A/N: Yet another one-shot for Demon Ragna! I personally enjoyed writing this one-shot. A lot. Probably because I love Vampire Knight as much as BlazBlue… yeah… so, anyway, hope you enjoy!
Note: I am using the description of vampires as, The Vampire Knight version. Aka, they can go out in sunlight, not affected by crosses, and can only be killed by anti-vampire weapons. Also, I'm making Rachel a pureblood in this story. I guess, in a way, she already is… so…yeah… please read!
Controlling The Hunger
"AAAAHHHHHHHH!"
Ragna screamed out once again as a huge jolt of pain rattled throughout his body, making him thrash around wildly.
The pain had started only soon after Rachel had left, reminding him not to become too attached to the power of the Azure. Even then, Ragna could see, that there was something Rachel was hiding…
A million thoughts rushed into his head in that second. What was she hiding? Why was she hiding it? And how had he become attached to the Azure? He only used it when necessary…
The pain started to fade from Ragna's right arm, causing him to groan in pure bliss as he knelt there, shuddering from head-to-toe.
"W-what the – Agh!" he choked as the pain increased in his throat, making it difficult to breathe.
With great difficulty, Ragna managed to drag himself into the cover of the trees before letting out a blood-curdling scream that reached even the Kaka Village a few miles away. A few people stopped and glanced around, nervous or curious as to where the shriek had come from. But, in the end, they all continued with their lives, unaware of the transformation the SS-criminal, Ragna the Bloodedge, had just undergone…
Rachel could only stare helplessly at the young man as he writhed around in agony, clutching at his throat as yet another scream ripped out of his mouth. She felt herself beginning to edge forwards, but she stopped herself.
No, she thought, I can't. I'm an Observer. I mustn't intervene…
She couldn't help but close her eyes, and turn away from the sight. Her body began to fill with self-hatred, and she let a low growl slide through her teeth.
"…I'm such a wretched being…"
"SHIT!" Ragna yelled, gasping deeply, trying to let air in through his mouth. With great difficulty, he managed to do so; nearly crying when the cool air rushing into him. For a second, he felt better. But then, the scents hit him. So many…delicious scents.
Ragna's thoughts were filled with those scents. They were each like their own unique flower; every one of them blooming out of season, making it that much sweeter.
The pain seemed to make itself known again, because Ragna groaned loudly, before feeling a sharp pain in his mouth. He lifted his head up to the skies, trying to shout out. Big mistake for him.
With an animalistic yowl of pain, Ragna felt something grow in his mouth. Right where his canines were. Wait…fangs? How the hell could he have fangs?
He clutched at his throat and let out a yell as his fangs descended, ends sharp and hungry for blood. The unbearable agony in his mouth subsided, and he let out a deep gasp. Slowly, he reached up and touched his fangs, and winced as he drew blood from his finger. The sight of the dark crimson liquid made his senses reel, and within seconds his tongue had licked the blood oozing from his cut.
He groaned in bliss as the small amount of blood ran down his throat, making the pain in his throat dull down for a short while. He took this moment in time to look around him. He spotted a figure looking down at him, and he let a low growl slip through his teeth.
"Rachel…"
Rachel could feel the hate emanating from Ragna's body, so she sighed, and jumped down to stand in front of him, her blood red eyes staring intently at him.
"…You've been reduced to nothing more than a senseless beast…" she murmured, making Ragna recoil at the sadness in her tone.
"…W…What?" he muttered, wincing as the pain began to find its way back into Ragna's throat.
Rachel glanced at Ragna, before sighing, and turning away.
"…It will always be like this…lusting for blood…it's a continuous cycle… like a time loop… it never changes…" Rachel whispered, absentmindedly, touching the flesh on her neck.
Rachel had never gotten rid of the bloodlust; it had always been there, rearing its ugly head time and time again. But, after a while, she had learned to ignore the feeling, and get on with life.
"…lusting…for blood…what the hell…are you talking about…Rachel…?" Ragna hissed, grunting in agony.
Rachel walked over to Ragna, grabbing his face in her hands.
"Ragna…you know what I'm talking about…you can feel it…you're a vampire…" she whispered, guilt leaking through her words. Ragna stared dumbly at the young vampire, before pushing her away with ease.
"You…you did this to me…" he growled, feeling rage burn up inside him.
That bitch! If she hadn't have bitten me that time…I wouldn't be like this! I would be… realization hit Ragna like a bomb as he realized, if he hadn't have been turned into a vampire by Rachel, then he would be dead.
Rachel sighed, and nodded.
"I had no choice, Ragna…you would have died if I hadn't have bitten you…"she whispered back, her eyes portraying hatred, directed at her. She stepped forwards once again, placing a cool hand on either side of his face.
"I'll always hate myself for what I did…" she hissed, before taking one of her pale hands away, placing it near her mouth.
"Which is why I deserve this," she muttered, and with that, her fangs descended from her jaws, biting her finger until a small amount of blood was visible. With a sigh, she placed the finger to Ragna's lips, causing him to flinch.
"R-Rach- ACK!" Ragna yelled as the scent of blood hit him head on, far more powerful this time. He clutched at his neck, hissing instinctively as Rachel approached, trying to get Ragna to lick her finger.
"It'll ease the pain, Ragna…" she stated calmly, watching as Ragna began to give into his bloodlust. He held her hand surprisingly gently, and licked her finger clean of the blood, causing Rachel to gasp as she felt Ragna's fangs beginning to tremble. He began to lick her wrist hungrily, his eyes turning a fiery red, bubbling with hunger.
Rachel could only wince slightly as Ragna's fangs pierced her wrist; warm red blood oozing from the wounds as he slurped hungrily; low moans of pleasure rumbling in his chest as he drank from her.
All that Ragna could think about was the warm delicious blood sliding down his throat as she sucked on Rachel's wrist. The small part of his mind that still had sanity was yelling profanities at him.
What the hell am I doing? I'm not a monster! I have to stop!
But, Ragna couldn't bring himself to stop. The blood was just too delicious. He felt Rachel try to push away, but it wasn't enough. The blood was teasing him, making him want more. He continued to gulp down Rachel's blood, unable to pull away.
"...Ragna. Stop."
Ragna felt himself pull away instantly, and he hung his head in shame. He stared at his blood-covered gloves, and felt the hunger beginning to rise once again. Rachel approached him cautiously, the bite marks on her wrist healing almost immediately. She placed a small hand on Ragna's shoulder, causing him to look at her.
"Things will not become any easier...you must learn to control your thirst...or you will end up hurting or even killing someone close to you..." Rachel whispered, and Ragna eyes went wide with fear of hurting the people he cared about.
A few names whizzed around in his head time and time again, making him gulp.
Jin. Master Jubei. Rachel. Tao. Noel. Any one of them he could easily kill, just by lack of self control. He hated the thought. His hands balled up into fists, and a growl slipped out through his clenched teeth.
"I understand that it may be hard. After all, the bloodlust has never truly left me; I have simply learnt over the past years to ignore it. But it's there...it will always be there..." Rachel explained, absentmindedly touching her throat, feeling the blood pulsing gently beneath her fingertips.
"...Rachel..." Ragna whispered, unable to say anything else in fear of his bloodlust getting the better of him again.
Rachel turned, and gave Ragna a sympathetic look.
"...I will help you, Ragna. I am the one who turned you into a beast, and I shall see to it that I keep you in order. Understood?" she stated, the normal regal tone back in her voice as she flicked her pigtails to the side.
"...Thanks..." he muttered, catching Rachel out for the slightest of seconds, before she sighed.
"I'm not doing this just for you. I'm doing this, so that you don't kill any crucial members of this play. I am the mere audience; I cannot step up onto the stage. However, I can try and prevent certain 'stage directions' from happening, that could possibly endanger the cast," Rachel explained.
"...you lost me..." Ragna sighed, walking over to a small stream to wash the blood off of his gloves. As he saw the red wash into the water, his hunger made itself known again. He looked away, and held his breath, not wanting to smell it.
The sight...even the smell of blood...it disgusted him now...
2 months later...
Ragna gasped as his eyes began to glow a deadly crimson, and the burning grew in his throat yet again. Rachel had been right; it had been a mistake to go into a public place so early. But it had to be done sooner rather than later. What Ragna hadn't expected, was for the scents of the humans to excite him so much. It drove him crazy, seeing a girl walk past him, her neck exposed, her flesh so pale...so inviting.
Ragna had managed to run into a deserted passageway without losing his composure. He sunk to his knees, clutching his hair while screaming at himself mentally.
Pull yourself together, Ragna! he thought, you can do this! Just remember what Rabbit told you!
Ragna had been driven crazy the past couple of months by Rachel's constant pompous nature, and finally, he had snapped, insisting, or rather demanding that he be allowed to leave. Rachel refused, leading him into threatening Nago into teleporting him out of Rachel's home, thus landing him in the current situation. In truth, Rachel's castle gave him the creeps.
Ragna had survived without blood ever since he had drunken Rachel's that fateful day 2 months ago, and in truth, he was feeling slightly deprived. Kind of like how a person feels when they're parched for a drink. In fact, he felt hungry. Very hungry.
How can Rachel survive like this? he thought, touching his neck softly, feeling where Rachel had bitten him many years before.
"...I need it..." he mumbled, gasping when a small voice answered him.
"You need what?"
Ragna's head whipped up, to see none other than Noel Vermillion staring at him intently, arms folded across her chest. He glared at her, but said nothing. He didn't even dare breathe.
"...something's different about you," Noel whispered, not looking Ragna in the face, and Ragna's eyes went wide as she approached him slowly, before kneeling down next to him.
"...your skin...it's paler...and your eyes...Ragna...what happened?" she asked, placing a warm hand on his shoulder, causing him to flinch, and slap her hand away.
"Stay away!" Ragna hissed through clenched teeth.
"...I was...I want to help you, Ragna. You're in pain," Noel whispered, trying to look Ragna in the eyes.
"You can help by getting the hell away from me!" Ragna yelled, his voice echoing off into the distance. A few people looked up, recognizing the voice immediately.
"Good Guy? He sounds horrible, meow!"
"...Ragna...so it's that time, huh? Guess Rachel did all she could... damn it, if only I had kept a tighter reign on the boy!"
"...Brother? You're here in Kagutsuchi? I thought someone had killed you... heh...well, enough nostalgia... I'll find you, Brother. I'll find you...and kill you! I'll end everything!"
"...So the little pup has decided to show his face again, eh? About damn time, too... I need to end this...heheheheh..."
"Ragna, I..." Noel stuttered, not being able to finish her sentence, as Ragna screamed, Noel's scent filling his nose. Her scent...it was unlike anything he had ever smelt before. So sweet...so unique... so...tempting.
Without any warning, Ragna leapt forwards, tackling Noel to the ground. She whimpered a little, but gasped when she felt Ragna's tongue licking at her neck.
"R-Ragna?" she stammered, a small blush creeping up on her face.
He couldn't stand it anymore. Her scent. It was just too delicious to ignore. He let his tongue slide along her neck, and then felt the dull pain as his fangs began to descend from his jaws. He knew he couldn't do it. He needed blood...and he needed it now...
Ragna pulled back to look at Noel's neck. Pale, innocent flesh. And he was going to destroy it. The thought of it made him sick to the core. He saw the blood pulsing weakly beneath her skin, and his thoughts became jumbled up. He leaned into her neck, breathing in her scent and licking his lips.
Noel screamed as Ragna's fangs pierced her neck, and suddenly she felt very weak. She knew she wasn't anemic or anything, but just the thought of having her blood sucked out of her...it made her feel weak.
Ragna moaned in pleasure as Noel's sweet blood ran down his throat, and he picked her up in his arms, and moved her hair that had fallen out of the beret to the side, so that he had better access to her throat. Noel could only plead quietly as Ragna began to drain the life out of her.
"Ragna...stop...please...stop..."
Ragna suddenly felt full, and so he pulled back, fangs retracted back to their original size, as he stared at her with the eyes of a blood-coloured luster.
"Noel...oh God, I'm sorry...I'm so sorry. I didn't mean..." Ragna felt ashamed at what he had done. He felt Noel fall forwards, and he caught her with ease, gasping as he felt her arms go limp by her sides, and her eyes slide shut in exhaustion and defeat. He felt the pulse of her blood go weak, before stopping altogether. He...he had killed her.
Ragna placed Noel's body gently on the ground, before clutching his head in his hands, and crying. Tears ran freely down his face as he sobbed, filling himself with self-hatred.
Another scream echoed in the night that made even Terumi shiver.
"Ragna, what is-" Rachel gasped as she saw Ragna crying, Noel's body laying limp near him, her blood still covering his lips. She sighed, and walked over to Ragna, grabbing hold of his shoulder.
"Come Ragna. We must go," she said hastily, feeling a number of presences near them. Presences that weren't welcome. When Ragna didn't respond, she pulled him up, and pushed him away.
"What's done is done, Ragna. It cannot be changed," she hissed harshly, and with that, she opened up a portal to her castle, and pushed him in it.
Ragna could only stare one last time at Noel's lifeless body, before vanishing into darkness. Noel's last words replayed again and again in his head.
"Ragna...stop...please...stop..."
One of the many possibilities...of the Continuum Shift...
End! Hope you enjoyed! Bit of a depressing ending, but hey, the idea just went 'pop' in my head, and so I had to write it down! Please review; Constructive Criticism is appreciated!