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Crave the Night by Natascha (formerly known as: Ashleagh )

This is a story based upon the Dark Hunter series written by Sherrilyn Kenyon with Acheron Parthenopaeus as main hero. The other Dark Hunters as well as affiliated characters might show up as the story writes out.
Because this story is a Fanfiction which came from my own imagination whilst reading on in this series, note that it is in no way affiliated to Sherrilyn Kenyon. Please be warned again, that this might show spoilers to the actual series but it can also follow a different path to the storylines.

This FanFic as it's written is copyright protected to Natascha apart from the pieces taken from the series as well as the characters and series idea, those are registered adn copyright protected by Sherrilyn Kenyon!!!

HAPPY READINGS,
Natascha
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CHAPTER ONE
He just knew that this day would merely be a day full of bad things, he felt it in every molecule that his body was made of, things had been not good for a while now but today something deep inside him stirred, an uneasy feeling. He damned the fates for not being able to see his own future clearly. Dark-Hunters from all over the planet had been phoning him, new Dark-Hunters that is, and eventhough he understood that they had a lot of questions whilst they found out what life as a mere servant of the Goddess Artemis was like, today of all days he was not in the mood for answering simple annoying questions. Where's Strykerious when you needed to just pumble someone for no particular reason, he would even settle for Desiderius, or a Spathi Daimon but no, why should Acheron be granted a wish for once.


He instantly settled himself, eventhough he didn't speak those words out loud, he didn't want to jinx things like last time when he let his emotions run wild and Nick.... He didn't want to think about it. What's done was done, there was nothing he could do about it now. But all things aside, is was safe to say Ash was kranky. He walked among the unknowing humans down Bourban Street, his mind was setted on visiting Selena at the new age shop he recently had bought for her so she could be able to continue doing what she did best; expending her psychic abilities and running her new shop. He needed just a little ease from his mood and Selena was one of the few people who could do such a thing with her chitter chattery way of life. He looked at the different faces that passed him by and eventhough she didn't stand out fashionwise he got caught in heavenly blue eyes, hidden underneath a navyblue New-York sportscap. Eventhough he saw her just while passing by and only for a few seconds he instinctively knew she was somewhat different from other women who walked upon the planet earth. And he could tell not just by the tingling feeling he felt in his groin making him grow harder just by her scent of something similar to sandalwood but just not quite the same. He nearly got tempted to use his powers to go back in time just a little bit so he could feel that again, it had been decades if not centuries ago since he last held interest in a woman. He had Simi his Charonte Demon who he saw as his own daughter to keep him company which made the lonely days a lot more pleasant. And now that Ias had Danger, his newly wed-wife, and Xirena his newly bound Charonte Demon (as well as Simi's long last sister) to focus his attention on, he felt now more than ever what is was like again to be alone.

His life was a lot less complicated before his New Orleans Dark-Hunters Kyrian, Talon and Zarek found their soulmates who freed their souls from Artemis who created the Dark-Hunters to kill Daimons formerly known as Apollyte-people prolonging their lifes the wrong way. Apollyte people were cursed by Apollo after his lover got brutally murdered at age 27 by Apollyte people who pretended that she was murdered by animals. When he found out what had happened he cursed them to live life in the dark till their 27th birthday and on that day they would die a painfull death lasting 24 hours till they let out their last breath. The only way to prolong their lives was to kill humans by drinking their blood and taking in their soul. A normal human soul would last them a few days but whenever a human had psychic powers that was a real kick for them, those souls would last them weeks if not months and they kept whichever ability they had to use for themselves and with that they'd be stronger Daimons and thus harder to be fought and defeated by his Dark-Hunters. It was an ongoing thing Acheron got used to, but lately his will to keep doing what Artemis laid unwillingly upon his shoulders so that she could keep him in her control, was nowhere to be found. Especially after Cherise Gautier got murdered and Nick turned into a Dark-Hunter after he killed himself when he found his mother brutally murdered in her home. Pain still tore through him when he thought how many loved-ones he had lost over the past few years. He should've known better than to let people close to him, everytime the fates took them from him.

Concerning others he had clear vision on what a certain outcome could be, but for himself or those close to him it was blank and quiet. Eventhough he was over 11 thousand more close to 12 thousand years old (at his age he didn't frown upon a century or two...) no one even amongst those he held near knew what he was or who he was deep down inside. Simi knew ofcourse but he knew he could absolutely trust her as she was now a part of him. Simi eventhough she was just as old as him appeared at the age of 18 when summoned to human form, he himself appeared as 21. His origins was Greek but he was raised in Atlantis before it was destroyed, now only a handful of people were left who actually knew Atlantis from experience but he didn't feel the need to keep in touch with those. He felt uneasy, something was stirring deep inside him, it made him feel things locked deep inside and Simi felt that he was restless. She got kranky because he woke her out of her sleep. She started moving around which made Acheron itch. When a Charonte Demon was returned to its owner and on his body as a tattoo they normally rested and he wouldn't feel her being a part of him. But when they moved around they left a burning trail. It would fade after a few seconds but in the mood he was in at the moment he felt every thing times ten. In his head he told her to stay putt.
'But the Simi is restless because her Akri is restless, I needs me sleep.'
'I know Simi, I'm sorry.'
Acheron tried to calm his emotions and when he knew no-one was watching he stepped into an allyway and flashed himself to a place other than Katoteros where he felt home, instead of heading down to Selena's shop.

"Jeez Ash, you scared the be-jeezus out of me,"Amanda said startled, as she nearly dropped the babybottle with formula out of her hand "When will you learn to knock?!"
Ash quinced at her words, he's gotton so used to flashing in and out of Kyrians home over the years that he somtimes forgot, waith no, he didn't forget, he distinctly remember willing himself to his own bedroom in Kyrians home.... or did he? He had so many things go through his mind over the past few minutes that he wasn't sure "Sorry Mandy, didn't mean to."
"I didn't mean to fall out like that Ash," Amanda said as she noticed his turmoil in his aura "With Marissa's powers all over the place at the moment I'm not quite sure when to expect wat anymore."
"And Ashleagh?" Ash asked, thinking lovingly about the 6 month old baby boy who was named after him and just as Marissa was his Goddaughter, he was his Godson. Marissa came running in with her arms spread out wide to Ash "Uncle Ash!"
She jumped in his arms and she hugged those small girly arms around his neck and gave him butterfly kisses on his cheek "Hey Munchkin..."
"Is Simi here too?"
"Yes she is..."
"Can she come out and play?"
'Can the Simi can the Simi can the Simi....' he heard Simi ask enthusiastic in his head 'Yes Simi you can, just don't eat anything other than given to you by Amanda or me.'
Simi jumped from his skin and Marissa giggled girly when she saw Sim. She and Simi went to the playroom and Ash said "Simi no QVC..."
Simi stood still instantly "Akri Simi doesn't like when you say no to the Simi, no eat this, no QVC. No sex with Nick..."
"Simi..." stretching each sillable as he spoke.
"Yes akri, Simi no QVC Simi didn't say she accept in silence..."
Amanda held in a laughter while she looked at Ash's tormented face. "Kids..." she said instead.
"Just waith till yours grow up... Did Ashleagh show some powers yet?"
"None that we know off and silently I applaude that."Amanda said.
"Same here," Kyrian walked into the kitchen and gave his wife a kiss. He looked strangely at Acheron "What's up with you?" Kyrian looked a bit worried at his used to be "boss" Kyrian was one of the Dark-Hunters who got their soul back but he had known Acheron for over 1500 years now and was one of his best friends.
"I'll go and feed Ashleagh." Amanda said with an arched brow looking from one to the other.
Ash asked "Can I?" he could use some quiet time alone with his just himself and his thoughts. Before they knew it Ash walked out of the kitchen up the stairs then remembered the bottle, went back downstairs and flashed upstairs only to end up in his own bedroom downstairs. It disturbed him quite a bit but then decided to walk, he passed by the open kitchen door again and left Amanda and Kyrian awestruck.

Acheron went to the nursery, picked up Ashleagh and held him comfortably in his arms while sitting down in the antique rockin'chair, to give him the bottle. The sight of this 6"8 male, dressed in black leather slacks, biker-boots, a dark t-shirt, with his black halflong hair pulled together in a dark band, and the manly features of his face softened with the love he felt for the small boy in his arms, was an odd not often thing to see. Especially not concerning Acheron. Only Amanda and Kyrian had seen him like this, and only on the odd ocassion they caught him unprepaired.

Thousands of years ago he had lost all hope on ever having a family off his own, it was a small sacrifice to make so that humanity could walk around safe(r) on this planet. He couldn't think about what would happen if he'd left his Dark-Hunters to walk around unsupervised and untrained. Chaos amongst the living for sure.

He dozed off for a while trying to relax a bit. But instead of resting he got pulled into the nightmare with the chaos and screams of Atlanteans while their isle got destroyed and drown into the Aegean Sea. Then he got pulled into another memory and found himself in pain by the hurt his lover Artemis' betrail set upon him. In his dreamstate his human-self had also tears in his eyes. He sought some peace and instead got more chaos, of remembering those long forgotten memories, bad memories that had scarred him for life and uncertainties. The pain he felt of those Dark-Hunters who turned on him, the pain of Strykerious who constantly was planning on making his life a living hell by killing (or trying anyway) those who Ash held close to his heart. He saw how Cherise got killed and felt the agonizing pain that went through Nick when he had found her. He heard his own words echo in his head, those he had spoken to Nick when he had found out Nick had slept with Simi, his emotions speaking over his rational mind 'you should kill yourself to safe me from doing so later'. In the end that was exactly what Nick had done.