Authoress Notes: Well now! Never expected this, eh? Now, this is my first SO3 fic, so please be nice, since this is also AU, and I'll try to do my best for any person who would like this. Not to mention that there will be OOC-ness. Please enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own SO3. It belongs to SquareEnix/Tri-Ace/Ubi-Soft.

Pairings: AlbelxNel, FaytxSophia, CliffxMirage, and others, if you want.

Plot/Summary:

((AU Darkfic)) It started out with a kiss, which led to something more. How did it end up like this? But when she found out what he really was, she ran, but she'll soon find out that the Wicked never lets what is his get away. Ever. AlbelNel

Poison Allure

By: xKuroSeraphimx

((start prologue))

Prologue

It was in celebration that the war between the Kingdom of Airyglyph and the Kingdom of Aquios had ended finally after long years of strife and death. A dance party was held in the Kingdom of Aquios's audience chambers where noble ladies and gentlemen, officers and warlords were an honored guest, no matter who they were, no matter if they were past enemies. But the most honored were the people that helped made the war end, people from other worlds.

But this was where our story really begins, right here in this dance party.

When she was released from having to dance with one of the noblemen, Nevelle's daughter, Nel Zelpher, Nel walked with quick feline grace to one of the kingdom's many balconies to get some fresh air.

And that was where she met him again.

His form was tall, composed, wearing a neatly tailored black suit that had fit his gauntlet arm through a clean-cut hole. His hair was black, but the tips of his silky mane were colored blonde for reasons unknown, two long braids connected at the back of his head in small metal cuffs, leaving two tufts of blonde hair at the end. Upon sensing her arrival, he turned to face her.

Albel Nox, or rather, Albel the Wicked was his name. He was known for his sheer cruelty and bloodlust for battle and death, and they had quarreled several times, only ending up in Nel escaping when things got close to worse, even though she really wanted to dig her blade into his gut. But now that the war was over, and the possible rumors of the king of Airyglyph and the queen of Aquios were to be wed thrust all feelings and thoughts like that out, yet she still felt a degree of dislike towards him, and she was sure he felt the same to her.

But here he stood before her, a smug and somewhat, alluring smirk on his face. The first time she saw him, she thought he had a beautiful face, yet it seemed to have been carved from the coldest of ice, a tall, slender, but still a bit muscular body that made women flutter when he was wearing his usual attire of tight, wine-colored clothes, and ruby red eyes that seemed to pierce anything, even someone's mind. At first, she didn't know that he was Albel the Wicked before he found her one time and they fought.

He arched a neatly trimmed black eyebrow up at the sight of her. "Zelpher," he murmured in a deep, cultured voice that had a husky rough edge to it that had Nel slightly shiver at the sound of it. "My, my, you do look stunning today…"

"Nox," she replied, bowing her head slightly, looking up to find he did the same. "And you look…" she paused, looking up at him from head to toe. She absently tucked a stray lock of magenta-colored hair. Nel didn't know why, she just felt slightly awkward to be in Albel's presence, and not start throwing weapons at each other. Maybe, she thought, he was more civilized than she realized.

"And I look what, Zelpher? Hmm?" he crooned, suddenly in front of Nel, causing her to jump slightly at how close their bodies were. He raised a clawed hand, lightly stroking the talons against her cheek as to not inflict minor cuts on her pretty face. For some reason, she didn't shirk away from his touch.

Her mind couldn't quite come up with an answer, since it seemed to be busy with the close proximity between her and Albel. Nel closed her eyes and said, "You look… Normal…" she replied after a while.

He stared at her for a few moments, as if he didn't expect such an answer like that, before he chuckled softly to himself, causing a slight tinge to creep up to Nel's cheeks.

"What's so funny, Nox?" she asked rather hotly.

Albel regained his composure, waving his good arm around. "Oh, nothing, Zelpher. Nothing at all…"

Nel frowned slightly at him, annoyance sparking within her before she shook her head. "Anyway… Why are you out here, instead of dancing with someone, Nox?" she asked curiously, changing the subject, seeing as how Albel wouldn't give her a straight answer.

"Most of the women bored me to tears, fool," he replied slowly, using the nickname he called to her when they were enemies. Then, that same smirk tugged at his lips before he held up one of her hands in his. "But now that you mention it, do you want to dance?"

Nel was actually surprised to hear that from him. Him? Albel the Wicked knows how to dance? Not bothering to wait for a response from the Crimson Blade warrior, Albel began to drag her unto the dance floor, turning a few heads when they passed, just when a soothing, sensual tune flowed through the room.

When they found an open spot, Albel let her stand straight and stare at his captivating crimson depths, and she felt a psychic tendril within her mind, a phantom touch until the captain of the Black Brigade placed her into his arms, and before she knew it, they were dancing.

Now, normally, had it been another man that would forcefully have her dance with him, Nel would've smacked the man. But with Albel… well, certainly with Albel, she'd have her dagger in her hand when she smacked him. Yet she didn't, since it wouldn't have fit the occasion, and she felt… okay, with dancing with him. Maybe it was a first try at being civil with his new…allies, it seemed.

Or, he was just downright bored.

They moved with grace, mostly because Albel was coaxing her into blending with him before she started to go into the same rhythm, and she thought of nothing but the man with whom she was dancing with, the world suddenly turning into a colorful blur. Nel's emerald eyes faintly caught sight of men and women around them watching the two with smirks and smiles on their faces, but that ended when Albel expertly twirled her around and whirled her back in, her back now up against his hard chest.

The magenta-haired woman turned to look up at his face, feeling rather flustered after a dance like that. She didn't expect the captain would be such a good dancer. Well, then again, Albel Nox was always full of surprises…

Which he thoroughly displayed with his next choice of action.

Before she knew it, Nel's lips were pressed against soft velvet. Her eyes widened when she found out that Albel was kissing her! He was! Dear Apris, what was going on!

She tried to wrench free from his lips, but he was stronger than her, snaking both of her arms, trapping her, never leaving her lips. Finally, after long moments of struggle, Nel relaxed in his arms, and allowed the kiss to deepen in intensity.

Long, slow minutes passed between them before they parted. Albel took a quick glance at her face and laughed softly. Nel's face was beet red, and she looked like she was going to shout something at him, but was holding it back, knowing her place. Instead, she swallowed noisily, clenching her fists tightly to stop herself from pummeling him into the concrete marble.

"…. W-Well…" she began slowly, her voice strained. "…. I don't know what all… that was about… But if you're plotting something, I'll—"

"You'll do what, Zelpher?" he asked, his voice a sensual caress, his ruby red eyes glinting with something raw, dangerous, but what scared her to see was the fierce hunger for something… maybe someone. "I don't think, in this situation, that you're in a position to make threats."

"Why you—"

He laughed; before he dipped his head down to place a kiss upon her lips again.

This time, she made no move to stop him.

((scene change))

The magenta-haired woman woke with a start, jerking up from her bed. Nel whirled her head around, one dagger out of her hand. She relaxed slightly, noticing that no one was in the room she rented in Peterny for the night. Slowly, she sheathed the dagger back, placing it on her lap. Nel's emerald-colored eyes trailed over to the window next to her, the moonlight creeping through the blinds, adding little light into the room. Sighing, she placed a hand on her forehead, settling back on the bed.

Memories of her dream flooded into her mind, and she felt her hands clamp into tight fists. Now she felt ready to tear something into shreds, but years of self-restraint held her back. Nel just… felt angry that Albel still pervaded her mind, even in her dreams. It had been two years since she and Albel parted ways. Or more likely, she was the one that walked out after finding out what he really was.

Creature of the night…

Nel shuddered, turning to her side. The lies, the dominance, and the power he held over her… She hated him for it. He used her, thought of her as nothing more than an object, and toying with her emotions. Nel gripped the dagger in her hand tightly so that her nails dug into the hard wood.

… Vampire…

What made her hate him more was that whenever she thought of him, sensations would begin to play inside her body, faintly feeling phantom touches of where he used to caress when she was in his bed. On the battlefield, Nel would have this determined gleam in her eyes, obviously showing that she wouldn't lose to her opponent. Maybe she should've gutted Albel the Wicked when she fought him once, just kept on fighting him before the war ended, then she could justify that she committed no crime in killing him for the sake of ending the war.

But no, instinct told her to run when things got sticky, unfortunately. Right now, she just needed… to get away from it all, promising that if he were in one town, she would be in another, further away from him. She wanted to get stronger, so that one day, when they did encounter again, she'd plunge her dagger into his chest. But right now, Nel didn't want to see him again, for if she did…

Letting out an exasperated sigh, realizing that sleep was a luxury Nel couldn't afford now, she threw the covers aside and began packing the small amount of things she brought for her journey.

Because at night, she learned, vampires were most active.

((scene change))

Clair Lasbard sat on her desk in the conference room in one of the largest houses in Aquaria, sipping a cup of coffee. Now, one would be asleep when it was past midnight, but something kept Clair up (besides the coffee) for some mysterious reason, and something made her feel like something wrong was soon to come.

She felt that something dark, powerful and dangerous was coming her way. But she didn't know why, and it was nagging on her nerves, and she knew that this would leave her in a terrible headache in the morning if she didn't get sleep, although she did felt one coming on now.

Then, door burst in, startling her, and Tynave and Farleen walked in. For a moment, Clair nearly spilled the coffee all over her when the door opened. Deciding not to tempt fate on that matter, she carefully placed the cup on thetable and asked, "Tynave, Farleen, what are you doing so late at night?" But a voice on her mind said, 'Look who's talking…' Then she remembered that she assigned the two women on guard duty, which meant that….

Clair noticed that they were a few feet above the ground. Startled she stood up from her seat, just when they were dropped on the ground, and a figure in a dark hooded cloak, stepped over them.

Alarmed, the gray-haired Aquarian woman shouted at the hooded figure, "Who are you! What have you done to Tynave and Farleen!"

The figure chuckled, sounding oddly familiar before he spoke, "Don't worry, Clair, they're not dead, which you should be grateful that I spared the worms." He replied in a venomous hiss.

'That voice… It can't be…!' Claire thought, realizing who the cloaked man was.

"Albel the Wicked!" Clair called out to him. "What are you doing here? Have you forgotten that a peace treaty between Airyglyph and Aquios was made two years ago? Are you trying to jeopardize that trust and create another war!"

"I know that, you foolish wench," he spat nastily at her, his crimson orbs peering at her through the shadowed veil that hid his face. "As much as the prospect of creating another war is tempting, I don't care much for that now. You see, I'm looking for a certain Crimson Blade maiden, and she's successfully eluded me… So, if you don't want this whole rundown town to be painted with blood, I suggest you tell me where Nel Zelpher is…"

((end prologue))

Well, there you go. Good? Bad? Shouldn't continue? Tell me, and if you don't, KINDLY tell me that you don't. There is the term called constructive criticism, and flaming is not allowed in my book. So, click on that little button down there and review!