Meeting the enemy.[Zane]

[x]

Daniel stood on top of the hill. His shaggy brown hair swung wildly by the evening wind, as he spilled his crystal blue gaze into the distance. Dan wasn’t looking at anything in particular, but rather pondered about the recent events. It felt strange to be in a different country, let along away from the people he knew. Well, there was a first time for everything.

What was it like to have a family? Daniel had pondered about this a lot when he was little. The boy used to sit silently in the corner of his room, waiting for anyone to appear and take him away from the orphanage, to no avail. He used to believe that one day his real parents would come to save him from the miserable life he had and hug him, and kiss him, and accept him. It was funny how things have changed since he was little. There was no more hope left, only anger. If only they have realised their mistake of letting the boy go. If only, indeed.

Daniel shook his head and let his body fall down against the trunk of a tree for support. His legs felt weak as the painful memories ravaged his weary brain, as though a voracious animal consuming its pray. The boy let an audible sign escape his lips as he finally closed his eyes to let them rest, inhaling the cool evening breeze in the process.

This was when he felt it. An arm wrapped itself against his throat, as he was jerked off his position into someone’s body. The cold radiating from it send his own into shivers. Something sharp and slippery grazed the right side of his neck, pinching it slightly. Old reflexes kicked in as the boy rammed the back of his head onto the attacker. Daniel heard that familiar “crunch” and felt the grip loosen. Taking one step forward he quickly turned around to finally face his attacker.

What he saw shocked him, to say the least. Daniel’s pupils dilated from the horrific image that was bestowed upon his eyes. It was something that he read and heard about, but never believed to be true – a real life vampire.

“Whoa, mate, you look like sh*te.” Daniel smirked, his acting skills hiding his true emotions.

The creature did not find his remark to be funny. It was clearly hungry and wanted nothing else but to quench its thirst. The vampire let out a loud growl before jumping forwards only to land on top of Daniel, pinning him to the ground.

The boy felt the wind knocked out of him, as he landed onto the hard surface. He couldn’t believe just how fast the creature was. He had people jump him, but he was always able to dodge. This was completely unexpected, yet he wasn’t about to let himself being eaten. He was the “Lynx” for God’s sake. Daniel shot his right arm to get a tight grip around creature’s neck to stop him from getting closer. The boy felt his muscles strain under the pressure, but managed to keep the vampire at bay. The “homenis nocturno’s eyes widened as he felt the great amount of resistance the puny human was putting out. The vampire used his free arm to pry from Daniel’s grip and then sunk his teeth into the soft muscle of boy’s arm to teach him a lesson. Danny let out a scream, as the sharp pain shot through his body, his other hand trying to push the attacker away. As the blood began pouring out of the wound into the vampire’s mouth Daniel Barrett finally let his true emotions show on his pale face at the fear of dying, right there in the middle of the empty park,

[Zane Dekker]

Another night at the park. One would think that Zane would learn not to come back to such a place at this time of the night, judging by his last two experiences here, with the later being the more painful of the two by far. Yet, for some odd reason, he couldn't refrain from finding solice in such a place. It had the same coldness and atmosphere to the cemetery at night, yet it was so different. It almost brought inner peace...Comfort. Whether it be by sitting on the swings, laying on the grass and watching the moon sink into the night sky, or the fresh breeze that hazed over his body, he enjoyed being in such an environment. There was some 'adventure' in such a place at night. And Zane liked an adventure, very much.

As he stepped onto the damp grass, his slayer instincts were kicking in. Something was going on....And before he could capitalize on what it was, he heard a sharp scream, from a boy who sounded at least his age. Without hesitation, he began running towards the surfacing sound, his heart racing much faster than it was moments ago. He thought these kind of 'attacks' only happened at the cemetery, but he guessed the park was now being vamped out. Kids play here...Teenagers cry here, and vampires apparently find night meals here. He didn't like the idea of this though. The park of all places should be a place of comfort, not of pain and struggle. But then he reminded himself of what the very town he was standing in was called. Sunnydale. Hellmouth.

He finally made it to where the sharp scream was eminating from, gasping when he saw a vampire straddling a young boy on the ground. Without hesitation, Zane ran foward, throwing the vampire off of him. He gave a quick glance at the boy, which sent a wave of curiousness through his body, but he didn't know why. He then noticed the blood on the arm, and wanted to help tend to it, but was attacked by the vampire with a punch. He managed to get to his feet, blocking a kick and following up with one of his own to the vampire's chest, staggering him backwards slightly. Zane made his way closer, punching the vampire in the head. "Weren't you ever that it isn't good to eat in a park?" The vampire didn't take lightly to this comment, charging towards Zane. Thankfully, Zane was prepared, throwing the vampire into the sea-saw. He then jumped on the other end, knocking the vampire in the head. And here he was thinking sea-saws couldn't be fun anymore.

He jumped off the sea saw, running over to the bar above the swing, gripping it tightly and kicking the vampire in the skull, knocking him to the floor. He then swung over the bar, flipping and landing on top of the vampire, before piercing its heart with a stake. And then he was sitting on the grass, with a pile of dust blowing into the midnight sky. He sighed slightly, before getting up and proceeding over to the boy. He raised his hand out. "That doesn't look so good..." For him, a bite mark like that wouldn't be a problem, but for a normal human, he was a bit concerned. Lucky he went for the arm and not the neck, otherwise Zane wouldn't have made it in time.

[x]

Daniel felt the life being drained out of him. The flow of blood seemed to become slower with each passed second. Thoughts were running wildly through wounded boy's head, never seemed to line up in a coherent trail. It was the first time in Daniel's life when he completely lost his concentration and was unable to think clearly. Boy watched with horror at what appeared to be his last moments of life.

Suddenly, he felt the heaving body jerk upwards, as the fangs were pulled out of the wound with an audible pop. There was now someone else in the picture, but because Dan's vision was already blurry at that point he could only make out a male figure that appeared to come to his rescue. Daniel shook his head and closed his eyes for a few moments. He needed to calibrate his thought, get it all together. He needed to think.

Dan opened his eyes and looked around. The grass he was lying on was stained with blood, his own blood. He tried to stand up, but was to woozy to do it. He left his gaze trail towards his broken flesh, as he examined the wound with caution. Luckily for him the fangs left his arm in one piece and not ripped a chunk of his flesh when the vampire was forcibly removed.

As the fog had lifted from his mind, the boy used his left arm to clamp the bleeding wound in order to stop it. Unfortunately he was too weak to rip his shirt, so this was the only logical way left. It was only then when he concentrated on the fight, that was audible nearby. Moving himself lightly upwards for a better angle, Dan watched in amazement at two males fighting. Whoever the other guy was he was good. Very good. He appeared to be the same age as Danny, but was definitely a better fighter.

It was somewhat strange to see everything that was going on around the boy. As if taken from some kind of action movie, both males seemed to define some boundaries to what human body was used to. Were all the horror stories true? Did superhumans really exist? This town was definitely weird.

When the vampire was turned into dust, Daniel had to have a double take. This was just too much. He heard the other approach and speak to him, but did not catch what he had said. His attention still directed at the pile of ash that was already beginning to disappear in the gusting wind. He raised his eyes to finally looked closely to the figure before him, taking in all the little details. The guy was young indeed.

Daniel looked at the other's extended arm and noticed his attention on the wound. He seemed concerned. Perhaps that was he was talking about, while the Lynx was distracted by the ashes.

The brown headed boy accepted the arm, pulling himself upwards. He tried to stand firmly on the ground, but could feel the tension in his body rising.

"The joke's all on 'im." He nodded his head towards already depleted pile, his heavy British accent evident."I've got AIDS."

But before the other could retort he added."Just 'aving a laugh, mate."

Danny felt his body shake, just a bit. Thinking that he was about to fall backwards he quickly put his right foot behind himself, only to realise that he was now leaning forward towards the other kid with an increasing speed.. As he was unable to catch himself in time he let his body drop freely into the arms oh his rescuer.

Bloodloss is a b*tch!

[Zane Dekker]

Zane smiled gently, showing some signs of comfort to the poor boy. He did look like he was in pain, and that was made evident when he took his hand. Even for a slayer, a wound like that could be fatal if left untreated. Zane was showing deep signs of concern. he didn't know why, but he just felt for the boy...More so than the usual people he has helped, even though not enough people. Once the boy was on a standing posistion, Zane gripped his hand slightly tighter, trying to make sure he didn't fall from the pain or collapse or anything. Zane looked at the boy with curiosity at his comment. A strong British accent. It was actually quite attractive when put into perspective. Zane smiled gently, but that smile turned to complete shock and confusion at his 'aids' comment. But before he could say anything, the boy admitted the joke, and a sigh of relief emmited from inside.

It was when he felt the boy stumble, and fall on him, that he became more worried. He helped the boy by wrapping his arm around his shoulders, trying to keep him up. Lucky he had super strength, otherwise this would have been a serious problem, seeing as the boy was bigger than he was. "Its gonna be alright...We just need to get that wound tended to fast. He looked around in desperation, then ripped his shirt without ease, and tightly placed the scraps over his arm wound, making sure it would stop the bleeding. "Your lucky he didn't get the neck, or then we would be having serious problems." He tried to lighten the mood with a smile, even though he felt guilty for not getting there earlier.

He wanted to take the boy to the hospital, but they would never make it. He couldn't drive, and this boy didn't look like he was physically able to drive, if he even could. Plus, there wasn't the most 'accessable' things to drive around with. Feeling defeated in that idea, he decided to suggest another. "My house isn't far from here...We can go there okay? I think I have some stuff to get the wound fixed up properly." He smiled genuinely, as he now focused his complete attention on stabilising and supporting the boy, as he had applied pressure to the wound, which seemed to be slowing the blood loss down. Bloody vampires...Turning an innocent park into a nightmare for the young. What, was he supposed to patrol the park at all times too? Guess thats what too slayers are for...He could patrol the cemetery, while she patrols the tiny park. Lucky here...She even gets a swing when boredom hits.

Feeling satisfied with the support delivered to the boy, he began to walk, making sure the boy wasn't at risk of falling. "I'm Zane by the way." He looked at the boy momentarily, before turning back to the road ahead of him. In such a situation as this, friendly introductions not only allowed the opportunity for a potential friend, but also to distract him from the pain of the wound. He was good at comforting people. One good quality he had other than being a kick ass slayer...

[x]

Daniel was relieved when a pair of strong arms was wrapped around his shoulders. He managed to avoid a nasty fall by burrowing his face into the other boy’s neck. A sharp pain in his arm made Danny gasp for air, as he unwillingly inhaled the other’s scent. There was something about the person that seemed to smell so familiar to Danny. It was calm and secure and smell like… home. The wounded boy used his left hand to pry himself slightly away from the rescuer mumbling apologies for the incident and feeling his cheeks slightly burn with embarrassment.

Dan hated when his real emotions were showing, so he had to concentrate hard to appear strong and confident in the other’s eyes.

“It’s not like I ‘aven’t been stabbed before, mate.” He gave the other boy a sheepish grin as he watched him ripping his shirt for bandages. “Although no one ‘ad actually tried to drink from me before.”

“Unless they were doing body shots.” He mumbled under his breath, whilst watching the other intently. As the other boy smiled, his body twitched just slightly and his gaze was averted for less than a second. “Was he feeling guilty?” Dan pondered, trying to push his intellect further to understand the other better.

Daniel felt a wave of nausea awash him. He would have probably fallen down if it wasn’t for his rescuer’s tight grip. Dan winced in pain as the other spoke, whilst applying more pressure to the wound, slapping himself mentally. The wounded boy usually had a high threshold for pain. Being stabbed and even shot during his reign as a leader of the gang, made him oh-so familiar to pain, but now…

Perhaps there was something in vampire’s saliva that caused this or maybe the lack of blood. Danny didn’t know, yet he hated himself more and more to appear so vulnerable.

“’ome?” He had to ask. Danny expected the other to either get him to the hospital or leave him somewhere whilst seeking help. It was unusual for the boy to be invited to someone else’s house. In fact the only time he was in someone else’s house was when he was robbing it. Watching the other’s face for any malice, he was greeted with yet another smile, this time appearing genuine and without any ill intentions. “Erm… sure. Don’t usually get invited to people’s ‘ouses on a first date, d’you know I mean?” He chuckled at his joke, which turned into a cough. He was really starting to lose it. Just how much blood was drained out of him?

Dan stumbled again, but managed to use the last of his strength to keep himself upright. He raised his head only to be greeted with an introduction.

“Zane? What a strange name” He grinned weakly, his face showing the first sign of wearing down. “And ‘ere I was, thinking that most of you Americans were James’ or John’s. Call me Daniel, mate and sorry for not shaking your ‘and.” He tried to grin again, but failed miserably.

Perhaps it was fate that all Daniel knew about his real family was their last name. Perhaps the old creep decided to keep all the information a secret and simply pointed Dan to the right direction, in order for him to find his own way. It was hard to tell. If only Lynx knew who he was talking to at this particular moment. If only he had realised that the person who was trying to help him, was the one he despised the most.

No matter. There still was time.

[Zane Dekker]

Zane did feel a little uneasy at the boy's comment about being stabbed before. He didn't seem to know much about the supernatural, which intrigued him very much. He did chuckle at the drinking comment. If put into another context, it would come voer pretty amusing. But for him, he knew the literal meaning of his words, and it wasn't very amusing. Zane continued to grip the boy in silence, not really sure how to take this man, nor how what to say. Sounded like he was used to fighting...With the stab and all. Although he shouldn't find interest in someone being stabbed, he was interested by why he would be stabbed. He seemed like an alright guy from what he could tell so far. After all, he hadn't tried attacking him or something. but maybe that was saved for later.


Zane continued to remain in silence as the boy spoke. He was almost speechless when the boy did speak. Was he hitting on him or something? Zane put it down to having too much blood lost, but he didn't move away from the thought of the sexuality of the boy. He didn't even know this guy, and he was already mentioning the word 'date'? He couldn't deny to himself that he felt a little on ease, but he wasn't going to hold it agaisnt this boy. He did feel for him, he really did. Zane cared for many people, even if he knew so little about them. Even though he was rebellious at times, it was in his nature. "Unless you want to bleed to death walking to the hospital." Zane did chuckle as the boy did, feeling at ease by the fact that he didn't sem serious. Zane just wanted to help the poor kid out, and if friendship was in the books, then great.

Zane smiled gently at his introduction. "I like weird names. And thats alright, sorry we couldn't have met under better circumstances." So Daniel was his name, and he wasn't American. His thoughts of him being from Britain were resurfacing, and basically confirmed. Britain seemed cool...He had met alot of arrogant American people, and grown to despise the culture.

He continued holding the weakened boy, walking down the streets, until they finally made it to his house. He had remained silent most of the walk, and thankfully it wasn't too long for it to be too 'awkward'. "Well...Guess we are here." He smiled gently, leading the boy up to the door, and proceeding inside. He was glad his mother worked late shifts, or she might be freaked out by what had just transpired.

[x]

Daniel grinned again. His mouth was already beginning to hurt from the excessive smiling. Deep down, however, he was feeling nervous. Throughout his entire life he had never felt so dependent on another person. Not only that, no one ever had shown any concern towards the boy before.

"I would never 'ave guessed that you were into weird stuff, mate." He retorted with yet another joke that could have been easily mistaken for an innuendo.

As they walked towards Zane's house, Dan too a quick glance over his surroundings. The night was evidently setting in, as the sun was kissing the horizon with its rays. The wind has become more intense and colder, much colder. Danny shivered slightly as his already low temperature got even more lower. Despite it all the park was very beautiful at night. If it wasn't for odd vampire, hiding in the bushes, it was a great place to sit and contemplate in silence. Away from the urban noise and people. The birds also appeared to be turning in, as their chirping diminished, which brought an even higher tranquility to this place. Sadly for Dan he was injured and had to be dragged away from this picturesque environment. The boy smiled slightly to himself at the thought of him coming out as a well passionate person to his gang members. They always thought he had no heart. He, made himself to appear that way. In fact, they expected him to be.

Daniel's thoughts were interrupted by another boy. They have apparently arrived to their destination. Dan raised his head to look at the place. It appeared nice from the outside. For a second there a hint of jealousy passed through the brown headed boy's eyes, before being suppressed by his usual mask. "What does it feel like to have a home? Will i ever experience that?" The thoughts run through. For a moment there Dan started to miss England. Even though he lived on the streets, his gang members were his family. No matter how dysfunctional that sounded.

Dan turned his head to look at Zane and smiled, the fake kind of smile that would appear genuine. "So this is your 'ome, huh? Not bad i say.You are one of those rich Americans, aren't you?" He smirked in a friendly manner, trying to suppress his morbid memories and take his thoughts away from the sharp pain that seemed to intensify with every second. His fingers were already feeling tingly. He looked at the bandage and saw it soaking wet. Dan needed to get a new one and soon. Damn it! Why did this have to happen to him? What hurt more, was that he wasn't even able to defend himself. It was truly pathetic Dan mentally kicked himself and bit his lower lip as some sort of a punishment.

"So, do all of you people greet strangers by biting them or this was just a case of mistaken identity?" He kept the conversation going." All we get is a punch in the gut or kick in the groin." He chuckled. "I am British by the way in case you were wondering. I don't 'ave a speech impediment."


The boy moved himself closer to the door and waited for the other to let him in. The security didn't seem to be very high and Danny pondered if he could easily break into the house. Just out of habit of course. Zane seemed like a nice fellow and Dan didn't want to ruin whatever friendship they had. No matter how minuscule it was, he needed someone to rely one, one way or another. In this unknown country he was truly alone.

[Zane Dekker]

A chuckle pressed the lips of the boy, whilst listening to the injured boy speak. "Rich American? Doubt it." He never saw himself as being rich, nor having a rich house. Even if he did in some way, he wasn't the type of go and brag about it. He was happy with what he had, appreciating it greatly, but never overhyping himself or his possessions. He liked realism in his life. Chuckling yet again at the boy's comment, he eyed him intrigingly, before letting off an answer. "Yeah...This town was never known for its friendly introductions. I found that out myself." When he first arrived in Sunnydale, he was attacked by a gang of vampires. Word gets around fast in these parts apparently. "Yeah I thought you might be. And I think your accent is kinda cool." He smiled genuinely, trying to keep the boy occupied and not thinking about the wound, which must be extremely painful. A vampire bite was different to a stab wound...It crunched into the skin almost. He could understand why so many died from neck wounds..

Feeling the terrifyingly cold breeze wash over them at the door, he decided it would be best to hurry the boy and himself inside. He didn't need the boy contracting a cold or the flu whilst suffering from a mortal wound. After all...He wasn't a doctor. Even if he wanted to be, which he didn't, he wasn't smart enough or patient enough for that occupation. "Hey are you cold? I can get you something if you want." The boy was shivering, and he felt sympathy for the boy. Zane was always one to consider others emotions and wellbeing over his own. Maybe it was due to him being a slayer and feeling the need to protect everyone, he would never really know or understand it. It could also be as result of his abusive father, and growing up without a father, which did have an impact on him. Turning away from these troubling thoughts, he huddled into the boy, to try and warm him up, whilst he sat him down on the couch. "Be right back."

Placing his hand on the boy's shoulder slightly with sympathy, he then hurried up the stairs and into the bathroom, hoping to find something of use. Bandages...Wet cloths...This bathroom had the lot. At times, it was good for a mother to be a nurse, especially when her son is a slayer. And now was one of those times that he thanked her for it. Feeling satisfied in the supplies he had, he hurried back down the stairs, and over to the shivering boy. "I may not be as good nurse as my mother, but I guess I'll have to do." He chuckled lightly, before pulling off the blood stained part of his shirt, before looking at the boy innocently. He could have called his mother, but what would she say about this? She would freak and it would jeopardise his alias. After all, if she found out, she would be totally against it. Being a nurse and all. "This may hurt a little." He lightly stated, before placing the wet cloth on the boy's arm. There wasn't as much bleeding, which was a relief. Applying pressure, he sighed slightly, thinking of all the people that have and will get hurt in this town in the near future.

Zane, feeling satisfied that the cloth had helped, now pulled the bandages out, and began rolling them over his arm slowly, and precisely. He wanted to be accurate. He wanted the boy to get better. "Do you have someone I can call?" Maybe if he had someone, he could create a fake story, and get the boy home safetly.

[x]

Dan felt like blushing when Zane complimented his accent, which didn't appear on his face due to a lack of blood. The brown headed boy shook his head slightly, trying to get his focus back. He wasn't here looking for relationship of any kind. He was here on a mission. If he could make an ally, whilst in this unknown country then so be it, but lovers and friends should be left alone. As soon as he was done here, he would return back to the place that he can call "home". Daniel felt his stomach churn at the thought. He was starting really to feel home sick. The boy only hoped it would pass . He needed himself to be strong for whatever was coming.

As he was finally let inside, Dan looked around the house with a quick glance. He was taking in all the little detail, which would help him to understand the occupants better.

"Huh? Nah it's okay." Danny returned his attention to Zane. " I can...."

He felt the other's warm body pressing against him, as he was sat down onto the couch." ...manage" He felt his body tingle and the stomach churn again. Perhaps the boy was sicker than he though or maybe there was something else.

As Zane left to get something, Danny was left alone to inspect the house better. His crystal gaze glanced swiftly through books, pictures and anything else that would help him better understand the other. He concentrated on family pictures first, as they usually said the most about people. It took Daniel few seconds to soak everything in. Noticing the evident disappearance of a older male figure on a recent snaps, he deducted that Zane's parents were either divorced or worse.In addition he picked up on younger Zane trying to stay slightly further away from his "father", which would probably mean they had some sort of a falling out. Maybe he used to beat his son, who was almost never smiling when stood next to his dad or if he was, it would appear fake. At least to Dan's eye. Danny also noticed that some of the medical books on the shelf, which told him that one of Zane's parents had a medical degree. The few recent medical magazines proved that the person was still present in the household, hence his mother was either a doctor or a nurse. The brown headed boy smiled to himself. He always loved to train his brain in such manner.

Dan waited for the other to come back, watching at all the medical supplies Zane brought. It was too much for a normal household. His deducting method was prooven right, when the other spoke of his nurse mother. Dan smiled silently to himself. He still had it. It was then when he felt yet another surge of uneasiness. Zane gave him this innocent look again, which was making Dan nervous. Thankfully the other removed blood stained bandage, which was already starting to dry to his skin. Dan winced as if in pain to hide his inner turmoil from the other. He was used to pain after all.

"It didn't 'urt at all." He put his trademarked sheepish grin on, while watching Zane putting the clean bandage on."I bet you 'ave some of your mum's skill."

He watched the other intently, without realising it. Zane wasn't that bad and they could even use his fighting skills back at home. "A fighter AND a nurse." Dan mumbled under his breath.

[Zane Dekker]

Zane smiled gently as Dan stated that it didn't hurt. He didn't think that would be possible for it not to hurt, gathering that this boy liked to hide his pain. It was understandable. Zane was like that at times, always trying to be okay in order to reduce the worry of the people around him, as he was the slayer after all. And evidently, it did end up working. But it wouldn't work on him. He knew the art of hiding pain very well. After all, what else was he supposed to do when he came home with broise marks when his mother was a nurse? He didn't need her stressing, or worrying about it. Knowing her, she would try to get to the bottom of it.

He chuckled at Dan's next statement, finding extreme humour in it. "I wish...But I guess when your constantly seeing people injured around you, it is bound to rub off eventually." He smiled gently at the boy, sizing up his arm, trying to make sure it was alright. He knew he was nowhere near as good as a nurse as his mother, nor had the greatest medical knowledge, but he did believe he had stopped most of the bleeding and severity of the wound. At least the healing process can kick in now. But this guy didn't look like the type of guy that would be patient during the healing. Another similarity these two had.

He began to notice the boy still looked like he was shivering. He felt that the boy was going to be okay now, but he still looked like he was hiding some of the pain of it to act tough. He could understand that. It was a male thing. Hell, he did it all the time. He sat next to Dan, putting his arm around him, and rubbing softly. "You still cold?" He still felt sympathy for the boy, after all, it was an extreme ordeal he endured today, and he was holding up alright. "Do you have someone I can call for you?" He figured his family would be worried about him, especially if they found out the nature of the attack. Would they understand? Of course not. Would they freak? There was a high chance, if Dan's family were like his. And although that was a good thing, it did become quite annoying in the long run.