The Circle Girls

Chapter Fifty Three

August awoke to calm. Not the stillness of a cool morning or serene night, but the manufactured tranquility of his emotions being siphoned from him. Like water, drained for his safety.

"Stop. Don't." He reached out, knowing without looking that Yasuko was sitting beside him. His hand closed over hers. "Please."

She paused in her diffusing, then acquiesced. Reluctantly. Her hesitation was kind of sweet, though her lack of remorse hinted that she might try the stunt again. "You were having bad dreams." She had lifted the divider between their seats to sit closer to him, sides flush, one ankle hooked around his.

He opened his eyes, taking in the airplane siding, the closed windows and spacious seats. The plane was quiet, except for the hiss of air conditioning and minor air turbulence. As if in the distance, the engines hummed a low drone.

Yasuko had draped a blanket over them both, her luminous eyes dissecting him with worry. Becoming a dragon had made her more sensitive to temperature, hence the blanket. He had become a little sensitive, too. He tucked a corner more securely over his far shoulder, lifting his arm without her asking. Immediately, she scooted closer, drawing her knees up and propping her chin on his collarbone. The warmth was immediate. The contact was good, too, in ways that only vampires could comprehend. There was a type of loneliness that most beings didn't understand, a singularity of the soul. Others had never experienced what it was like to share their existence with another, and as such didn't realize their loneliness. But now that void was filled, and August couldn't envision how he had ever survived without Yasuko.

A future without her was awful to think of.

He bumped his head against hers, the timing of his breathing matching her pace. "It's okay. Let me mourn. Just because you don't..." He bit back the words, though he knew that she could sense the direction of his thoughts.

Just because you don't mourn doesn't mean I shouldn't.

"I didn't get a choice though, did I?" She quirked an eyebrow at him. In jeans and a blouse, she looked like any other young woman. The restless bruises from not being able to sleep were gone, as were the bouts of crying and morose silence. The fact that she could so easily shift into normalcy scared him, a little. But not too much, because her tranquility had been by his design.

It would take a while, to get used to the things he'd done to her.

"It was easier to remove everything." Remorse should have cut through him. Guilt, too. But he stood by his choice. No, he believed in it.

He wound an arm around her waist and drew her closer still. Her hair smelled like home. Not like the estate, his room in the Cage, or a spot at Libby's table for dinner. Now, home was simply where Yasuko was, where their bond existed.

"I don't blame you." She soothed, though they both knew that she couldn't blame him. That she would have hated him for what he'd done...but couldn't.

He'd destroyed everything—her love for her sister, and any lingering regrets that might darken her heart. He hadn't realized that the Circle could be used to manipulate someone to that extent, and the knowledge scared a small part of him, thinking how it might be abused. No wonder Yasuko had feared entering another Circle, especially against her will. Whoever controlled the Circle could reshape everything about her—turn her into someone else.

Which was exactly what Sakura had done. And what August had done, too.

To a lesser degree, of course. He hadn't altered Yasuko's personality or her memories. He'd simply erased the part of her that had cared for her sister. She remembered, was aware that she'd once been in wretched love, and was also aware of her sibling's unfortunate demise. But Yasuko wouldn't cry for Sakura Kushida any longer...because August had eliminated that sentiment in its entirety. The remnant within the Circle, too.

And so...Yasuko didn't care. Not about Sakura, at least. Not anymore.

"...she's consuming. Destructive."

It was for the best.

"I've thought of one."

He glanced down at his partner, but she was staring at a closed window, red creeping up the sides of her throat. He felt her embarrassment, tightly clutched against her chest as she tried to hide it from the bond. She did not, however, hide the name.

Sakura's warning resounded in his head, strident, but August ignored the voice of a woman who no longer mattered to either of them. His mouth curved into a soft smile, growing as he watched his approval make her melt, "I like it."

Akii.

She smiled in return, contentment coming off her skin.

The plane bumped a little, making August's stomach dip. The flight was supposed to be around sixteen hours. If he'd slept for three or four, there was still another three-quarters to go.

He closed his eyes, apprehension at the fringe of his thoughts. In a few hours, they would be in Macau and officially under the Yinglong's control. An indefinite contract and a nebulous future within the Responding Dragon's temple. August and Yasuko, both, were now subject to the whims of the Chinese and their game of collecting dragons. Hidden in those musings was a whisper of a reminder—that his life was more than just usurped and sold. It was irrevocably changed. He was changed. So it could be said that he wasn't just leaving his family and life behind, on a plane to China. He'd already left them, days ago, when he'd told a vampire about his favorite colors and foods and become a vampire himself.

Yasuko's—no, Akii's—hand touched his chest, her palm warm against his thumping heart. She hummed a soft tune, her head swaying as her eyes slipped shut.

"It's okay." She whispered to him, winding her arms around his waist. "It'll be okay, August."

He pressed his cheek against the top of her hair, closing his eyes as well. Images of Libby, Tavius and Tavia assailed him. Tavia, running away. Tavius, apologetic and manic. Libby, the light dying in her eyes. His chest thudded, uncomfortable and anxious about the nightmares to come, but he could smell and feel Akii beside him.

It'll be okay, she had told him. He believed her, just as surely as he believed in the choices he'd made for her sake. Not today, not tomorrow, and most certainly not the day after that...but one day, he would recover and be stronger for it. Stronger than Akii, strong enough to protect her so that she wouldn't befall to self-destruction like his sister had. Strong enough to weather her hatred, when he removed the shackles he'd placed on her.

He closed his eyes and hummed with her.

❁ THE END ❁

Thank you for reading! Please leave comments, constructive criticism, or vote if you enjoyed it.

A/N: Worried the name change might seem jarring, but it's very important.

Akii — autumn