Mikau: Hello there! Nice to meet you or good to see you again! Thanks so much for taking the time to check out my newest fic. Hopefully you'll enjoy it. It's kind of…different than other stuff I've written before. Oh well, on with the show!
Disclaimer: If I owned it, I would have run out of ways to murder people a loooong time ago.
…
Chapter One: Bitten
Two thoughts were prominent in Hakuba Saguru's mind. The first was that youkai were real. The second was that he was going to die. Horrifically.
He had surreptitiously followed Kuroba to a warehouse on the edge of town, but he had lost the magician and had coincidentally been captured by a tengu, some sort of humanoid shape-shifting cat monster, a kappa, and a creature with no face.
"A human," the cat-man purred, looking at Saguru as if sizing up a mouse.
"What should we do with it?" The tengu turned to the kappa.
"Let's bring it to the others," the kappa suggested.
Saguru didn't protest for fear of being torn to pieces right then and there. However, in retrospect, perhaps he should have tried to escape at that point. It would only be harder to accomplish in the presence of more monsters.
The main room was full of creatures he had only ever thought of as the stuff of folktales and nightmares—snakes, tentacles, foxes, birds, eyeballs, hands, arms, heads, and teeth all in utterly unnatural forms.
And Saguru was scared. Really scared.
Saguru's presence caused quite an uproar among the beasts. The mutter of "Human" and "There's a human" could be heard going on repeat throughout the crowd.
There were at least a hundred. Saguru was royally screwed.
Until a familiar voice rung out above the others. "Oi, let me through."
Kuroba Kaito—at least a monster that looked very much like Saguru's classmate—broke through the crowd and stared in abject horror at Saguru.
Saguru stared back. "Kuroba?"
The other teen looked…different, but Saguru had never been so tremendously relieved to see the magician…even if he did currently have fangs and ears and a bushy fox tail.
"You know this human, Kuroba?" A man with way too many eyes turned on the magician.
"What are you guys gonna do with him?" Kuroba gulped, eyes never breaking away from Saguru's.
"Eat him," a snake-man laughed, but it sounded more like hissing.
"You can't," Kuroba growled, whipping his head around to snarl at the snake.
"Why not?" a cat-person pouted. It seemed to be female.
"Because…he's…he's mine," Kuroba started out shakily but ended on a firm, authoritative note. "This human is mine!" Kuroba announced, striding over and taking Saguru by the upper arm, pulling him away from his captors.
"He sure doesn't smell like you," a dog demon snorted.
"He doesn't bare your mark, Kuroba. Are you sure that's your human?" a large skeleton put in his two cents.
"We haven't made it official yet," Kuroba explained, making it all up on the spot. He looked Saguru in the eye and asked, "You're my pet, aren't you?"
The look on Kuroba's face was so intense, insisting that Saguru agree.
"Y-Yes," Saguru stuttered.
"Well, make it official then," a woman with an extremely long neck scoffed.
"Otherwise we eat him," the snake-man hissed, laughing evilly.
"F-Fine," Kuroba gulped when he saw there was no way of getting out of this.
He turned to Saguru, an apologetic look on his face. "Do you trust me?" he whispered, even though the monsters could probably still hear anyway.
"Y-Yes," Saguru returned, not breaking eye contact. If there was anyone he could trust with his life, it was Kuroba, and right now, Kuroba was his only shot at getting out of this mess.
"This is gonna hurt," Kuroba muttered, regret filling his voice.
Before Saguru could really process what was going on, Kuroba was unbuttoning Saguru's shirt and wrapping his arms around Saguru's waist. He took a sidelong glance at Saguru's face, and their eyes met for a brief instant before Kuroba's flickered away.
Saguru gasped as Kaito's fangs sunk into his neck.
Yes, there was fear and pain at first, but after that he had mixed emotions about how it made him feel. His body was burning up, and he was weak from the blood loss. He felt dizzy, lightheaded, and higher than a kite. Adrenaline was pumping through his veins, and it was thrilling.
There was a dull throbbing pain at the junction of his shoulder and throat, but there was also the sensation of Kuroba's tongue and lips licking and sucking eagerly.
His strength was leaving him, and he found himself resting more and more of his weight on his classmate. His vision was blurring.
"Kuroba," he moaned before he slipped away into unconsciousness.
When Saguru opened his eyes, he was lying on a couch in what looked to be a library or maybe a study or something of the like.
Kuroba was sitting on top of a desk getting scolded by Kudo Shinichi who was sitting in a wingback chair not too far away from where Saguru lay.
"You can't keep him, Kaito," the other detective cried in frustration. It sounded as if he had said the same thing a few times before.
"But why not?" Kuroba whined, sticking out his lip in a pout. He was back to his human form now. "Oh, who am I kidding? I know you're right, Shin-chan, but it's not like I can take back my mark. He's mine now whether I want him or not…. Besides…he's delicious."
"Kaito," Kudo growled in a low, warning tone.
"You up, Hakuba?" Kaito redirected his attention to the blonde on the couch.
"Yes," Saguru sighed, slowly sitting up. He was still a little lightheaded.
"Here," Kuroba picked up the tray that had been sitting on the desk next to him and brought it over. "You should eat something. You lost a lot of blood. I wasn't sure what you'd like, so we've got onigiri, pan, milk, fruit…uh, there's more in the kitchen, if that's no good."
"Thank you, Kuroba, but I'm not very hungry at the moment." His stomach was a little uneasy at present.
"Eat, Hakuba," Kuroba whispered, setting the tray down on the couch.
Saguru picked up an onigiri and ate it. Which troubled him because he'd really had no intention of eating anything. And yet he picked up one of the breads too—curry pan—and ate that as well.
"You don't have to eat it all," Kuroba revised. "Don't make yourself sick. Just eat what you can."
Saguru nodded, stopping after he'd finished the bread.
"You should explain to him, Kaito," Kudo-san muttered, not moving from his chair where he sat reading "A Study in Scarlet".
"Yes. I would like an explanation, if it's not too much trouble," Saguru agreed. "Kuroba, just what happened? What were those creatures?"
A trouble look took over Kuroba's face. "I don't even know where to begin."
"Start with the youkai," Kudo-san advised, not bothering to look up.
"Right. Youkai." Kuroba bit his lip. "Hakuba, I'm sort of a youkai. Those were my people. Kind of. I'm…well, a half-breed, really. Dad was a vampire, Mom is a fox, so I'm…a little of both…. Look, I'm really sorry about what I had to do to you back there, but understand that they would have torn you to pieces, if I hadn't."
"Don't worry about it, Kuroba," Saguru assured, rubbing his now bandaged neck. "It aches a little, but I'm fine, and my body will deal with the blood issue in time. I'm just grateful that you saved my life. A little blood loss is no big deal."
Kuroba looked sadly at him. "It is a big deal. I marked you, Hakuba."
"What does that…mean exactly?" Saguru was suddenly getting the impression that this wasn't just about a pint of blood.
"It's the way youkai lay claim to things, people, etcetera. Hakuba, you're mine now." There was that apologetic look again.
"And what does it mean for a human to belong to a youkai?" Saguru tentatively asked, pretty sure he didn't actually want to know the answer.
"You're his pet," Kudo-san chimed in. "His slave."
"S-Slave? In what way?" Saguru swallowed hard.
"In any way I want," Kuroba whispered, clearly ashamed of what he had done.
"What?" Saguru felt rather stupid at the moment. He just wasn't following the conversation. "Kuroba, just because you've marked me or however you phrase that, that doesn't mean things necessarily have to change between us, does it? True, I owe you my life, and I intend to repay my debt, but ours is a partnership of convenience. I don't think we're necessarily required to interact the way other youkai and their…marked people do."
"You don't get it," Kuroba sighed, putting his hands on his hips. "Hakuba, things have changed. We can't go back to the way it was before. Look, I promise not to be overbearing or cruel, but—"
"—Kaito, he doesn't get it," Kudo-san cut off his…relative of some kind? Cousin, maybe? "Just show him."
Kuroba frowned deeply, not liking that idea at all. "Fine," he finally agreed. "Hakuba? Eat a grape."
Suddenly Saguru found himself eating a grape that he had not planned to eat.
"Stand up," Kuroba commanded, and Saguru was on his feet in seconds.
"Kiss me," Kuroba whispered, staring the detective right in the eye.
To his utter horror, Saguru found himself cupping the smaller teen's cheek with one hand while the other arm snaked around Kuroba's waist. He leaned in slowly as alarm bells went off in his head. But he couldn't stop. His body was completely out of control.
"Stop," Kuroba ordered when Saguru's lips were within an inch of his own. "See, Hakuba? You're my slave…in any way I want you to be."
A cold chill ran down Saguru's spine even as Kuroba's breath was hot on his face.
"Sit down, please." Kuroba gently instructed. "Do you get it now?"
Saguru nodded. "You could make me do anything, couldn't you?"
"Yep," Kuroba sighed, not sounding any fonder of the situation than Saguru himself.
"Even kill someone or…" Saguru blushed.
The youkai blushed as well with a nervous chuckle. "Yeah, but don't worry. I only intend to use you as a chew toy."
"You should tell him that you can hear his thoughts," Kudo-san chuckled darkly at Kuroba's expense.
"Shin-chan!" Kuroba whined. "I wasn't gonna tell him that!"
Saguru's face exploded into a brilliant vermillion blush. He was utterly mortified. "Sorry, may I…may I go home now? Baaya will start to worry."
"Y-Yeah, sure." The magician awkwardly stepped out of Saguru's way.
Saguru wobbled a little bit as he stood up but quickly regained his balance and was able to walk alright.
"Actually, let me make sure you get home okay," Kuroba offered, grabbing his jacket from where it had been tossed haphazardly on the desk.
"Kaito," Kudo-san called after the other brunette. "Make sure to tell your pet to keep his mouth shut."
The great Heisei Holmes snapped his book shut and rose out of the chair. He suddenly transformed from his vampire (?) form into Edogawa Conan.
"R-Right…" Kaito mumbled, turning to the blonde. "Look, I'm sorry, but I order you not to speak a word about anything you've heard or seen tonight to anyone."
"Why don't you just order me to forget, Master?" Saguru retorted, injecting venom into every word.
"Because I don't want to have this kind of control over you," Kuroba snapped.
"Kuroba…" Saguru took a good look at the young youkai and found sadness, frustration, and regret. This wasn't a pleasant situation for either of them.
"Cute." Edogawa-kun rolled his eyes. "But I'm going home before Ran sends out a search party, so make sure to lock up properly, Kaito."
"Roger." Kuroba snapped the other vampire an unenthusiastic salute. "Let's go, Hakuba."
The first leg of their journey was rather silent, Kuroba trailing a step or two behind his friendly rival.
They were almost halfway to the Hakuba Manor when Saguru mustered up the courage to ask, "May I ask you a question?"
Kuroba shrugged, completely indifferent.
"You're…a vampire fox, correct? That's an odd mixture." Saguru bit the inside of his cheek as he anxiously waited for Kuroba to respond.
The other teen shrugged again. "Yeah. Half-breeds like me aren't really common, but…you can't help who you fall in love with."
Saguru got the impression that there was some deeper meaning to those words. Kuroba said it in an ironic, rueful manner.
"And your relation to Kudo-san…Edogawa-kun…whichever…is?" Saguru inquired tentatively.
"Ah, he's my cousin on my dad's side. He's a full-blooded vampire." A fond smile came to the youkai's face. "Shin-chan's always taken care of me. He helped me lug your dead weight back to his house. Sorry about him being so grumpy. Normally he's very kind—justice-driven, wants to help everyone. He's just jealous of you."
"Of me?!" Saguru turned to look at Kuroba incredulously.
The magician chuckled, sounding a lot more like his regular self.
The dark, serious mood was lifting.
"I don't suppose you're going to tell me why?" Saguru raised an eyebrow curiously at his classmate.
"Nope," Kuroba sang.
"Another question, if you don't mind…" Saguru snuck a sidelong glance at the youkai cleverly disguised as an extraordinary human.
"Sure."
"About you being able to read my thoughts…" Saguru trailed off nervously.
Kaito waved the unvoiced question away. "I'm not really interested in what you're thinking, Hakuba. Though, one cool thing about it is…"
"You can hear me, can't you?"
It took Saguru a moment to realize that Kuroba's lips weren't moving.
"Think something. Anything."
Saguru was sort of at a loss as to what to say. "Telepathy?"
"Cool, yeah?" Kuroba grinned.
And it was then that Saguru noticed his classmate's teeth were slightly pointier than the average human's.
"You can transmit thoughts to me too. If you shout really loud, anyway." Kuroba suddenly stopped, and Saguru was surprised to find that they had arrived at his house.
"I guess this is goodnight." Kuroba awkwardly rocked back and forth, shifting his weight from the heels to the balls of his feet. "And, listen, again, I'm really sorry about all this, Hakuba."
"It was my own fault for following you and getting myself captured," Saguru sighed with a shrug of resignation. "Don't worry about it, Kuroba. Becoming your minion is a much better alternative to being eaten alive by monsters."
Kuroba's forehead creased slightly, and he bit his bottom lip. "You know…just because someone's different from you, that doesn't make them a monster, Hakuba. True, a lot of youkai feed on humans, but that's just the circle of life. Wolves eat sheep. That doesn't make the wolves evil. They're just higher up in the food chain. You eat steak, right? Does that make you a monster from the cow's perspective?"
Saguru stared wordlessly at the teen in front of him. A couple times he opened his mouth to reply, but he words never came out. He couldn't find words to express the thoughts properly.
Finally, Kuroba, who had been listening in on the broken and frazzled train of the detective's thoughts, smiled and replied, "Good night, Hakuba. I'll see you at school tomorrow."
Saguru nodded, giving the magician a deep bow.
The following day in school was bizarrely normal except for the disturbing brief conversation Saguru had with Koizumi Akako-san when she'd first arrived that morning.
The redhead glared at him from across the room as if he had insulted multiple generations of her female relatives.
He froze in fear as she glided across the room, making a beeline for him.
She slammed her palms down on the top of his desk and leaned in so that their faces were less than a foot apart.
"So he finally marked you," she seethed quietly, her voice throwing poisoned knives at him but never rising in volume above a whisper. "I was wondering how long it would be before he took you by force."
"E-Excuse me?" Saguru gulped.
"You know what I'm talking about. He made you his," she snarled softly.
Saguru frowned. "I am not his. I may wear his mark, but I assure you that I in no way belong to Kuroba Kaito. My question is, Koizumi-san, how in the world do you know about these things?"
"Ara?" A look of pleasant surprise took over the rage on her face. "So you're not his mate?"
"Heavens no!" Saguru hissed, suppressing the urge to shriek. "Is that what it means to mark someone?!"
The creepy girl smirked. "Good. I'm surprised he hasn't warned you about me, though."
Saguru frowned. "Why would Kuroba warn me about you, Koizumi-san?"
She leaned forward to whisper in his ear, tendrils of her long, silky hair brushing his face and neck. "Because I'm a powerful witch." She pulled back and walked away, smiling like a cat that caught a mouse.
Saguru got out the book he had been reading and tried to distract himself.
If youkai were real, witches could be real as well. And he didn't want to think about the possibility of a witch sitting just a few seats behind him.
A week went by with no irregularities. Kuroba carried on as if nothing had changed between them, and the wound on Saguru's neck had slowly healed. Saguru was beginning to think that things might go on business as usual until exactly one week after he had first been bitten, Saguru began to feel ill in the middle of class.
He excused himself to the nurse's room to lie down and was joined not thirty minutes later by none other than Kuroba Kaito.
"Hey. How ya doin'?" the magician asked softly, fidgeting as if he didn't know what to do with his hands.
"Not so well," Saguru mumbled. His body ached. He felt nauseated, and he was pretty sure he had a fever.
"I was kinda waiting for this to happen." Kuroba ultimately decided it would be best to stick his hands in his pockets. "I didn't know how long it would be, but I guess we can go about a week without feeding."
"What?" Maybe it was the fever making him delusional, but Kuroba wasn't making any sense.
"Hold out your hand," Kuroba whispered.
Saguru's body reacted on its own to its master's command.
Kuroba took the outstretched arm and undid the buttons on the cuff of the sleeve, exposing the wrist. "I'm just gonna take a little bit to alleviate some of the symptoms."
There was a sharp pain in Saguru's wrist as Kuroba's fangs slipped in.
Saguru tried to pull away, but Kuroba mumbled, "Stay still" around the wrist in his mouth, and Saguru had no choice but to obey.
Once he stopped struggling and relaxed, Saguru realized that it really wasn't such an unpleasant experience. After all, the pain was dull. More prominent was the heady sensation Kuroba's lips and tongue and teeth stirred up inside of him. It was that same intoxicating chemical high he'd experienced the first time Kuroba had fed off of him.
And then suddenly it was gone—the warmth, the haze, the pleasure.
"Better?" Kuroba's voice stirred him from his daze. The magician was looking down at Saguru with concern as he licked the blood from his lips.
Saguru blinked a few times, touching a palm to his head as he slowly sat up. "I still have a bit of a fever, and my stomach is a little upset, but I have to say that, yes, I do feel a great deal better than a did a minute ago. Would you care to explain, Kuroba?"
The magician took a seat at the foot of the bed and swung his legs back and forth as he spoke. "It's a security feature that comes with the mark. You can only go so long without feeding me before you get sick. It's so that you can't run away."
Saguru stared blankly at the youkai. "You have to feed from me every week, or else I'll start to feel ill?"
Kaito nodded.
"And just what the bloody hell are we going to do when I go home to England? What about when I travel for work? I'm not bringing you with me, Kuroba," Saguru snapped.
"We'll…just have to work things out when they come up." Kuroba shrugged. "So…cutting to the chase, my house or yours after school?"
"Wh-What?" Saguru blushed.
"For feeding." Kuroba rolled his violet eyes. "Just taking that little bit will help you feel better for the moment, but we really need to do an actual feeding session. Unless you like feeling like crap."
"M-My house, then." Saguru gulped. "I'll meet you by the front gate after the bell, but for now I'd really prefer to sleep."
"'Kay," Kuroba easily agreed, pushing off the bed.
"And…thank you for your help." Saguru held up his wrist.
Kuroba smiled. "It really was my pleasure."
"It wasn't so bad on this end, either," Saguru mused before remembering that his vampire master could hear him.
Kaito just chuckled. "Oh yeah? Well, glad to know I'm not hurting you."
The magician walked off, leaving a very red-faced detective to rest up in the infirmary.
"Well, this isn't awkward in the least," Kuroba sighed once they'd obtained some snacks and headed upstairs to Saguru's room.
"Right," Saguru seconded. "Well, shall we just get started?" The detective began to remove his gakuran jacket and his shirt underneath.
"Where did you want to do this?" Kaito scanned the room for options. Desk, couch, floor, bed…hmm.
"Um…here's fine. I don't really have a preference." Saguru shivered, missing his shirt already.
"Standing up?" Kuroba raised an eyebrow. "No offense, but you're kind of tall, Hakuba. I had to stand on tiptoe to bite you the first time, and it wasn't exactly easy or comfortable."
"I could bend down or kneel or something, I suppose." Saguru got down on his knees. "That's too low, isn't it? How about…" Saguru wrapped his arms around the magician, resting his head on Kaito's shoulder so that his own shoulder was level with the youkai's mouth.
Kuroba pushed him away. "That would be good except remember that you're gonna pass out on me, and I can't support your weight. We're both gonna end up on the floor, and I don't find hard wood comfortable. It'd be easier to clean the blood off, though…. How about the couch?"
They both sat down and tried to maneuver into a non-awkward position where Kuroba could reach Saguru's neck.
They were at this for at least ten minutes before Kuroba sighed in frustration, "Could you turn around so we can do this from behind?"
"No." Saguru relished his ability to deny Kuroba's request. "I'd really prefer if you weren't behind me."
"Picky," Kaito clucked. "Okay, Hakuba. I tried. Honestly, I did, but I can't think of any other way to do this. Lie down."
"I don't like this," Saguru grumbled but had no say in the matter.
"Tough," Kuroba snorted, straddling the blonde.
"If we're really going to do this, the bed is more spacious," Saguru replied flatly.
"Terrific. Let's go." Kuroba rolled his eyes, pulling the detective along behind him.
"Just bite me already," Saguru muttered as Kuroba took a minute to find a good vein. Saguru closed his eyes and tilted his head to the side, baring his neck to the not-so-ferocious predator.
"Gladly," Kaito chuckled, sinking his teeth in.
The pain faded more quickly this time, replaced once more with endorphins and adrenaline. He was quickly becoming a bit of a junky.
Saguru discovered that that satiating feeling intensified when he pressed up against Kaito's lips, making the fangs sink in deeper.
"Oi, careful," Kuroba scolded. "If I puncture too far, you could bleed out."
Saguru really didn't care. He pressed up again.
"Hold still, Hakuba," Kuroba intoned with a bit of a growl. "You're gonna hurt yourself."
Saguru inwardly pouted at his inability to disobey Kuroba's orders.
Kuroba finished up, lapping up the excess blood and beginning to pull away when Saguru pulled Kaito's head back down.
"More," he mumbled, not ready for that blissful sensation to go away yet.
"No more," Kaito chuckled, easily breaking Saguru's weak grip. "You're gonna pass out."
"It's fine," Saguru muttered, reaching out blindly for Kuroba.
Kaito just laughed good-naturedly, dismounting and moving to sit at the foot of the bed. "Humans really can get high off vampire venom, can't they?"
Saguru groaned in protest at the loss of heat on top of the loss of that feeling of bliss.
"Shh," Kuroba soothed. "It's okay. You'll come down soon." The magician took the folded up blanket from the end of the bed and threw it on top of the half-dressed detective.
After a minute or so, Saguru sat up slowly, wrapping the blanket around his shoulders. "Thank you. Now, what did you say about…vampire venom?"
Kuroba nodded. "It's in my fangs." Kaito grinned, showing off aforementioned pointy teeth. "It enters into your system when I bite you. Its purpose is actually to keep the wound from closing up until I'm done drinking, kind of like a mosquito. There's also a bit of a sedative in there to make victims more manageable. Shin-chan told me once that some humans have really strong positive reactions to the venom. He said it sends them into a state of ecstasy comparable to a drug-induced high. Those are the humans that typically become donors—people who let vamps feed off them. Congrats. Looks like you're one of the lucky ones. At least feeding time will be a pleasurable event for you."
Saguru's face quickly changed from milky white to wine red. "I'm not the only one who gets a buzz from this. You like it too, Kuroba—your pupils are the size of five yen coins."
"Well, of course I like it," Kuroba chuckled. "I'm the one that gets the free meal…and I won't deny that eating is an enjoyable activity for me."
Saguru looked away, down at his feet.
"There's no need to be ashamed, Hakuba." Kuroba got up to retrieve the tray of snacks.
"Of course there is," the detective muttered. "…acting like that in front of you."
Kaito handed him a sandwich. "You just don't like being vulnerable and having no control. You'll get used to it. We've got plenty of time."
Saguru accepted the sandwich with a sigh, knowing that he could either eat it of his own free will or be ordered to eat it by his master. "That's right. I meant to ask you, how long does this mark last? A month or two?"
Kuroba was silent.
When Saguru looked up, he saw that same apologetic and remorseful look on Kuroba's face.
"How long, Kuroba?" Saguru's eyes narrowed. "A year?"
Kuroba made a point of not looking at Saguru.
"Five?" Saguru was trying very hard not to shake the magician. There was no way he was doing this feeding thing once a week for more than a year.
Kuroba sighed and finally looked Saguru in the eye. "Hakuba…the mark's permanent."
Saguru blinked, certain that he had heard wrong. "Wh-What?"
"The mark's for life," Kuroba mumbled, shrinking up like a puppy being threatened with a rolled-up newspaper. "It's not going to wear off. We're stuck."
The words just weren't sinking in.
"Forever?" He mouthed the word, repeating it several times.
"Hakuba?" Kuroba called tentatively. "Are you okay?"
"Of course I'm not okay!" the detective roared. "Like hell I'm spending the rest of my life stuck with a monster like you! Take it back! Take back your stupid mark right this instant, Kuroba. So help me, if I don't tear you from limb to limb—"
"—Stop talking," Kuroba whispered. "Sorry."
In lieu of screaming hateful words and threats at the youkai, Saguru just glared for all that he was worth.
"I'm sorry, Hakuba. I've said I'm sorry a dozen times already," the magician sighed. "I didn't want this either! I'd had plans to use my mark on…forget it. Just forget it. I know you feel like you're the one who's been wronged here, but know that I gave up something too. In order to save you… Marking someone's a big deal, you know? You're not the only one with a ball and chain around your ankle, Hakuba."
Kuroba turned to leave, tossing "Make sure you eat enough and then get some rest" over his shoulder.
"He doesn't get it, Shin-chan," Kaito pouted at the eight year-old currently sitting in his lap.
"He's a human. Unless you explain it to them, they don't understand. It's not their way, so they have trouble comprehending it." His cousin shrugged, picking up the remote and switching off the Kurobas' living room television.
"I don't want to explain all that embarrassing stuff," Kaito grumbled.
"Then don't be mad at him when he doesn't get it, Kaito," Conan advised. "…In other news, have you told him about your kind of sort of feelings yet?"
"Tch. No," Kaito snorted. "The guy's been avoiding me for four days now, giving me dirty looks whenever our eyes meet. What am I supposed to say to him? 'Yeah, sorry about the whole making you my slave for life thing, but, listen, I've sort of kind of have had a crush on you for about three months now. What do you say we make this thing official and become lovers?'?"
"He'll probably ask about Aoko-san," Conan replied thoughtfully.
"Are you kidding?" Kaito scoffed. "The first thing he'll do is try to drive a stake through my heart. I doubt he'll give me time to explain that I was originally going to use the mark on her, but now…I got saddled with him instead."
"Do you really need either of them, Kaito?" Conan turned around so that he was straddling the other teen. "You have me."
Kaito rolled his eyes. "Shin-chan, you're eight."
"I could always use my vampire form. I'm Shinichi-sized in my vampire form," Conan suggested.
Kaito just shook his head. "You're not mine, anyway, Shin-chan. You've got Ran-san."
"Not at the moment, I don't," Conan muttered.
"We're both having trouble in love," Kaito sighed, letting his head fall forward and knock lightly with Conan's.
Conan angled his face upward to catch Kaito's lips with his own.
"Gross," Kaito complained just for show. "You make me feel like a pervert."
"Shh," Conan chuckled, kissing the magician again.
"Okay, but only a little making out, and only because I'm depressed," Kaito easily gave in.
Three days later Hakuba Saguru was absent from school, so Kaito went over to the Hakuba Manor afterwards to cure the poor detective; however, Baaya relayed a message from her young master saying that he had no desire to see the brunette.
Kaito went the following day with the same result. Ditto the day after that; however, instead of going home on the third day, Kaito snuck around back, climbed the large oak tree, and jumped onto Hakuba's balcony from there. Kaito easily picked the lock and let himself in.
Hakuba was tossing and turning on the bed, drenched in sweat and in a complete delirium.
Kaito took a seat beside his classmate and patted the boy on the cheek, gently running a hand through that blonde hair.
"Stubborn," he clucked. "Would you really rather die than spend the rest of your life with me?"
Hakuba's eyes peeled open at the sound of Kaito's voice. Kaito happened to notice that one was gold while the other shone the prettiest shade of clear ocean blue. Interesting.
Hakuba mumbled something and held out his wrist.
Kaito lips formed a small half-smile. "Can I take that as consent?" He took the wrist and bit down.
Hakuba shuddered at the initial pain and then he shuddered again when the venom began to have its effect. After a minute or two, Hakuba weakly tried to pull his wrist back as he turned his head, offering his neck.
Kaito gave the wrist one last lick to clean up the excess blood still pooling there before he positioned himself over the blonde and slipped his fangs into the tender flesh of Hakuba's throat.
Kaito drank to just before the point where Hakuba would pass out and stopped, licking up the mess before rising to leave. To his immense surprise, Hakuba caught him by the wrist, wordlessly asking him to stay.
"What's up?" Kaito cocked his head to the side in confusion, but took a seat on the bed beside the detective once more anyway.
"Sorry," Hakuba mumbled, still very much out of it. "I'm sorry. What I said…I don't mean it. You saved me, and I'm grateful. I'm sorry, Kuroba."
"Don't worry about it," Kaito assured. "I would be angry too if someone told me I had to be their personal blood bank for the rest of my life. I get that you were pissed and confused and scared. Just…please try to remember that even though I am a monster in your opinion, I have feelings too."
Hakuba gave a nod of acknowledgement.
"When you're feeling able, go get something to eat, take a shower, and then rest. I'll see you at school tomorrow." With a fond pat on the detective's head, Kaito got up and left.
Exactly one week later, a very embarrassed-looking Saguru approached Kuroba's desk.
The magician looked up expectantly.
"I…tonight…after school, I mean…would you…?" Saguru gulped.
Kaito, who had a bit of a facetious streak, just waited without saying anything. If the detective wanted something, let him ask for it straight, docilely.
When he saw that he wasn't getting any help from the stupid youkai, Saguru sighed and mumbled, "I need your help. Would you please come home with me after school today?"
"Sure. My pleasure," Kaito laughed light-heartedly, but then added smugly, "Yours too, I guess."
Saguru's face ran the gambit between cherry blossom pink and blood red. "T-Thank you."
About five weeks into Saguru and Kuroba's vampire-chew toy relationship, Baaya had confronted the detective.
After Kuroba had left, Saguru went down to the kitchen to get a snack, as per his master's orders.
Baaya was down there making dinner, and when she saw her charge, she crossed her arms and gave him that look.
"What did I do?" Saguru protested around the onigiri that he was in the middle of taking a bite out of.
"Saguru, it's about your boyfriend," his foster-mother began.
The blonde's mouth dropped open. He was too stunned to respond immediately.
"I'm concerned that he's too rough with you. And don't you try to argue with me, Saguru. If you're getting blood on the sheets, he's being too rough," his caretaker lectured.
"Kuroba is NOT my boyfriend!" Saguru shrieked.
"Saguru, you two have been knocking boots for an entire month now," Baaya growled. "Kuroba-kun had better be your boyfriend. I understand that your generation believes in sexual freedom, but I raised you better than to fool around with just anyone."
"Baaya, it's not what you think. We're not…copulating," Saguru attempted to explain as all the blood in his body pooled in his cheeks. He could hear it rushing in his ears.
"How dumb do you think I am, Saguru?" Baaya fixed her foster-son with an icy stare. "You're not going to try to tell me that you two are just studying, are you? Saguru, you're very vocal. I can hear the moans and the ruckus you two make all the way down here."
"It's not what it looks like," Saguru pleaded, covering his face with a hand in embarrassment. "He's not my boyfriend, he's a—" Saguru found himself physically unable to say the word.
"He's a…?" Baaya was waiting, hoping her child would at least come up with something original.
"Drat. He ordered me not to speak a word about it to anyone," Saguru grumbled, but then an idea came to him. "But maybe I could show you." Saguru scrambled to unbutton his shirt and show her his neck. "Look, Baaya."
And look she did, not really comprehending what she was seeing. "Saguru…those are puncture wounds…how…?"
"Baaya, think. Fill in the blank. He's a…" Saguru pointed to the bite marks.
She shook her head. "Saguru…what are those?"
"They're exactly what you think they are."
"There's no way…" Baaya muttered, taking in the fresh wound along with the fading marks of previous bites. "Your boyfriend's a vampire?! Oh, Lord have mercy! He doesn't sparkle, does he? Oh, the horrible romance fiction they'll write about this!"
"No!" Saguru was about ready to pull his hair out.
"Good." Baaya nodded as if that settled everything. "I just couldn't deal with him, if he sparkled."
"He's NOT my boyfriend!" Saguru wailed.
"He's just using you for sex and blood, then? Is that it?" Baaya scoffed, balling her fists with the righteous fury of a mother and making plans to obtain a wooden stake.
"NO." Saguru was going to cry. This was the single most frustrating and mortifying moment of his life. "Hold on, Baaya. I need to make a phone call."
Kuroba picked up on the second ring. "What's up? You okay?"
"No. I need your help." Saguru was quite aware that he sounded desperate.
"Already?!" Kuroba exclaimed. "Hakuba, it's been, like, thirty minutes!"
"Not with that," Saguru sighed. "Baaya is under the impression that you are my vampire boyfriend who's just using me for carnal satisfaction and nourishment. Could you please revoke your order about not telling anyone about…you know, so that I can explain our relationship to my, for all intents and purposes, mother?"
Kaito just laughed. "That's rich! She thinks I'm just banging you and taking blood? Ha!"
"Kuroba, please," Saguru whimpered.
"Alright," his master chuckled. "You can tell Baaya and only Baaya."
"Thank you," Saguru sighed in gratitude and relief. "You're most merciful, my gracious vampire overlord."
"Ha!" Kaito snorted. "Cut the blatant sarcasm. Wait. No. That's not an order. I meant…could you turn down the sarcasm a bit?"
"No." Saguru loved how the word felt on his tongue. "I reserve the right to be as sarcastic as I wish, Master."
He could practically sense Kuroba rolling his eyes on the other end.
"Goodbye, Hakuba," Kuroba continued to chuckle.
"Goodbye, Kuroba, and thank you."
Saguru hung up and turned to his caretaker to explain.
Once he'd finished, she pursed her lips. "You do like him, though, Saguru."
"I do not," the detective himself argued.
"You might not know it yet, but you do like Kuroba-kun." Baaya crossed her arms and nodded sagely. "I wouldn't be surprised, since you have no clue about your own feelings, but I can tell these things. You should have seen the way you smiled when talking to him. You're smitten," she informed knowingly.
"Like hell," Saguru inwardly dissented.
…
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Mikau: It's a fox! Like Kaito, though I don't think the fox part of his genealogy is really going to play out in this fic. Thanks so much for reading guys! I hope you liked it. The second part is more KaiShin heavy, so all you KaiShin fans, stay tuned! Please leave me a review and let me know what you thought. What was good? What was only so-so? Did you have any favorite lines? What was funny? I'd very much appreciate it. Thanks in advance! See you again soon!