Untitled V- Chapter 6

         Iru slowly walked up to the sanatorium. The sun was just beginning to come up, up to illustrate the depressingly black sky. At least it wasn’t bright enough to bother him.
         He’d managed to clear out the immediate area by about four in the morning. Exactly seventeen hunters remained in the clan, at least in there in Illinois. All several hours away. They would have to come here. Iru was done being the hunter for a little while.
         After completing his grim errands, he had wandered around for an hour or two before returning home to change out of his soaked clothing. He tucked Crim in after finding her asleep on the couch, something he probably wouldn’t have even tried had she been awake, then left to get Ash.
         A few people at the insitution welcomed him as he walked in. He rarely bothered to learn their names at this point, every twenty to fourty years they were replaced, except the few vampiric employees, how had all returned home by now. He merely smiled faintly and nodded at them as he passed.
         Making his way through the facility, he turned onto a wing consisting almost entirely of vampires, pausing at one of the first doors on the left. He peered through the small, barred slot on the door, then rapped on it gently.
The small woman inside looked up, then slowly stood and walked to the door, smiling at Iru. She stopped at arms length and signed out hello. Iru smiled back and reached his hand through the bar, gently cupping one of her cheeks in his palm. “Have you been a good girl, Angel?” Her smile widened as she nodded. “Well, you know what the doctor said… show them you aren’t a danger to yourself, and you can go home.” Angel reached up, asking if that was really true. Her smile dimmed, as if she didn’t believe him.
         “Yes. I promise, sis. I’ll take you home as soon as they let me, okay?” He never stopped smiling, through he retracted his arm. “Right now, though, I have to go get my daughter.” Angel took a step back, Iru’s earnest had prevailed. “Okay? I mean it. I’ll be back soon. I love you!”
         He turned and resumed walking down the hall to Ash’s cell, retrieving a key seldom used as of late, and opened the door. He dropped to one knee, smirking, and held his arms open. “Bonjour, mon petite.”
         It took Ash a few minutes to realize he was there, but as soon as she did, she squealed and ran into his arms. “Daddy!”
         “Hello, little one.” Iru swept her off the floor. “Ready to go home?” Balancing her on one arm, the walked into the cell and collected her things, placing them in a bag on his other shoulder. “You’re gonna start sleeping on a regular schedule from now on… why are you up now anyways, sweetheart?”
         At first, Ash just giggled as Iru shifted her to his other arm, sliding the bag over both shoulders. She stopped, however, when he set her down, suddenly becoming serious. “I thought you might come. They told me to sleep, but I stayed up all night because you’re a ‘night person’.”
         So are you… A hundred and ten years, and she hadn’t changed a bit. Maybe that was good. Iru reached over, nodding, and took one of her hands, leading her down the hall. He paused to smile again at Angel, then continued on out of the asylum.
         Maybe she hadn’t changed because she’d been stuck here. Maybe it was because of the age Iru turned her at. Maybe because she had autism.
         Iru hadn’t changed at rebirth, like so many others. His reason to willing become a vampire overpowered the need for blood, the sting of daylight. But as of late… he could feel something different. He couldn’t identify it, just that he didn’t feel the same.
         Maybe Ash could change that.