It was night in Venice, but the young girl known as Sakura Yugure couldn't sleep. {I've got this feeling, like something's going to happen,} she thought as she looked out from Morrigan's penthouse balcony. {It can't be because of my pranks on Morri-neesan after winning that bet - though making her act like a personal valet *was* funny,} she thought, remembering her battle - and wager - with her new sister, the loser being bound to do whatever the winner said for the night.

She was so engrossed in watching the moonlight play off the canals that she almost missed the small gray bat trying to wing its way past her into the penthouse.

Almost.

"Hadoken!"

The ball of chi crashed into the bat, sending it down to the balcony floor, where it twisted and reformed into an old man. For a moment, Sakura recoiled at the thought of hitting someone so ancient - then she saw the glowing red eyes and the fangs.

"Vampire!" she cried out, lashing up with a kick that caught the old man under the chin, slamming him against the side wall of the balcony.

"Yes, yes, now out of the way! Anatole must deliver a message to Lady Morrigan Aensland, yes I must! Out of the way little girl!" he rambled at her. "Must give her the message, no time to taste little girls' blood, no no!"

Her reply was predictable. "My *name* is Yugure Sakura, I happen to be Morrigan's *sister,* and I *HATE* people who talk about eating me!!" she yelled, dashing in.

A minute of short and vicious mayhem later, Anatole was crumpled on the floor of the balcony as his vampiric powers tried to cope with how Sakura had rearranged his limbs. A gilded envelope drifted from his twitching hand, to be neatly snatched from the air by the shapely fingers of the Aensland princess, who had come to investigate the commotion. With a few short movements, she opened the letter and read it aloud.

"My Queen of the Night,

Recently awakened, it has come to my attention that a base knave had assumed my form to do harm to your person. I have little doubt that he has caused you no small degree of annoyance since my fall into torpor over six centuries ago. Please accept my invitation to my castle so that I can have a chance to make amends.

Should you be able to contact the mortal known as Yugure Sakura, would you please be so kind as to bring her with you? As you well know, no mere mortal can freely pass into Makai save with the aid of a Darkstalker.

Signed,
Demitri Maximoff,
Lord of Vampires."

Morrigan arched one eyebrow at her younger sibling. "Really, little sister, even in Makai we don't kill the messenger," she sighed. Sakura had the grace to look embarassed.

"Oops... sorry!" she offered to the slowly regenerating vampire.

"Anatole will go now," he proclaimed as he sat up, and quickly suited actions to words as he morphed back into a bat and flew away.

"So we're going?" Sakura asked her sister as the latter stepped back through her door to the Makai. Morrigan had gone to get news of Demitri from Castle Aensland, and had been away for a few hours. The sun was just peeking over the horizon.

"Yes," Morrigan answered. "My minions in Castle Aensland tell me that the vampires are whelming as if for war, and we'll at least be able to get a good look at them... and between the two of us, I think we can force an escape if it comes to that," she finished with a grin.

Sakura sighed. "So that guy I fought was an imposter, huh? I hope he got his just desserts for it. Nobody's *ever* violated me like he did." Seeing Morrigan looking pensive, Sakura followed the natural tendency of a teenager and indulged her curiosity. "Oneesan? You've been looking funny ever since reading that letter. Is something wrong?"

Morrigan sighed. "I never told you about how I first met Demitri, did I?" she asked rhetorically. She then spun a short tale of how she had met him as he tried to force his way into the Makai, but then the two of them had combined forces against common foes. Although another warrior had beaten the evil known as Pyron, Morrigan and Demitri had shared an attraction... and then Demitri had gone into torpor after fighting Jedah and, as far as Morrigan had known, came back changed, less brave, less honorable. "...so you see, I might have married him, except for the battles with Jedah. But after all this time... I don't know how I *feel* about him any more," she finished.

[Side note: The story *before* the fight with Jedah is chronicled in the Darkstalkers OAV's. They're a good show!]

Sakura *blinkblink*ed. "So you might be seeing someone you were in love with for the first time in centuries. Now I *have* to come with you - there's no way I'll miss this!"

Morrigan grinned at her enthusiasm. "You *do* remind me of Lilith, you know. The same optimism. Very well, shall we be off?" she said, opening a door in the air.

A moment later, the penthouse was empty.

Demitri sat pensively in his throne as he replayed the moments when Morrigan had stolen his heart so long ago. Her beauty, her fire and her passion took his breath away even now. What would she think of him now, gone for over half a millennium? In truth, that stretch of time was nought but the twinkling of an eye in the existence of a Darkstalker; Demitri himself was as old as human civilisation itself. However, shapeshifters and succubi were notoriously fickle. After all, how were they to survive if succubi formed emotional bonds with each of their victims? In the ruins of the once proud Castle Maximoff, Demitri had sworn that she would be his queen and no other. But now, that outcome was in doubt, and doubt was a rare emotion indeed for the Lord of Vampires.

"Onii-sama......." purred a voice in his ears, interrupting his reverie. Demitri looked up to behold the luscious form of his Castellan.

"Onii-sama, your new play pretties are so.........naughty. I want to punish them a bit."

"Of course Konishiko, that is within your purview." Demitri patted his thigh, indicating that the Kitsune (fox-spirit) should sit in his lap.

Cradling her in the manner he once did when she was a small child, Demitri looked into her opal eyes. She had come into his household as little more than a child, now she was fully-grown and confident in the use of her powers. "I promised you that I would tell you the truth of your heritage on your coming of age Konishiko. However in all of the turmoil: Pyron, Donovan and Jedah; I have been remiss in my duties. I pray you can forgive my oversight."

Konishiko looked pleadingly at her mentor. "Onii-sama, you gave me life, you gave me my freedom and you allowed my mother to live her life with honor. You were embattled and weary, how could I blame the man who raised me?"

Demitri's eyes took a far-away look as he began to recount his tale of a time when he searched for wisdom in the mystic East. At the time, Demitri was but a fraction of his present age; he needed to see and learn much before he could be worthy to assume the mantle of Lord of Vampires. He had met many beings of power and gained much in his sojourn but his greatest adventure was in the Land of the Rising Sun.

In Japan of myth, he met a Kitsune Lord who was hunted by his foes. Even when in desperate straits, the Kitsune was kind enough to offer a weary traveller shelter from the rays of the sun. That night, his adversaries struck at his abode, disregarding the sacred law that the family of a gentleman was sacrosanct from violence. The Kitsune fought with all his furor to defend his wife and unborn child but he was overmatched. His enemies stuck against him in great numbers, dishonourably overwhelming him with superior numbers in a land and time was honour was sacred. He would have fallen that day if his guest had not joined the fray.

When the bodies of his most potent rivals laying at his feet, the Kitsune fell to his knees and pledged fealty to his guest. He could not defend his family so he had to pledge his life and service to someone who could. Demitri accepted the Kitsune's service and he served Demitri faithfully until his demise in battle. With his dying breaths, the Kitsune lord begged his Master to care for his wife and babe. Demitri could not honourably refuse such a request so it was that when he returned to Castle Maximoff over a century later, the Kitsune's wife and child accompanied him on his journey back West. Since then the Kitsune's wife and descendants had served as Castellean of Castle Maximoff; seeing to the needs of all who live within its walls.

Morrigan and Dark Sakura stepped out of the portal at the foot of Castle Maximoff. Restored to its former glory, the magnificent edifice climbed into the perpetual night sky of Makai as if reaching out to snare the moon itself.

At the gates of the castle stood a man imperious of bearing. His hawk nose and cruel, pinched features hinted at his aristocratic blood as his fine garments accentuated his sublime, inhuman beauty. He bowed low to the pair of ladies. "Greetings Princess Aensland and Lady Yugure. I am Baron Sengir, Marshal and right hand of his most noble majesty, Lord Demitri. I have been bidden to escort you to his audience chamber." Sakura found herself more than a little unnerved when her nascent senses reported that this creature was almost as powerful as the impostor she fought.

The pale-skinned nobleman was the perfect gentleman as they entered the castle's courtyard. Sakura took a moment to gawk as two combatants sparred against each other.

One was certainly an imposing figure. Clad in archaic gothic plate mail, he was eight feet tall from the tip of his horned helm to the bottom of his metal shod boots. In his hands was a huge flamberge, seven feet long if not larger. The massive blade whirred with uncanny speed and grace as he wielded it as easily as a lesser man would wield a rapier.

His opponent was a stark contrast to the first combatant's obvious strength and power. He was a slim, darting figure. Garbed in light leather armour in the manner of a woodsman, his twin scimitars rang off the giant's blade with a staccato rhythm as he beat off the assaults of his larger adversary. It seemed that the man was made of smoke the way he dodged and evaded the twirling flamberge.

Sakura finally succumbed to Morrigan's impatient tugging of her sleeve as their escort gestured for them to move on. "Please ignore Ishan and Veldrane. They sometimes feel a need to flaunt their martial prowess now and again. It's good for troop morale to see that their commanders are more than proficient at arms."

Through the corridors of Castle Maximoff they travelled, always wary of a trap, until they arrived at a pair of massive bronze doors emblazoned with the crest of the Maximoffs: the Dragon Rampant. Baron Sengir bowed to them once again. "Please await here for a moment while I announce you to Lord Demitri."

Sakura kept glancing around as they waited for the announcement to be made. {I still wonder if this is safe. We're as deep in enemy territory as I might be on Bison's island Mriganka.} As she kept watch, her eyes caught a flicker of movement. Still a bit paranoid, Sakura spun, just in time to see a flash of fuku disappearing around a corner. {Who on earth would be wearing a fuku here?} she thought, and turned to her sister. "Oneesan, wait here a minute. I need to check something out," she commented as she jogged lightly to the side corridor.

As she looked around the corner, a voice drifted back to her from a doorway in the hall. "...no mistake, that was Sakura-san!"

"Hey, Mako-chan, d'you think she's come to serve the Master like we do now?"

"I dunno Usagi-chan, but that would be so cool!" Various quiet squeals of excited agreement reached Sakura's ears.

{Wha? Somebody here knows me?} a confused Sakura thought, and snuck to the door and peeked in. The sight within was so startling she didn't bother to keep quiet, and her gasp was heard by all seven occupants of the room.

"Sakura-san!!" cheered Devil Hunter Yohko, her apprentice Asuza, and the five Sailor Senshi. Sakura was speechless.

"Sakura? Bat got your tongue?" Sailor Venus asked, and Sakura winced.

"That's *cat,* Venus," she replied, thinking {I know she messes up quotes, but did she have to make a bat reference here?} Swallowing, she asked, "But what are you all *doing* here? Last time we met, we were in Japan!"

Yohko smiled. "Oh yeah, up against that rogue - what'd you call it, Mercury?"

"Diamon, Yohko-san. A creature brought into being by the Death Busters to steal people's heart crystals," Sailor Mercury explained.

Even though the Busters had been beaten by the Sailor Senshi a few years ago, they had left 'Diamon Seeds' all over Tokyo, and a few of them had hatched, combining with nearby objects to create a monster, and had rampaged over the city.

~~~FLASHBACK~~

Sakura had been training quietly when this *thing* had come upon her, saying something about hearts and crystals before slamming her into a wall. She had fought back, but the thing had done something - that she would later find out was removing her heart crystal - and everything had gone hazy. She literally felt her life slipping away. {I have to... get back... that crystal it... pulled out of me...} she thought woozily, but her staggering steps were far too slow. Just as the creature was about to leave the yard, a cry had rung out from the rooftops.

"I hold no malice to those coerced into evil, but to those who would corrupt the hearts and minds of innocents, I say 'Beware!' The 108th generation Mamono (devil) Hunter, Mano Yohko, is here!"

"And her apprentice, Asuza, as well!"

The two Devil Hunters engaged the monster long enough for Sakura to catch up to it and bat her Heart Crystal out of its hand, and as it turned on her with a roar of rage, another cry rang out, this one an attack.

"Shabon Spray!"

With that, a fog descended over the battlefield, but oddly Sakura found herself able to see through it perfectly well, while the monster flailed about as if blind. She fumbled for her crystal on the ground in front of her, then a pair of white-gloved hands reached out and lifted it up, gently pressing it to her chest, where it was pulled back in, and Sakura felt the return of her vitality.

A gentle face framed by two odango-ponytails of blonde hair came into her view as she gasped in air. "Shh. Just stay here. It'll be all right," she reassured Sakura as other fuku'd forms blasted the monster with what Sakura could only assume were *chi* attacks. Then the angel of mercy - who Sakura would later learn was Sailor Moon - turned back to the fight in the dwindling fog and Sakura hauled herself to her feet.

{They just saved my life - no WAY am I letting them take on that thing without my help,} she thought, and began to focus her *chi* into the move she'd been practicing.

A sudden breeze whisked the fog away, and as the girls attacking it stood revealed, the monster began to leap after them and bat them to the ground one by one. Seeing her blonde saviour go down, Sakura felt a flare of rage, then let that fuel her *chi.*

"Shinkuu... Ha*DO*ken!" she yelled, as a giant layered ball of her *chi* blasted the monster to the ground.

"Ima da (now), Sailor Moon!" one of the others yelled, and the blonde Sailor Senshi unleashed the Moon Spiral Heart Attack, unraveling the magic that kept the Diamon alive and banishing it.

~~END FLASHBACK~~

The young girl warriors had kept in touch after that, Sakura helping them a few times, and Sakura smiled at the memories. "Yeah, you remember that time Lead Crow stole my Star Seed and made me into the Phalse, Sailor Shotokan?"

[Note: This is a Sailor Moon: Sailor Stars (season 5) reference. It will likely never show on American TV but can be found on infosites.]

Everyone giggled. "You hardly changed at all, Sakura-chan!" Sailor Jupiter chortled. "We always said all you'd need is the jewelry and you could pass for a Senshi..."

Sakura elbowed Jupiter. "Not funny! Ano..." she paused, then went on. "Are you guys here to attack Demitri? I can't exactly help you... I got invited to visit him, sort of... and if I help you out, the lady who brought me here might get blamed."

Everyone smiled at her. "Oh, no problem, Sakura," Yohko replied. "We *did* originally come to fight him, that's true... but when we did, he showed us how *wonderful* he can be..." her voice trailed off into a sigh.

Sakura began to get nervous as all the others in the room echoed the sentiment. "But Sailor Moon!" she exclaimed, focusing on the most likely to snap out of - of whatever this was. "What about Tuxedo Kamen? You love him, don't you?"

Sailor Moon blinked at her non-Senshi friend with a blank look, then arched her neck back in memory of her feelings as she replied, "Oh no, Demitri-sama's *much* more wonderful than Mamo-chan..."

Sakura froze for a moment as Sailor Moon's motion revealed two small punctures on the side of her neck. "No... he bit you..? And - and made you all-"

Yohko nodded with a blissful grin. "His vampire servants, and it's *so* wonderful!" she enthused, and then blinked as Sakura looked like she was ready to either cry or explode.

"Don't worry, minna (everyone), I'll fix this," Sakura said, and headed back to the throne room door.

"Fix? Fix what?" the typically clueless Sailor Moon asked.

"Oops! She must intend to confront Demitri-sama about this, and try to make him reverse it!" Sailor Mercury exclaimed.

This led to a stampede toward the door as the enthralled girls moved to head off their well-meaning friend. Unfortunately Konishiko interrupted them, stepping into the doorway. "Now, naughty play-toys, it's time to be disciplined-" she began, only to be mobbed as the Senshi and Devil Hunters fought madly to get by her...

"What kept you? We were just announced," Morrigan called out to Sakura as she reentered the main hall.

"Good - I have to *Talk* to Demitri," Sakura answered, storming past her.

"Wha- little sister, wait!" Morrigan yelled, following the girl inside.

The massive bronze doors swung open with a dull *boom* as Sakura strode into the audience chamber. Demitri sat on his throne, the epitome of dark majesty. Sakura was intimidated enough for this to dull her fervour. A little.

"LET THEM GO." Sakura hissed through clenched teeth as her battle aura began to manifest visibly. A crimson haze surrounded her telling of the power and fury that she held barely in check.

"And to whom do you refer to Lady Yugure?" Demitri asked, never losing a bit of his composure even in the face of a hostile pseudo-Darkstalker.

"My friends you jerk! The ones you **ENSLAVED!**" Sakura screamed. The force of her chi amplified her voice to levels that had the lesser servitors covering their ears.

"I assure you Lady Yugure that no one in Castle Maximoff is here against their own will."

"Will you let them go or must I *make* you do it?" Sakura said in an idle tone as if she were discussing the weather. Flaring blue chi flames at each of her fists belied the civility of her words. Demitri's court readied their weapons the moment they got over their disbelief. This insolent *girl* was actually *threatening* Lord Demitri in the seat of his power.

"Sakura," hissed Morrigan urgently. "Look at your hands!"

Sakura glanced suspiciously at Morrigan before she held up one her hands and dispelled the chi flames around it. Her eyes widened when she saw that her skin had taken on a dark, reddish hue. The same as Akuma's. The shock of this revelation was enough to bring her back from her battle fury. Her aura collapsed back to normal making her look like a Japanese schoolgirl with an unusual skin colour once again.

"I won't leave them here Morri-neechan. Not under the control of......of......HIM."

Demitri looked bored at this moment. "Lady Yugure." Despite herself, Sakura found herself looking at him when he spoke her name. "I can see that you are on the cusp of becoming a Darkstalker yourself. When you finally reach that plateau, you will realise that not all Creatures of the Dark are as magnanimous as myself. If Lord Raptor had defeated them, they would have been sacrifices to Emperor Ozum. Even if Princess Morrigan had taken a fancy to them, they would have had their very life energies drained from their bodies. When they fought me I gave them my terms: service should they lose and my demise should they win. It was an honourable contract between two honourable parties."

"HONOURABLE?" screamed Sakura. "YOU CALL ETERNAL DAMNATION 'HONOURABLE'?" The red haze of the Satsu no Hadou returned with full force. Swirling energies played around her hands in the prelude to a Shinku Hadoken.

"Sakura-" Morrigan interjected, grabbing the girl's shoulder. Despite her reassurances she was not totally confident of them fighting their way out if Sakura aroused Demitri to anger.

"SHUT UP, YOU'RE ON HIS SIDE!" Sakura yelled as she backhanded Morrigan. Again the Satsu no Hado left her as she looked at her handiwork in horror. "Morri-neechan I'm so sorry...."

Those were all the words she had managed to utter before the force of a Chaos Flare detonating less than a foot away from her knocked her off her feet. Sprawled in a most un-ladylike manner on the ground, Sakura looked up to see the bronze doors swing open once again. The Inner Senshi and the Mamono Hunters poured into the audience chamber over the battered form of Konishiko.

Her gaze and concentration snapping back to her opponent, Sakura kipped up to her feet, eyes alight with red in the signature gaze of Akuma. Her breath came out in a hostile hiss, and her back foot dug in to hurtle her at Demitri, who was now standing before his throne...

...just before she was buried under a pile of young girls. As they all tumbled to the floor, Sakura felt each grip distinctly. Yohko had her in a headlock, Jupiter and Asuza were each pinning an arm, and the other Senshi added their weight to a pile on Sakura's legs - except for Sailor Moon, who scrambled around to talk to the wildly thrashing fighter.

"Sa-chan, Sa-chan, *please* stop!!" the blonde meatball-head implored. The voice got through to her - {I never could ignore her when she asked for something,} Sakura thought ruefully as she calmed down - and as her thrashing slowed and stopped, Mercury got off the leg-pile and came around to the front as well.

"Sakura-san, you're not the same as you were when we knew you, are you?" the blue-haired genius asked, tapping her Virtual Visor, which was now scanning Sakura from the look of it.

Sakura blinked, then nodded. "I can't explain right now - not with folks listening - but something happened to me. It isn't really *bad,* but..."

"It has to do with your loss of control, doesn't it? You never lost your temper so completely while we knew you," Mercury went on. Sakura looked down, shamefaced, as the others got off her and they all got to their feet.

"Yeah. I'm sorry, but what happened to you guys-"

Yohko cut her off. "It's not that different than what happened to you, is it? Do *you* want to go back to the way you were, Sa-chan?"

Stunned, Sakura blinked several times, then reflexively replied, "No! But..."

While she floundered, searching for something to say, Jupiter laid a hand on her shoulder. "Sakura, I know you meant well - but if you don't want to be 'cured' of what happened to you, then why do you assume we should go back to how we were?"

"That - It's not the same thing! I did this to myself!! I didn't know everything about it, sure - next to nothing, actually - but you guys were made this way by Demitri!" Sakura stammered back.

As the whole crew gathered in front of her, Sailor Mars shook her head. "Yeah, but didn't he tell you, it was part of the deal for getting a shot at him? If we won, he was dead, if he won, we'd serve him. I admit, I didn't think it was like *this,* but..."

Asuza picked up the verbal thread. "...but that's still not too different from you, is it?" the perceptive Devil Hunter Apprentice asked. "We didn't know everything about this, but we got ourselves into it... and we wouldn't want to go back now, even if we could."

Seeing Sakura struck speechless, Sailor Mercury turned to face Demitri. "Demitri-sama, Sakura acted out of the belief that we had been forced - possibly dishonorably - into this existence. She can't be blamed for that - we had helped each other through similar circumstances before, and it always seems to happen again. Please, do not blame her for this outburst..." she asked, kneeling with head bowed.

Demitri sighed. "I understand the ties that bind comrades in battle well. It is honourable to aid one's friends in distress. However, there happens to be a slight against someone else besides myself that must be redressed..." he trailed off, looking at Morrigan, who had healed her bruise and was licking the blood she'd wiped away off her hand, as enticingly as only she could do it.

"Oh, tish tosh," Morrigan said of the blow. "She repented that even as she did it. Besides, she and I have done far worse to each other already," she finished, quirking an eyebrow at Sakura.

Immediately the Senshi and Hunter group spun to stare at Sakura. "You mean... you and she... like Uranus and Neptune..?" Jupiter asked with wide eyes.

Sakura's red colour suddenly owed more to blush than to the Satsu no Hadou. "I - you - Jupiter!! She's talking about sparring!!" she sputtered.

Demitri's eyebrows shot up. "Truly? Who won?" he asked Morrigan quietly.

The Aensland princess smiled back. "She did."

Demitri could not have been more shocked by the news if Morrigan had just told him of Pyron's return. In their last true days together, he and Morrigan had been the only ones able to match each other. "Interesting..." he murmured. Looking back down to Sakura, he called to her. "Lady Yugure, might I interest you in a proposal?"

Sakura cocked an eyebrow at him. "But I thought you wanted to marry Morrigan! How could I live with myself, stealing you from my oneesan?" she joked, striking an overdramatic long-suffering pose with her hand over her eyes. Despite efforts to the contrary, the girls around Sakura giggled, and even Morrigan's lips quirked.

Demitri sighed. Again. "I was referring to a bargain, a way to perhaps let us both get what we want," he explained in a patient tone.

Sakura cocked an eyebrow. "Such as?" she asked, hands on hips.

"I cannot undo what was done to your friends. No force in the Mortal or Demon realms can restore a vampire to their human form. However, I *will* allow you to take your friends out of this castle as your chattel if you agree to one of my conditions."

Sakura bristled at the thought that Demitri was *bargaining* her friends away like pieces of property. She was also distressed to note that her friends seemed distinctly unhappy with this turn of events.

"One. Defeat a champion of my choosing and you will have their indentured service for a year and a day."

"Two. Serve me willingly and they will be placed directly under your command and in your keeping. Rest assured that all those who pledge allegiance to me have never regretted the act."

"And three. Should Morrigan agree to wed me, then your friends will be one of the many gifts I would bestow upon my queen."

Sakura Yugure's face vacillated wildly from elated to disappointed to disgusted in a heartbeat. She looked to Morrigan for advice and was startled to see that her eyes were shiny with unshed tears. "He truly is the Demitri I knew long ago. You can trust him to keep any bargain he makes. Trust your heart Sakura-chan, let it guide you."

Pulling in a deep breath, Sakura walked up to stand close to the throne of the vampire lord. In a low tone that didn't carry back to the giggling Senshi, she asked, "And what would become of their feelings for you in any of those cases? Do they really feel this way about *you,* or is it just the one who commands them that they adore?" she asked.

"It is me, and will be until the day they are destroyed," Demitri sighed back, also quietly. "The bonds of blood cannot be easily or safely broken, and more often than not the breaking, if accomplished, leaves the former subject a gibbering wreck. I assume you would prefer not to risk such things for your friends..?" the master vampire asked.

"You're right and you know it," Sakura muttered back, glaring at him darkly before turning back down the steps of the throne, walking back to her 'sister.' "Oneesan... you're almost crying. You weren't even this moved when I agreed to be family to you," the girl noted. "Do you love him?"

Morrigan blinked in surprise at her little sister, then nodded. "Yes... I believe I do. It's strange... I vowed I would give myself to only the strongest, or failing that, to the one who defeated me. Demitri is neither - we fought to a standstill, and Pyron was stronger than either of us - but he won my respect in our first battle, my admiration with his determination, and my heart - although I did not realize it at the time - in his bold battle with Pyron, even though he lost. That's why I was so shattered when he reappeared - or rather, that impostor did - so much weaker in power and heart, so much less of a man. Yes, I believe I do love him, even though such constancy runs counter to the nature of succubi."

Sakura smiled at her. "Then I guess we have a solution for everyone. You should stay with Demitri if you love him."

Morrigan smiled back, though a tear trailed down her cheek. "And what about you? I'm sure you would be welcome, either here or at Castle Aensland.."

Sakura shook her head. "No, oneesan, I don't think so. If I come back here and see my friends like this, someday I'll lose my temper and fight Demitri - and whether I won or lost, you'd be hurt. I can't let that happen, so I guess this is 'so long'... at least until I have more control, of myself, of my powers. Still, even if I don't come here often, I imagine I'll see you again soon."

Morrigan kept her smile firmly in place. "I suspected as much. Still, I think Demitri can be... persuaded to understand my need to roam. My kind aren't the sort to be happy cooped up in one place."

Sakura nodded, and turned to Demitri. "I think my sister has something to say," she began, then stepped aside to clear the path between Morrigan and the throne.

Morrigan smiled up at Demitri. "My lord Maximoff, might we resume the courtship - and road to marriage - that was interrupted by your torpor those centuries ago?"

Demitri gripped the arms of his throne so tightly that they almost shattered. It would not do to have the Lord of Vampires caper around in a jig like some love-struck schoolboy. But Demitri was very, very tempted to do so.

Outwardly impassive, Demitri descended from his throne and strode up to Morrigan. Falling to one knee, the Vampire Savior kissed her fingertips. "It would be my greatest pleasure Princess Morrigan." Slipping out a ring from his finger, he presented it to her with great solemnity. "The Signet Ring of the Maximoff. Don it Princess Morrigan and all of Makai will rejoice at our union."

Morrigan knew of this ring, of the history behind it and the powerful protective magicks it held. It was crafted to ward the brides and heirs of the Maximoff line, a priceless artefact sacred to the ruling line of the Vampire Lords. And he had just given it to her.

Turning to the gaggle of vampiresses, Demitri spoke in ringing tones. "Hear my decree Senshi and Mamono Hunters. Henceforth you are the entourage of Princess Morrigan, my bride to be. Serve her as you would serve me for someday she will sit by my side as Queen of Makai."

The seven Japanese girls were downcast that they were being sent away from their Master but at least they could serve him in this. Morrigan's subtle magics were already working on them as they turned reverent eyes to their new Mistress. Any woman that could capture Lord Demitri's heart must be a paragon of feminine virtue. Some of the more man-hungry among them like Minako, Makoto and Yohko were already plotting on just how much they could gain from her tutelage.

Brushing a tear from her own eye, Sakura nodded. "That's it then, oneesan. You take care of my friends for me, okay? And," she whispered, sidling up to Morrigan, "don't corrupt them any farther if you can help it, OK? I know it's tempting, and I bet *you* gave me those dreams I was having," she finished whispering with a mock glare at the succubus princess.

Morrigan sweatdropped. "Um! Well... no harm done, ne?"

Sakura sighed. "Just take it easy on them. And make sure to invite me to the wedding!" she finished with a grin that Morrigan returned in equal measure.

Seated in his throne once more, Demitri gazed sternly at Sakura. "Lady Yugure, you already wield power far in excess of most mortals. You will learn in time that you must temper your fury and power with honour. Sometimes honour is difficult and forces one to make decisions one would rather not but it will be a bulwark against complete mastery by the power of the Dark."

Sakura nodded her head at this. If nothing else, this escapade had taught her just how much she needed to control her temper. The Satsu no Hado could slip from its leash given the least opportunity. A dark mist surrounded her, obscuring her view of Demitri's court.

"For example, even as I converse with you now, my heart aches that I could not come to the aid of the Joketsuzoku Amazons. They befriended me on my journeys East once. However their Matriarch of the time forbade me or mine to set foot into Joketsuzoku when they learned of my true nature. My honour thus forced me to stand aside when the entire village was recently decimated. I would very much rather send my forces to free them in memory of the friendship I shared with their ancestors but my word is bond. Learn honour and live well Yugure Sakura. It is rare to see a mere mortal ascend to the mantle of Darkstalker."

The mist dissipated and Sakura found herself just outside of Tokyo Tower. "Mere mortal eh? I'll show you!" Looking for an address book, Sakura knew that she definitely had to pay a call on an old sensei if what Demitri said of the fate of Joketsuzoku was true. The man who had taught her about throws and holds had taken a wife - sort of - from the Amazons of China. {Poor Rindou-san... Comb'll be beside herself if the Amazon Village really fell! Who could do that...?} she wondered, then answered her own question with a scowl. {Shadoloo, of course! I *have* to see if I can do anything about this. First to the Rindoukan Dojo, though,} she thought, closing her eyes and concentrating before vanishing in the Ashura Warp as she teleported to her destination.

Meanwhile, back in Makai, Morrigan grinned at her husband-to-be. "Very clever, Demitri; you're as devious as ever," she said, drawing stares from most and a raised eyebrow from the master vampire himself.

"My dearest lady, whatever do you mean?" he inquired in sardonic tones.

Morrigan's smile widened. "Giving her the news of the Chinese Amazons like that, of course," she answered with a grin. "You may not be able to send *your* forces to their aid, but giving her the news like that practically guarantees she'll intervene. They get help, she hones her powers further, and your honour is intact. Everyone wins - except for the poor fools incautious enough to stir your wrath, of course."

Demitri's grin showed fangs. "Precisely, my dear; precisely."