Chapter 7
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That night, as things were finishing up, Yuki was walking out of the building when she saw Jurina.
“Ah, Yuki-san,” Jurina smiled.
“What’re you doing? Where’s Rena?”
“Oh, she’s working the night shift with Takamina and Sayaka. Takamina told me to go on, but I wanted to talk to you on the way home. Can we walk?”
“Sure.”
The two started walking, and Yuki didn’t notice that the young hunter had her dagger strapped on her waist, which was hidden under her long sweater.
“It’s starting to get cold, huh? It’s already fall,” Jurina said as she rubbed her hands. “Are you not cold, Yuki-san?”
“No. I don’t really mind it.”
“That’s amazing. I hope I can be like that.”
The two ended up taking a corner in a dark alley where it was just the two of them. Their only light was the moon.
“Oh yeah, I’m sorry for the confusion today. I really thought I saw you and Sae kissing.”
Yuki tensed up a bit, but tried not to show it. “Don’t worry about it…”
“Hmm, also… I just want to clear this up, but I saw you hugging Mayu.”
At that Yuki stopped, and so did Jurina.
“What were you two talking about?”
“...Jurina.. you should.. just forget all this happened.”
“Eh?”
“Forget… forget it all ever happened,” Yuki looked at Jurina and started walking towards her, making Jurina step back. She felt her back touch the wall and her hand went for the dagger under her coat.
“Y-Yuki.. san?”
Yuki stared into Jurina’s eyes and pulled her under. “Forget… Sleep and forget everything…”
“For..get…” Jurina’s eyes became drowsy as she looked at Yuki’s black orbs. Her eyelids gently shut and her head dropped, her body going limp.
Yuki felt her hunger was growing and her fangs becoming sharp. She covered her mouth.
“No… I can’t!” she screamed in her head.
“I can’t do that… not to her… If I did such a thing…”Just then, Yuki felt something cold touch her skin. She looked and saw Jurina holding a silver dagger, the tip of the blade at her neck.
“So Rena was right… you are a vampire, Kashiwagi Yuki,” Jurina said in a different tone than usual. A more serious, almost dark tone.
The younger girl looked up at the vampire with eyes filled with hatred.
“You’re just like your sister. Your memory can’t be erased. Interesting,” Black remarked, then asked, “How long have you known?”
“Long enough. I knew something was fishy ever since you came. And after what happened to Rena, I had to make sure my hunch was correct.”
“Oh is that so? Looks like you really are just like her. I wonder if you can beat me, unlike her… All that’s considered, I doubt it.”
Jurina gave an angered expression. “You’re gonna pay for this! Vampire!”
As the blade was about to pierce Yuki’s neck, the two girls heard a voice.
“Jurina, is that you?”
When Jurina saw the shadow and heard her sister’s voice, she immediately went back to how she was before.
“Rena-chan~!” The younger quickly returned the dagger to its hiding place, speaking in her more child-like tone. “Takamina-san let you leave early?”
“Yeah. She said that you left alone, I was worried.” Rena then looked at Yuki. “But seems like you have company.”
“Uh huh~” Jurina nodded, a bright smile on her face. “I happened to run into Yuki-chan on my way, and she said to walk me home~ Right, Yuki-chan~?”
“Is that so…?” Rena had an eyebrow raised.
“Un! So, don’t worry.”
She then turned to the girl who was silent the whole time.
“Thank you for accompanying Jurina, Kashiwagi-san. How about you go home? It’s dangerous to be out here alone at this hour.”
“I’ll do that.”
As Jurina and Rena started to leave, Jurina clinging to Rena’s arm like a puppy, Yuki watched and saw Jurina looked back her way and gave her a dark glare.
“This isn’t over,” she mouthed before turning her head back and leaning it against Rena’s shoulder.
Yuki turned around and walked in the shadows, and in a mere seconds, appeared in her mansion. When she stepped inside, she sat against one of the couches and sighed, remembering what had just happened.
“So, Jurina knows as well… this will be rather difficult. I can’t keep relying on my hypnosis…”
She then touched her lips and remembered when she felt a sudden urge to bite Jurina and drink her blood.
“Why was I about to do that..?” she said, feeling a tinge of regret. “I can’t let my hunger grow out of control…”
“Something the matter, dear Black?” a voice echoed.
Black saw the shadow of a certain vampire standing at the top of her stairs. The vampire had white hair and sharp eyes with glowing red irises.
“Clyde-sama…”
“What was that, I heard just now? Were you resisting your thirst?” Clyde stepped down the stairs, slowly approaching Black. “Why these sudden thoughts? Are you feeling regret?”
“I…”
“Is this about the same girls you’ve been watching over for years now?” He suddenly appeared behind her, whispering in her ear with a cold breath. “How long has it been now?”
“..15 years.”
“15 years, huh? It’s been so long~.”
“Why do you care?” Black asked coldly.
“The real question is… why do you care so much for these girls?”
Black was silent and flashbacked back to a certain moment, 15 years ago…
FlashbackIt was one snowy Christmas day. A perfect white Christmas in Tokyo as a blanket of snow covered the city.
More than anything, more than the darkest nights or fullest moons, Black loved snow. On cold winters where soft snowflakes fell from the sky, she would find a secluded place, lie down, and just stare at the sky.
She was always alone. Ever since the beginning, she was alone. And on nights like this, it was best for her. She would shut herself out, shut out the world. Nothing but the darkness to keep her company.
“An eternity of loneliness…” She always thought that was her destiny; to be alone forever, in total darkness.
Well… not total darkness. For during Christmas season, the world was lit up. And it seemed that Black was the only one who was alone in the world. Everyone had someone, the high school classmates going out for holiday shopping, lovey-dovey couples on snow-covered dates, and children happily enjoying the winter season with their families.
Black often found herself surrounded by these sorts of people, but would do all in her power to shut herself away. In the shadows, where no one could see her.
All this changed when she happened upon a certain household...
“Nee-tan~” Black heard the voice of a young toddler calling out to her older sister. She happened to be walking around when she heard the voice and stopped at the window of none other than the Matsui sisters.
At this time, Rena was nine years old and Jurina was only three, and the two were spending Christmas together while their parents were busy with work.
They did not know at this time about their parents being vampire hunters, and had lived in blissful ignorance in an innocent world of peace and happiness. Even without their parents around all the time, the two were happy as long as they had each other.
Black saw all that as she watched them, forgetting about the sad loneliness that plagued her.
“Look, Juri-tan. Santa got you this,” Rena handed her baby sister a stuffed teddy bear, the younger sister smiling.
Seeing such innocence created a warmth in Black’s heart. A warmth she had never felt before.
She watched them the whole night, how the two would play together, watch the snow, and eventually fell asleep.
Their parents finally arrived home and saw the two sisters on the couch, fast asleep in their dreamland. They took the two sisters to their room and tucked them in bed for warmth. Even as all the house remained silent, Black continued to watch the two’s slumber.
She cracked open the window and silently slipped through, stepping into the bedroom. She slowly approached the two beds where the sisters laid.
The vampire walked up to Jurina and saw the toddler holding her teddy bear close, wrapped in her small pink blanket with a letter “J” sewn in it.
Black saw her hand unconsciously reaching out to the baby, but she pulled it back. She was a creature of darkness, a monster. She could not touch something as pure as a young child with her tainted hands.
She then heard a small sound and quickly turned her head to see a young Rena was waking up. She sat up in the bed and slowly opened her eyes, looking at Black.
Rena was about to say something when Black placed her finger in front of her lips, telling Rena to be quiet.
“Don’t be afraid. I won’t hurt you,” she said.
The child asked, “Who are you?”
“I can’t say. It’s a secret.”
“Are you an angel? Did Santa send you, are you one of his snow angels?”
Black was a bit amused by how excited the girl looked, her lips curved a soft smile.
“If you believe so… then yes, you could say that,” the vampire said, not wanting to reveal her true nature.
She was then surprised when Rena’s tiny hand reached out and touched her own. She wanted to pull away, but some force inside her prevented it.
“Your hands are cold…” Rena grasped her small hands around Black’s cold fingers. “I wanna warm you up.”
Black didn’t say anything and looked at the hands holding hers. They were so small, yet she felt incredible warmth from them. She felt that same warmth growing in her heart again, and she smiled, a genuine smile which she had never given for as long as she could remember.
During the few minutes of peaceful silence, Black watched the young girl in front of her. Little Rena’s eyebrows were scrunched together, and she was looking at Black’s hands with utter concentration. Turning Black’s big hands in her little ones, she blew into them, trying to warm them up some more.
“Thank you,” she then said, making Rena look up with sparkling eyes.
Rena then hugged Black, giving her a bright smile.
“I’m Rena… can we be friends?”
With that, Black’s smile disappeared. She knew that she could never be with this human… she could not be friends. Even though there was some part of her that wanted to befriend the child, she knew all too well… it was an impossible wish.
“I’m sorry.”
“Eh?” Rena looked up at Black with a sad expression.
Black stared into her eyes and held her head, caressing her soft black hair.
“You may not remember me… If you do, it will only be a dream,” she said before Rena’s eyes slowly shut and the child fell asleep.
For some reason, Black wanted to stay longer, as long as possible. She wanted to treasure every second and not go back into her lonely world just yet.
She continued to sit at Rena’s bedside and gently caressed the child’s head as the girl slept, humming a soft lullaby. Suddenly, touching her didn’t seem so bad. In fact, having Rena in her arms was the best feeling she had ever felt.
She left not long afterwards, but not before planting a kiss on little Rena’s forehead.
“Snow angel… so beautiful…” she heard the child say in her sleep as she pulled up the blanket.
“If that’s how you want to remember me, then so be it,” she whispered to herself before stepping out of the bedroom and closing the window, keeping the cold out.
For some unknown reason, ever since that night, Black has been keeping tabs on the two girls. She found herself more and more attracted to the two, watching them from afar.
Suddenly, even though she was never truly with Rena, her world didn’t seem so lonely anymore.
End of Flashback“So, tell me, Black,” Clyde spoke. “Why are you so interested in this girl? Don’t tell me… you’ve fallen for her?”
Black’s eyes widened. “Huh? You’re joking, right?”
“No… I’m serious. And you know that loving a human is--”
“Is forbidden, I know. And I’m not in love with her.”
“Just know I’m watching you,” Clyde said before he disappeared, leaving Black alone.
She sat back down on the couch and let out a heavy sigh. The last few days had tired her out, and this was something she rarely ever felt. She closed her eyes and wanted to shut herself away somewhere where nothing could reach, only darkness.
As she was thinking, her mind slowly drifted into slumber, another rare occurrence.
When Black did sleep, which was rarely at all, she often never had dreams. But when she did dream, they would have no color. They were dull, empty dreams. But tonight seemed different.
In her dream, she saw little Rena playing in the snow. Little Rena was lying down, her arms and legs brushing against the snow as she giggled. She was making a snow angel. When she was done, she stood up and brushed herself off. She bounced over to Black, who was watching her with, unbeknownst to herself, a smile on her face.
“Look! I made a snow angel!!” Little Rena said happily.
Black crouched down so she was in level with the little girl. “It looks very pretty.”
Little Rena shook her head.
“I think you’re prettier.”
Black suddenly felt her heart give a painful throb.
“I’m not pretty! I am a monster!! I shouldn’t even be talking to you in the first place!!!” Black shrank back from the little girl and curled herself into a ball, hugging herself.
“You are not a monster. I think you are the nicest person I have ever met.”
She then felt warmth as the little girl suddenly hugged her tight.
As the girl pulled away, Black was surprised to see not the nine year old girl staring back at her, but the twenty-four year old Rena.
“Rena..?!”
Rena gave her a warm smile and stood up. She danced and twirled as the snowflakes floated around her.
Black then saw the girl look at her and reach her hand out to her.
“Come on, dance with me, snow angel.”
“What? I-I can’t…”
Rena simply giggled and took Black’s hand, grasping it warmly. She pulled the vampire up to her feet and brought her closer.
“I’m.. not a dancer.”
“That doesn’t mean you can’t learn,” Rena said innocently as she took Black’s other hand.
She started humming a melody as she and Black stepped together on the snow-covered ground. She spun herself around and twirled Black with her hand.
Then, Black made a clumsy trip and ended up falling, pulling Rena down with her. The two laid on the cold ground and looked at each other. Rena giggled like a child, and Black found herself laughing, as well.
Rena sat herself up and looked at the vampire.
“Yuki… what do you think of me?”
“Eh…?”
“Do you love me?”
Black felt her cheeks grow hot. “What..?! I…”
“Tell me the truth. Do you really love me?”
She shook her head and tried to erase those thoughts from her head.
“No… this isn’t real. This is a dream! She’s not actually saying that!”
“Yuki, answer me!”
The vampire shut her eyes tight. “I…”
However, when she opened them back up, she saw the snowy world had disappeared and she was back in her mansion, sitting on the couch.
She sighed heavily and felt her cheeks were still warm even after waking up.
“Why did I have that dream…?”
She then looked at the clock and saw that she had been asleep for much longer than expected and she was now THREE HOURS late.
“Oh, you’ve gotta be kidding!”
Black immediately left and used her super speed to get her to the agency. She quickly headed in and saw Takamina.
“Takamina-san!” Yuki bowed to the shorter girl. “I’m so sorry for being late! I overslept because I was up late and--”
“Hey, hey, don’t worry, Yukirin. I understand.”
Yuki heaved a heavy sigh.
“You okay? You look a little pale,” Takamina said with concern.
“I’m fine, really…”
“OK, well, just to let you know ahead of time, Rena and Jurina aren’t here. Today’s their day off.”
Yuki blinked for a second. “....Hai?”
“Don’t worry. Sayaka will train with you.”
“Ah… alright.”
So the day went on as normal. With Rena not there, Yuki thought she was going to have a clear conscience all day, but this wasn’t true.
On the contrary, she was thinking intensely about Rena, not being able to forget the dream she had. Her mind was distracted, and on top of that, she felt weaker than she had compared to before.
Sayaka suggested she took a break. Yuki went into the girls restroom and stepped into one of the stalls. Out from her pocket, she took out a vial of pig’s blood. Not the most satisfying, but it would at least keep her energized until she drinks human blood. She gulped down the pig’s blood and sighed, hiding the vial back and leaving the restroom.
“Yuki!” The vampire saw a certain computer techie Mayu walking down the hall in her direction.
“Mayu? What are you doing out?”
“Um, can I talk to you about something?”
“Eh? What about?”
“It’s, er… eto… It’s about.. Jurina.”
Yuki’s eyes widened. “Jurina?”
“Y-yes.” The younger girl was shifting from foot to foot, and she was blushing.
Yuki was puzzled by the girl’s demeanor. “What about her?”
“You see…” Mayu was fidgeting, her face getting redder every second. “I think I-I…”
“Eh?”
Mayu squeezed her eyes shut. “I think I’m in love with her!”
Yuki felt a strong pulse in her chest. She stood there frozen, looking at Mayu as the girl covered her blushed face.
“In love..?”
“Y-yes… I’m really not sure of it, yet, but… whenever I see Jurina, my heart starts to race and I get butterflies in my stomach when I try to talk to her. And there are some days where I just can’t get the thought of her out of my mind…”
“That’s why you think it might be love.”
Mayu nodded.
“Yukirin is very nice, pretty, and has a great personality. I thought maybe you’ve had a boyfriend before, so… could you give me some advice?”
“Eh? A-advice? Me? Really?”
Mayu nodded.
“Well… hmm, I don’t know Jurina that well, but.. she seems like a very nice and cheerful girl,” Yuki said with a smile, the memory of Jurina’s dark glare of hatred not leaving her mind, she thought a bit. “I don’t think you need to do anything special. Just be honest.”
“E-eh? But… I’m not good at confessing. And when I’m around Jurina… I can’t even talk properly.”
“I dunno. I think it’s cute when you get shy,” Yuki said teasingly.
“Ehh~?!” Mayu blushed even more, covering her face.
Yuki couldn’t help but giggle. “Sorry. Really.”
“Mou~ Yuki, please be serious!”
“I am. I think if you just honestly express your feelings, Jurina will accept you.”
“Honto?”
“Un. Honto.”
Mayu’s eyes sparkled and she smiled. “Thank you, Yuki!”
The girl hugged Yuki around her neck and quickly ran down the hall, waving goodbye. Yuki waved as well, but then she felt dizzy again and her vision went blurry.
She staggered and held herself up against the wall. She felt the monster inside her trying to let loose, trying to make her lose control. She covered her mouth and took deep breaths, trying to suppress the hunger.
Takamina happened to see her and walked over worriedly.
“Yukirin, you alright?”
“I-I… I don’t feel well…” Yuki said while hiding her growing fangs.
“Hey, if you feel sick, I’ll let you go home for today. Don’t force yourself, kay?”
Yuki nodded. “Yeah…”
“Alright. You take care.”
The vampire left the agency building and walked out for some fresh air. She tried her best to walk in the shadows, the light of the sun made her feel even worse and gave her a headache. Without human blood, her body is getting weak.
Her knees felt all wobbly and she took a seat on one of the nearest benches she could find.
“Nee-chan!!”
Yuki looked up to see two very familiar people come into view. Matsui Jurina was chasing her older sister Rena, who was holding an ice cream cone in her hand.
“Nee-chan!!! Go buy yourself one, you bully!!!”
“Haha! Sorry. Here,” Rena handed her sister the ice cream. “I’m gonna find us somewhere comfy to sit. Will you go buy mine?”
“Mou~ you’re so lazy~”
“Hey, just don’t eat my portion, kay?”
“Ufufu, I know.” Jurina giggled as Rena handed her the money and went to go get the ice cream.
Rena then turned and her eyes immediately landed on the vampire.
“What a surprise, Kashiwagi,” she said, walking up to her. “Coming out here just puts you in danger, y’know?”
“P-please, I’m not in the mood for fighting…”
Rena’s eyebrows furrowed. She had never seen Black like this.
“If this is about whatever happened with Sae, I don’t care about that. You’ve been acting strangely ever since then. I’m starting to think you’ve gotten soft, Black.”
“And what if I have..?”
“Haa?”
“If I’m growing soft… does that make me weak? Do you think I’m not strong anymore because of everything that’s happened since I first met you?”
“I don’t have anything to do with you! You brought this all upon yourself!”
Yuki’s head sunk down. “I’m.. sorry.”
Rena’s eyes widened.
She could not believe what she just heard. Kashiwagi Yuki, Black, a VAMPIRE… just apologized to her?!
“What are you talking about?”
“It’s all my fault.” Yuki couldn’t look Rena in the eyes. “You are right. It’s all my fault because I’m a vampire.”
She then shut her eyes tight.
“I should’ve never been born.”
Rena stood silent. She was in utter shock in what all Black was saying. She had never seen this broken, weak side to her, or any other vampire.
And… it hurt her.
Her hand suddenly slapped Yuki’s cheek.
“Don’t you dare say that!”
Yuki was frozen, staring at Rena with wide eyes. Even Rena herself was shocked, staring at her own hand.
“Why did I just do that..?”“What do you care about me anyway..? You hate me.. because I’m a monster!” Yuki screamed. “What the hell kind of difference does it make?!”
“You…”
“Nee-chan?” Rena looked behind her and saw Jurina walking back up to her, another ice cream cone in her hand. “What’s going on?”
“Jurina…”
“Are? Yuki. You’re out, too?”
“Ah.. y-yes. I was feeling sick.”
“Aw~ hope you feel better,” she said aloud, but Yuki heard Jurina say in her mind,
“If you dared to try and lay a finger on Rena while I was gone, I’ll kill you right here, right now.”“Let’s go home, Jurina,” Rena said.
The two sisters left and now Yuki was alone once again. She stood in a crowd of people in the street, her heightened senses driving her wild.
“Must.. drink… feed... need.. blood…” The voices in her head echoed as her hunger was taking over.
She accidentally ran into someone and nearly collapsed until a man caught her.
“Are you alright, miss?”
Black couldn’t contain herself anymore and her eyes landed on the man’s neck.
“M-miss..?” She locked her eyes on his, giving him a deathly glare. He immediately froze, losing his voice completely.
She quickly regained her senses, seeing his feared expression as he ran off. She saw all the people around her, some of them staring. She panicked and ran away as fast as she could.
“No, no, no, no, no!”She kept running until she tripped and collapsed on the ground. She stared at the ground as she sat there, feeling an overwhelming pain in her chest.
“Why… can’t I make it stop?”
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To Be Continued