. Xan threw a series of punches that Liam managed to block but the amazed look that took over his face made her feel better. "Where's the bad attitude now?"

"Don't test me, little girl." Liam blocked a particularly vicious sideswipe before pushing forward to counter the move with a back kick. As he'd expected, she jumped backward, giving him the opportunity to sweep his feet across the ground. Of course, she'd jumped up to avoid his leg, but that was what he wanted; he grabbed Xan's leg and pulled her down on the ground with him, his intention getting on her stomach so that he could pin her down. But Xan was a bit of a master of wrestling as well; she twisted out of his hold and wrapped her leg around his waist as she put her weight into rolling them over. In moments, she had him on his back. The intimacy of the position wasn't lost on Liam; his body was quick to react to the pressure of her pelvis on his lower abdomen. He had to use the power of his legs to flip them over before she moved the wrong way and felt her obvious effect on him. "What now?" he panted down at her. The flush on her face made him groan inwardly as a very special part of his anatomy began to throb.

Xan narrowed her eyes when she saw the cold glint in Liam's eyes. He wasn't angry, based on the semi-relaxed state of his face. He certainly wasn't happy either. A man like him wasn't capable of feeling that emotion. But that glint made her stomach grumble oddly. She twisted to elbow him in the face and gasped indignantly when he only shifted before pinning her arms over her head. Before she could think to use them, he pinned her legs as well and just like that, the weight of his body expertly held her down. The sides of Liam's mouth quirked up in a victorious smile and those silver chips in his eyes made her forge to breathe.

Dios! The man was hypnotizing. She stared into his eyes for a long minute, noting the way they darkened as his pupils dilated. There was a change in that look, one the warned and excited her at the same time. Xan found it difficult to fill her lungs with air when she realized that he was slowly leaning down to kiss her. His warm and surprisingly sweet breath brushed across her face. She felt herself leaning up to meet him halfway despite the fact that her mind screamed at her to stop. She gasped in surprise when his tongue slowly brushed over her bottom lip. Heat shot through her body to pool between her legs, forcing her to emit a small moan at the sensation. He was teasing her and testing her limits. Her job was to stop this nonsense. But as he licked her bottom lip a second time, she was only able to touch the tip of her tongue to his experimentally. Liam groaned and shifted his weight, covering her flush with the heat of his body. Warmth permeated through their clothing to seep into every cell of her body like a heady drug. She thrummed with a familiar, but unidentifiable sensation that made her swallow nervously.

"Xan!"

Liam was quick to roll off Xan's body as her panicked sister shot into the room, Draco and Alexis on her heels. She grabbed and pulled on her hair, shaking her head as if she fought to remove some horrible image from her mind. Xan had her in her arms in moments, and murmured calming words to the child in their native Spanish. Xan continued to shake wildly while her eyes stared off beyond her sister, seemingly trapped in some sort of hallucination.

"What the fuck happened?" Liam demanded of his brothers.

"No clue," Draco replied, "One minute she's in the kitchen eating eggs and chatting Lexi's ear off, and next thing you know, she's shaking and screaming bloody murder. Scared the crap out of me when she took off running."

"She seemed to know exactly where she was going," Alexis remarked.

"Xion, baby," Xan pulled her sister closer and gently rubbed her tiny hands. "Come back to me. Look at me." The gentle command was repeated twice more before Xion's eyes began to focus. "That's it, honey. Look at me. Look at my eyes."