Grieving [Dante]

[X]

Chilly as it was, today, Ren felt, was a beautiful day. Those birds whose constant chirping had flown southfor the winter, wanting to be somewhere warm.  She could only how bothered akito must be by the lack of birds, and that only made the woman more cheerful. She allowed a peaceful smile to spread on her face as she walked through the gardens.

She gazed at the many flowe bushes and birdbaths that decorated the Sohma gardens. Akira-San loved birds. He had been buried underneath the nearby birdbath. She walked over to it. There was a little stone saying his name, birth date and death date. Beside the birdbath was a bush of blood red roses. She had planted them there herself after he died. 

Slowly, ren knelt down in front of the bird bath and his stone. Then, a look of extreme grief came over her face. It was an expression that would shock anyone who saw her. 

Ren almost began to cry, but did not. Instead she stood up, brushed off her black dress and turned to walk away from her dead husband's grave. 

She nearly collided with the man. She hadn't realized he had been standing behind her. Ren almost blushed, but instead she just gave him a seductive smile, as if she had not been mourning just moments before. 
"D'Noir," she greeted happily, immediately pecking him on the corner of his mouth. "You really shouldn't sneak up on me like that."

((Meh...))    

[Dante]

The guy was tall, and with a grin, he took Ren's hand and kissed it. The man had golden blonde hair,part of which stuck up no matter what he did to it, and today, wore a smile that was geniune, not just false as he had always made them. There were very few that he got along with, and only one that he had ever loved. Seeing her was as good as anything, especially since it had been a long time since he had last managed to see her. Especially since Dante had showed up. In fact, the last time he had seen her had been years ago, although neither seemed to have aged a bit throughout the years. D'Noir still had his school boy looks, not to mention the look of anger that seemed to draw every female in, still. He enjoyed playing with them, but it wasn't the same. They didn't share the same bloody brilliance that he did.

"Ah, but Ren, what fun would it be to appear just like everyone else?"
Pale blue eyes sparkling, D'Noir laughed softly.
"Besides, you can't tell me you don't like a good suprise, now can you?"
Winking, D'Noir looked around, almost in a survey of the place. He had known that she had been grieving for her lost husband; a fact that really didn't bother him. They had done it when she had had a husband, and if she wanted to again, he was game. It had been a while. Looking back down, D'Noir grinned, this time though, the smile wasn't so pleasant.
"How are they? Still hate each other?"
Yes, the last time he had seen Ren, he had done her a favor. And he had done a good job, he knew, for there wasn't much, if anything, that could bring down those walls that he had built. It had worked for the very beginning for Dante after all, why shouldn't it hold anything else that had happened?

"Come, let us walk. You must tell me how things have been around here."
With his charming good looks, French accent, and general outside personality, it seemed to be nothing more then a casual stroll. Only those who knew him better could start to fathom what they were going to talk about....

[=death= I HATE this post, but I can't come up with anything else. DDx]

[X]

She loved him. Though he was much unlike her ever calm, ever kind Akira, sometimes she loved D'Noir even more. Unlike Akira, D'Noir cared only for her, loved only her. He did not obsess over the children she gave birth to. In fact, he seemed to hate them as much as she. 
She allowed him to kiss her hand, smiling at him pleasantly, lovingly. 
"Surprises are certainly pleasing," she agreed with a smile. She was a lot happier than she often was, mainly because he was there. Her algae eyes were alight, and she almost kissed him once more. 
She smirked at his question. 
"Oh, they can't stand each other in the least," she told him, sounding quite happy about it. "In fact, Dante attempted to burn akito's wing of the house down a couple of years ago. It's a shame that he got caught. But now they rarely even see each other. He's been banned from the house unless akito says otherwise. He's been living with shigure, the rat, and that other disgusing abomination." ren's tone sounded satisfied. 

She began to walk with him, holding his hand and leaning on him.

((ehhh...)) 

[Dante]

Grinning, D'Noir laughed, a rather pleasant sound, as he casually took Ren's hand, smoothing her hair slightly as it hit him in the face, looking quite pleased about everything. And why wouldn't he be? It was all so perfect, them hating each other.
"Perfect. Simply, perfect. They should stay that way, unless something rather drastic happens, but whats the chance of that happening?"
For a while, there was silence as the two just walked, glad to be in each others company once more. It had been a long couple of years after all, and seperation really wasn't the easiest thing around. Not that D'Noir had totally been alone, the tramp that he was.

And yet, I keep returning. Interesting.
That probably had to do with the fact that Ren had always kept a hold on his heart, ever since Highschool, when they had been dating throughout the years. He hadn't really been hurt by her sudden marriage between Ren and her husband, D'Noir was very bad at names, but he had decided it would be best to stay away for a while, and he had. Now, he was back, and the two didn't stand a chance, Akito and Dante that was. They would make their lives hell, and the best thing would be that the two wouldn't even know that they were once closer then just half siblings. How much fun this would be!
[FAIL.]

[X]

Ren laughed along with him. It really was perfect. She was just as pleased as he was. And after he smoothed her hair, she rain her fingers through it. It was slightly wavy right now. It had been in a braid earlier that day.
"You know, we'll be rid of Akito within less than ten years," she said, smiling. " 'He's' already had quite a few close calls. Probably won't be much longer now." It was true. There were several times when Akito got so sick, she probably could have died, if it weren't for how great a doctor Hatori was. It had been estimated at the beginning of the goddess' life that she'd die around age thirty. But now it was obvious that she had far less time than that. Six years more, at most. Then Akito would be dead. Gone. The thought practically made Ren giddy.

And with D'Noir back (she KNEW something good would happen today!) Dante and Akito, both of them would wish to be dead. As they should. They were only burdens. An inconvenience that she and D'Noir had to deal with.

For a moment, she even felt angry with Akira. After Akito had been born, she'd felt that he only cared about that stupid child. And only because of what it was cursed with! Had Akito been cursed by the cat, she knew that Akira probably would have despised the child. Had Akito not been cursed at all, Akira would have /tolerated/ her. But because she was 'god,' Akira adored her. Stupid curse. With Akito around, Akira had never considered the fact that Ren had never wanted to be a mother, never wanted to have to care for a child. She did not like children. They were stupid and worthless brats.

She sighed quietly to herself at her inner thoughts, but smiled up at D'Noir, leaning against him.
"Things have been fairly pleasant around here. The rat, Yuki, left around the same time as Dante. He couldn't stand being around Akito any longer." She smirked.

[Dante]

D'Noir grinned, shaking his head.
"That sickness was a natural favor from above, it saves us so much time. If only the doctor wasn't as good as he is, then life would be so much more simple."
Sighing, D'Noir shook his head, light blue eyes dancing slightly as he thought of exactly how well the plan had gone. They wouldn't remember each other, Dante and Akito, unless something big happened, and with Dante exiled, what were the chances? The thought made him want to laugh; he hadn't been this excited in a while. Or maybe it was just because he was around Ren; the one that he had been able to get along with for so long. Great minds must think alike, as D'Noir casually met her gaze with his own, knowing that the angel of the sun would be playing on his natural blonde highlights, making them more golden then before. Yes, he looked good. Yes, he knew it. No, he wasn't afraid to play on it, and seeing as it usually worked, it was all good.

And for a while as the two walked there was silence, both lost in their own thoughts. D'Noirs revolved mostly around the possible way to torture those who he didn't like, and it wasn't just Akito and Dante, he had a list, and at the same time, paying attention in case Ren said anything to him. Time was short as it is; and torture was never enough. Death was too easy, that was why he happened to be so proud of his work on Dante and Akito. All those who knew anything were sworn to secrecy, and half of them didn't remember that far into the past anyway. Not after Dante had been gone for a while before returning as he was; and Akito had changed toward him as well. Everyone assumed it was just another fight. At least, until Dante had tried to set Akito's wing on fire it seemed.

"Perfect! Her world is falling apart as she knows it, it won't be too much longer before she really does loose it!"
Casting a gaze at Ren, D'Noir grinned slightly.
"You know my philosophy as well as I, Ren. What do you say to making their lives worse? I'm thinking you should find a way to make Akito go over to Shigure's, find them out, and then she has to confront Dante. They fight, and the blocks only get that much stronger. Fueled for hatred of each other, there is no way that this can fail!"
Unless something intense happens...
The thought refused to leave the blonde psycho's mind. Casting it aside with only a shrug, he looked at Ren, excitement glittering in his eyes.

Ah, it was just like high school again!

[X]

To D'Noir's first statement, Ren merely nodded her head, murmuring her agreement, then going silent. She watched his face as they walked, observed the way the sun made his hair shine even more. She admired his eyes. It wasn't the first time she thought that he looked quite a bit like Akira-san. But it was a rougher look, too. More interesting. He looked better than her deceased husband, and she very much liked that.

As the silence continued, Ren wasn't bothered. It was a very comfortable silence, in which nothing had to be said between them. She just thought about how wonderful D'Noir was. Well, to her. She knew many others would certainly say otherwise, but in her opinion, he was an amazing man.

"She's already lost it. I'm not sure how she's keeping herself sane. That stupid Kureno, probably. They're always so close. No wonder Shigure left her the way he did," she said lightly, eyes dancing similarly to the way D'Noir's had been earlier.

"It's a very good idea," she added, smirking. "It would be very easy to get her down there. She's such a jealous person, after all." Ren laughed there, recalling how clingy Akito was. Self-centered, too. Oh, she was annoying. And a burden. Ren could not wait until that foolish child was dead.

[Dante]

Birds flew up above the pair, singing their songs, and various other animals twittered every now and then as the two disturbed them. The gardens were full of wildlife, even though they were often disturbed by the casual stroller. Occasionally, one could see the gleaming eyes of something slightly larger then the casual animal, although animals were no fear of D'Noir. In fact, aside from cats, he tended to be rather fond of animals, especially canines who were to dim to do anything but follow orders that he gave. And at times, he wondered why people couldn't be like that, mindless and obediant, aside from his Ren of course. She had always been his, even when she had been married. D'Noir knew of how much he resembled her dead husband, and he didn't miss her gaze as it flickered over him. Handsome in a rough way, ruthless, as well as something that went farther down for those who actually managed to show him that it was possible for him to care for someone else; to worry about someone aside from himself. To show that he had, perhaps, a touch more humanity then he thought. That it hadn't all burned out in the darker years of his lives. It was a vaguely hopeful thought, but it was one that he would have to live with as he often put up his outer facade of calm and thoughtful, never revealing how cruel he was, aside from to Akito and Dante, with Ren to help him. It was nice to let the mask slip down sometimes.

"Kureno."
D'Noir spat the name as though it was a poison, eyes narrowing slightly. The sheer fact that Kureno may be keeping Akito sane was more then enough reason to make him want to harm the little sparrow; he could join the club of hate if he didn't hate the current members.
"Ah well. He is nothing more then a hinderance to us; easily taken down. And besides, he doesn't matter. The only way the block comes off is if something drastic happens, and I doubt that will happen."
Unlike his son, D'Noir was able to laugh, and he did quite airily, nothing more then something snatched up by the breeze. Shigure couldn't do much with the blocks for Dante, neither could Kyo or Yuki, which was exactly why it had been good to send Dante there, a place where he had no real memories about anything. At the main house, everything had been always so risky, for where the memories were the strongest, the shields were more prompt to break, if enough pressure was applied.

"Jealousy is an amazing emotion when it comes to manipulating people. Especially when it comes to her men. Now, how to get them out of the house. Maybe a trip to the beach, something Dante will refuse due to the fact that he despises everything about beaches. And the other monster would go only to make Tohru happy, and if the rat challenged him."
D'Noir said softly, mind spinning as he plotted, before he grinned once more at Ren.
"And it seems as though my manners have deserted me at the most unfortunate time. Here I am, talking about plans for destruction, and I have a beautiful lady that I have not seen in too long. Such a gentleman I am."
Shaking his head as though he was actual hurt at what he had done, he turned toward Ren, still a small smile on his features.
"What would you like to do?"

How could one who was so insane be so kind at the same time? It wasn't part of the mask, this time he actually meant what he said, for once. Such an odd one he was, D'Noir.

[X]

It wasn't as if Ren hated animals, but shrill sounds like twittering birdsong hurt her ears and gave her a headache. She did't understand how that fool of a child could stand them flocking outside her window each morning, pecking at the windows, wanting her to lift them on her finger and stroke those feathers. She just couldn't make sense of it. Oh well. Birds carried disease. One of these days, Akito was going to get ill, then die. Slowly and painfully, with any luck. And when that day eventually came, she'd act like she were grieving, so the others wouldn't get the wrong message and think her cruel. She was certainly not cruel. Merely rational. Any rational person would want that horrid girl dead, after all.
Then, she'd quite literally dance on her daughter's grave.

"You know, Kureno's slowly drifting away too, anyway. He wants to leave. Anyone can tell, by the way he always stares out the window while she's asleep. I can't blame him. I wonder, though. Why does she keep him so close?" She didn't understand why. Maybe because Shigure had left? Oh well, it didn't matter. It had been a rhetorical question anyway. "We could probably tempt him into leaving, as the rat and Shigure were." She smiled. Nobody could stand Akito's rule for long. They'd all leave, Ren was sure if that. They'd leave. Then she'll have won the bet. Akito will prostrate herself before her, then leave the Sohma house. Ooh, that would be wonderful. It was a mere matter of time before that child was alone. Ha! Even her half brother hated her!

"Mm. How to get Shigure to want to go, though? Mm, I'll have to see if he has any books due to that editor of his." Ren grinned wickedly at the thought. She knew Shigure enjoyed torturing that woman. She almost felt sorry for the girl. But it was quite humorous, on the few times when Shigure would actually tell her something. Though, he visited very little, and only to see either Hatori or Akito. "If so, he'd be happy to go on an outing to the beach."

The wicked grin on Ren's face faded to a gentler one as D'Nour adopted a kinder air that drew her in quickly.
"It is quite rude of you," she agreed in an almost joking manner, voice little more than a whisper.
She thought over what it was she would like to do. "Well, I'd quite enjoy escaping the estate for a while. It's been a long time since I've gotten a good glimpse of the real outside world. Akito smothers everybody here, after all," she said, leaning on him, quite close to him. He'd be able to smell the flowery perfume she'd put on this morning before she'd left her house. He'd be able to take in every strand of her long, desceptively beautiful, but truly oily hair. He'd probably be able to feel her heart beating.
"So let's go somewhere," she added, kissing his cheek. It was a wonder the too-bright lipstick didn't make a print.

D'Noir, obviously, wasn't the only one who could go from insane and cruel to kind and gentle so quickly.

[Dante]

Somehow, during the conversation, D'Noir's thoughts had drifted toward money, or rather, how much he usually cost. A hit man as himself, skilled in the ways of the trade, was incredibly expensive, and had a rate that would make most choke. Most. It was because of that reason that he had a rather...large sum of cash in several banks. He wouldn't ever say how much, but he could take as many world trips as he wanted, and still not even dent it in the slightest. He was a very rich man, but his looks came natrually. He wasn't charging anyone anything for this though, something that he found to be rather amusing. Maybe it was because of his feelings for Ren. Or Dante. Or Akito. It was hard to tell, although he was willing to bet it was a combo of all three.

He had to supress a smile though, as Ren spoke. Of course Kureno was growing distant, nobody could stand to be under Akito's thumb for too long. Shigure moved away, the rat and the two cats moved away, it was like a circle of hate! And once she was alone, Akito would wither into insanity. Not that she wasn't insane already, Dante being removed had made her fall off the deep end. It almost made him wonder what she would have been like if they hadn't set up those little blocks. Almost. Instead, he was pleased with the work they had now, there was no need to dwaddle into the possible 'what ifs.' The world was full of those, and in fact, they were rather pointless questions.

"I'm sure he does; always putting those off till the last minute. I have to admit, he is amazing when it comes to torturing his editor." D'Noir murmered, mostly to himself, although it was loud enough for Ren to hear it. He had often pondered the thought of torture as Shigure conducted it, but in the end, had decided that it wouldn't be as fun as his way was. After all, he woulc be able to watch the side effects after the first attack, something that was hilarious beyond reason for D'Noir's twisted mind.
"The beach is perfect. The cat will go to please perfect little Tohru" D'Noir said the name with a sneer, he did not like that one, the only one who knew of the Sohma curse without getting her mind wiped about it.
"But Dante won't go because of his past experiances, although he won't know anything about them."
Oh yes, Akito had almost drowned once. Dante shouldn't have been able to save her, but since when had he followed the rules? It was impossible to tell with that one really. Maybe because of what D'Noir had done, but that was a different story for a different time. Hopefully one that would never come.

Grinning slightly, D'Noir nodded.
"Anywhere you want to go in the world."

[Sorry its so bad--I have to get off = rushed reply.]