Author disclaimer: I did not create Rosario + Vampire. That was Akihisa Ikeda. This is a story using most of the manga's characters and a few of my own. I will accept criticism on this fan fiction. However, this is my first fan fiction and I would appreciate if there were no flamers, just helpful criticism.

Melting heart

The secret

Prologue: Yokai Academy, 3 months into reconstruction after the damage done by the Medusa's plot. Exorcist & Ruby present at rebuilding site.

5:50 pm

Ruby watched as the crew worked the site. This time they were adding more protection to the academy. Every now and then Ruby would become angry as an ogre would drop a beam, but all things considered things were going at a much faster rate than had originally been expected.

"Mistress Ruby we… we found something we…. Think the exorcist might want to see this ….I…..just hurry please miss."

Ruby contacted the exorcist via cell phone his response was to the point as all ways.

"Hurry Ruby if I am to be disturbed than this must be of the greatest importance."

She had just turned when she saw a shadow flying trough the sky. He landed softly and turned his attention to the worker. "speak Jorone". It was a soft command but a authorative one .

Jorone looked with pure exuberance at the Exorcist and with extraordinary speed told his tale. Apparently one of his clumsier ogres had fallen through an opening in the ground while carrying a timber and had collapsed from the weight on top of him. The crew then journeyed into the hole. To get him out they removed the timber and, as they were about to leave, Jorone noticed that there was a stairway to the top covered by some of the dirt and had decided to excavate the area to see what they could uncover. They dug through a five foot thick wall of mud and removed some boulders and what they unearthed was a dark corridor with writing on the wall.

"Why was I not alerted before any of this took place, Jorone?"

"Sir, we didn't want to get you just so you could see the remnants of a ravished stairway. We wanted to make sure that we had something that would be a good cause to disturb your work with."

The Exorcist nodded. "You have done well Jorone. You and your crew will be expecting a big raise in light of these events. Ruby, I would like for you to stay here while I go to retrieve some useful items. While I am gone, please find the ogre and get his statement, would you?"

"Yes master, but do you think it's wise to explore something even you didn't know about?" But before she finished her sentence the Exorcist was gone. She went to the medical tent where the ogre was lying on a cot. He was bandaged and had an obvious broken arm.

"What is your name ogre?"

"I am Karn ma'm."

"Very well Karn, what did you experience in the hole?" "Well ma'am, I was carrying the timber and suddenly I fell. I guess the weight caused the collapse, but that's not the point. After I fell in and became stuck under the timber, I started to look up and, well, judging by how the roof was covered, I started thinking how someone did not want this place found, and that's all that I can recall."

"Very well, thank you Karn." Ruby returned to the base to find the Exorcist waiting.

"Well Ruby, did you find any thing out that is of importance?"

"Maybe sir." The only thing the ogre said that was relevant was that someone had covered the roof up."

The Exorcist just smiled as always and began to walk to the hole. Ruby followed dutifully and was right behind the Exorcist when he went through. He pulled a golden book out of a small bag slung around his shoulder.

"This Ruby is my book of language. I have every language discovered in my life time written in this book. It and I are very close. I have brought it in case the need might occur for deciphering the writing on the walls. I have also a note pad and a torch. Now, where is it?" He rifled through the bag and finally retrieved a small wooden stick. He then whispered a language Ruby did not know and the torch lit with a white flame. Ruby and her master traveled in silence as they traveled the illuminated halls of the tunnel. The walls were ancient, in Ruby's estimation, around twelfth century, maybe even less. They were, however, clearly above the seventh century and more than that, they were covered in writing. There were languages from every Yokia, including mid- century vampiric and even witch.

As Ruby stared at the walls she began to understand the writing. Not the words exactly, but she did however know the origin. She encountered the fox demon's writing at one point. After some time, she was beginning to understand what this place was. It was a place where Yokia of every form had once stood without any animosity towards the other, a point of peace. Ruby studied more and more. She learned from the witch's writing that this place was a library, somewhere Yokia of every form had agreed to come to input data on their histories so that they could be passed down to new generations. As they continued down their path, Ruby wondered more and more why they wouldn't want this place to be seen and used. She kept wondering and thinking over this problem. So deep in thought, she did not notice when the Exorcist finally stopped and started talking. She bumped into his back nose first.

"Ruby as you know from your kinds writing, this is a library that holds many treasures. At one time, to show a leap of faith in the peace, the Yokia of the past wanted so much to keep the peace that the kings of each tribe delivered their riches so that they were on common ground. But from what I have gathered from the Sphinx, who value knowledge above all else, was that the tribes soon wanted to start war with the humans and when the humans found that this was the Yokia, meeting point they raided it. The Yokia easily fended off the then primitive humans, but they began noticing that the technologies of humans were slowly becoming more and more dangerous to the Yokia. So to ensure that never again would the chance arise to use their own knowledge against them, the Yokia closed the library hiding the entrance."

"So the ancient Yokia really tried to make peace, master?" (Tsukune would love to know this. He always does want peace after all.)

"Yes Ruby. However, they did not just close the library. They put a monster in here to protect its hidden knowledge."

"What kind of monster, master?"

"According to the writing, it was born as a male dragon but it was fed the blood of a vampire as well as a basilisk and a last monster however I cannot tell what this one is but I do know that it resembles a scorpion."

"Do you think it lives still?"

"If it had just been a vampire I would say no, but this creature has the blood of a dragon and a basilisk, two creatures that can live almost for an eternity."

Ruby breathed heavily as she began to worry about this beast. The imagination is a terrible thing, for all she could think of was a beast with blood dripping from yellowed fangs, making her shudder at the thought. She had all the faith in the world that the headmaster could stop this creature, but she feared what would happen if they became separated.

"Headmaster, this is a library right? Well, do you think it has the book?"

"Good point Ruby. I'm sure that the Nexus, if it is not here, will at least have information. That's a very excellent thought."

Ruby watched as the Exorcist started to muse this over. She remembered the Nexus. Since she was a lass, her lady would tell her of it- the Nexus Codex. Nexus was supposedly created by the first ever witch when she was near the end of her life. Ruby never believed that part of the tale. She did, however, think that the Nexus was to a witch the ultimate magical object. Besides containing every spell and hex, it contained knowledge on every seal and every magical object.

But that was nothing compared to the lore, the lore which was sought by every one in the ancient times. The lore was a story of how every monster was created, and it was said the lore was able to increase any monsters power beyond even that of the vampire.

"Ruby, if the Nexus is contained in these walls, then if we find it, we shall have to wait until the crews have left. And if it is only the two of us, I only trust you with this. Any other monster would do nothing to obtain this power for his or hers own selfish power trip."

"Headmaster, believe me when I say no one will know, not even Tsukune. This is too much. Even I am tempted by that book, so any one else knowing is too many."

"Very well, Ruby"

She continued walking. After that, she no longer cared about the writing on the wall because she was too troubled to bother. There was so much happening. Not only was there the Nexus Paradox, but now there was a monster that was over a thousand years strong to worry about. She spared a glance at her watch, its hands pointing from twelve to six. This meant if the sun went down at eight, then they had traveled under the ground for almost five hours. How far did this tunnel go? They continued to walk down the unknown for hours when they met a fork in their path.

"Ruby, this is where we part. The library is down the tunnel to the right and the treasure is to the left. I shall take that path."

"How do you know which tunnel is which Headmaster? I don't see any thing that gives a clue."

"In old Sphinx, there was a riddle. You didn't see it, but it was at the beginning of our journey. I solved it and it solved this dilemma."

Ruby felt a strong urge to ask what the riddle was, but that was replaced by a sudden dread. The Exorcist wanted them to separate…. There was a beast and he wanted to divide numbers.

"Exorcist, what about the beast?"

"Ruby, if the beast is in a tunnel it should be with the treasure. No doubt the ancient ones would likely hide it in the treasure room, for the fact that most people who found this place wouldn't know what it is and would go for treasure."

"If they wouldn't know what this place is, then how would they know about the treasure?"

He smiled a grotesque grin, one that reminded Ruby of a skulls sick grin. "The monsters of the past were smart. You and I are smart, but the hunters would be dumb, and would only see the obvious. The tunnel up ahead is ladled with gold and gems, so obviously the dumb would choose that path."

"Yes sir, I should have thought that one through. My apologies."

The Exorcist did not speak any further, just simply began his journey forward, without a farewell or a wave. Ruby took the same solemn walk through the tunnel to the right. She walked and she walked through that dark abyss, her witch light dim and not showing much. Unfortunately, the Exorcist had taken with him her torch.

She leaned against a wall after hours of searching. She glanced at her watch, reading 7:00 a.m. She had no sleep and had almost walked for twelve hours, six of these hours spent in the tunnel by herself. She was anxious. Had the Exorcist gotten to his destination? And if he had, then did he meet the beast? These questions burned in her like iron to a ghost.

The walls narrowed more and more and the air became staler. She was near a closed room, the door made of rusted steel. Ruby slowly pushed it open, the door shutting behind her. It was an eerie thing, like the bolt on a coffin.

There where rows of books and she could tell they were ancient, but she had no time to enjoy her finds. She could feel it before it breathed on her neck, the power too much for her to miss. The Exorcist was wrong on two accounts, the first being that they valued gold over knowledge. And the second that the beast was with him …

It was with her.

Ruby did not turn around. She did not scream. All she did was draw her wand. Her wings grew and she sailed through the air. A crash rang behind her as the ground shattered exactly where she had just stood. She dodged each row of books, not wanting their knowledge destroyed. Since no crashing reached Ruby's ears, she knew that the monster wanted the same thing.

After running through another row and almost hitting a wall, inspiration for her next move struck. The young witch circled around the shelf, hearing the monster on her tail, and counting on that not changing. She flew down the same row again, but this time she did not go left, but instead flew directly at the wall. At the last millisecond Ruby flew upwards, the tip of her nose hitting the surface and blood dripping downwards. The beast did not have time to dodge and crashed through it, letting in dirt from the ground surrounding the chamber on the outside.

Taking the opportunity to get as far away as possible, she landed. When she reached the center of the room, shelves of books hid her from view, letting her breathe. Ruby struck her wand in front of her like a sword to ward off the evil. The beast rounded the corner and for the first time the terrified witch saw it.

The beast was green like mold. It had no eyes and it had slits for nostrils. Its mouth was wide and bore rows of teeth like a shark's mouth that stretched forward, along with most of its upper head which resembled a snake. The head was attached to a thick neck that had fangs sticking out of a hole. Or at least that what Ruby thought it was at first. She looked closer and choked in fear. It was a mouth... The beast had two mouths.

Its body was strong, veins popped out in all places, torso more like the dragons than any thing else on it. The creature was big and it was thick. Its wings were greener than its body and were shaped like a bat's wings. But after all of this, what scared Ruby the most was its tail and the beasts smell. The rest of the body went together in a well manner, but the tail made it look like someone had taken different pieces of animals, not monsters but animals, and sewn them together. The tail was like a scorpion's, but it was longer than the body itself. Instead of using its feet, the beast propped on its tail instead.

But the smell was the worst because it was so inviting, making her want to come to the beast just so she could become enveloped in its stench. The beast did not follow her, only stayed where it was. Ruby stayed still as long as she could, but she had to move sometime and the sooner the better. She raised her wand and from it a swarm of crows and ravens flew. They attacked the beast, slicing him with their talons, tearing at him with their beaks. Soon Ruby could no longer see the monster as the birds engulfed him. She crept around a shelf and spied on the scene through the gap. The beast silently flicked his tail, and in one swift motion, the birds fell to the floor, many cleaved in two. Ruby slid around the shelf, once again taking a path through the maze of books to gain an advantage. Her plan was to take out his tail.

She finally slid behind it, raising her wand, but before she could strike, the tail flew upwards and knocked her onto her back. Ruby's skirt fell onto her hair, blood in her mouth, but she still moved with the grace of a crow and jumped into the air, narrowly avoiding the creature's tail. Ruby knew that eventually the beast would get her if things continued the way they were.

Once again she raised her wand, only this time she started chanting slowly as to not mispronounce a phrase. The Exorcist had just recently taught her this spell after all. The beast carefully slid itself to where the murmuring witch was, still unwilling to damage the books it was set to guard so many years ago. Ruby raised her hand as sweat drifted down her brow, a shining curtain in the dark chamber.

The Yokai drew closer, edging closer. Ruby continued to wait. The beast stood in front of her, its mouth opened wide. That was when Ruby struck. White doves swarmed from her wand in droves, flying into his mouth and filling it. The jaw unhinged more and more, trying to hold the amount of flesh in his mouth. Ruby smiled. Sooner or later his maw wouldn't unhinge anymore. His upper jaw would eventually rip from his lower, and that would be that.

Of course, however, she forgot about the second mouth in its throat. It started to spin and the doves caught in his throat were shredded. As blood oozed from that mouth, the upper mouth slowly started to empty as it swallowed more and more, the white feathers drifting to the floor and gave it the appearance of a snowy ground. Ruby cursed and flew higher as she attempted to gain a back view of his tail, finally gaining it. Ruby waved her wand again. This time a spike descended from it. The spike flew to the ground, ripping through the green muscles and pinning it at the very tip. Ruby waved it several more times until the beast could not even slightly move his tail.

The creature began to roar, but not in the type she expected. The sound was not loud or deep, but small and dusty, almost as if it never made a sound at all. The beast started to crawl forward, but before it got any farther, Ruby dropped a spike through its wings. And that was when it had enough.

The creature lunged forward. It got caught for a second, almost pulled back by its own tail. Then, however, the tail ripped off, and the Yokai barreled towards her. Ruby faced it bravely. She could fight the beast now that the tail was gone and it couldn't fly. Her wand lifted to strike.

The beast, meanwhile, had only been using a natural survival instinct when it ran forward and separated from its tail. However, like a lizard, his tail re-grows and due to its unnatural healing abilities, it was completely renewed before he even reached her. Its tail lashed out, smashing through her wand and separating its head from its shaft.

Ruby was thrown backwards as her back crashed against the wall, wand uselessly in her lap. Blood dripped down her neck from where her head had hit the cold surface. But the worst wound was to her arm where the beast's tail had broken through her wand. That little resistance going through her wand had diverted from its path to her chest, burying itself into her shoulder and nearly ripping it from her body. Blood ran rapid, a waterfall of red as crimson as her namesake. The witch barely remained conscious as its tail pulled back to deliver the death blow, a fatal thrust.

It froze then, mouth slightly agape, saliva dripping steadily down its cheek. The beast looked like it was choking on something. Ruby hoped the Exorcist had come, even though she knew it was a hopeless thought. It had taken her a day to get to the end of her tunnel and who knew how long it took the Exorcist to reach his end. But still, the thought going through her mind was, "What was stopping it?" She had done no spells and yet she heard it, a slow tearing sound. He made a last gurgling moan as a black pair of claws appeared through his second mouth.

The claws had come from the back of his neck. There was a second where Ruby could see the claws struggling, and then any resistance they had felt left as the claws went their separate ways and tore the creature's head from its shoulders. She could make out a figure behind the fountain of blood spouting from the corpse's neck.

"Master?" she asked weakly, blood coming into her mouth. "Tsukune?"

She stared ahead into the dim chamber as a man stepped through the fountain. No, it wasn't a man it was … it was a boy. A teenager, she was sure of it. He stood staring at her. His hair was long, reaching several inches below his collar, pitch black and spiked. His body was pale and extremely thin. The whites of his eyes and his pupils had switched a startling inversion. Instead of the whites of his eyes there was black and his pupil was stark white, but his iris was maroon. He wore leather boots and blue jeans, though no shirt adorned his chest. The stranger was tall, around 6'5", and smiling. His hands were morphed terribly, with fingers that looked more like katanna. They scraped the floor near his feet, black hands that looked like they were forged from steel. Then he started to change. Light skin grew darker, only enough to seem normal. Normal eyes returned, except for now he had baby blues. His hair shortened and hung just above his shoulders and no longer was spiked and his hands were just ordinary hands.

He jumped lightly down from his perch on the monster and went towards Ruby. She couldn't help it as a whimper of fear came from between her lips. If he took the monster down, albeit from behind, then what would he do to an injured witch?

"Miss are you able to walk, I need to get you up?" He asked in an American accent.

Ruby just stared at her arm and shook her head. Using her left arm, she slowly pushed herself up. The boy came to her, grabbing her by the injured hand. She howled in pain and fought back tears as she felt the tug of shredded muscles. He reached across her using the opposite hand, and grabbed a piece of debris, then slowly cut across his palm.

She gazed at wonder when she saw his blood. It was violet, not crimson but violet, and splashed across her arm. Once it touched her blood, it turned into a spark of gold, and Ruby felt and watched as her arm reattached itself to the mangled shoulder. The feeling was euphoric as the liquid mingled with her own and spread across her body. Ruby's scalp started to prickle as it started to fix itself. The blood was completely healing her. Even the fatigue of not sleeping for the past 2 days was remedied. She gawked in amazement at him. He held his hand out towards her in a handshake, one she took, unable to speak.

"My name is Drake Hall. Now don't do too much I didn't restore the blood you lost fighting that thing so you should probably go to sleep but first I have a request."

She stared at her hand, still wet with her blood, and she started noticing her legs were shaking. He was right- she wouldn't be standing much longer.

"What is it?"

He looked grateful. As he stared at her, a blush came to his face. "In a few months may I come to you for some … some of your blood it … it's important."

She nodded just once and almost fell.

"By the way, you can have this. I couldn't read it, so it was no use to me, but maybe you'll be able to use it." With this he threw a book at her. She was able to make out the title right before she passed out. "Nexus Codex". Then she landed face first on it.

End of the prologue.

As you can tell I have some grammar problems but they do start to smooth out later. If you find this prologue or as I consider prologues "sample" disappointing please do not quit. I was in the middle of the fourth chapter when I noticed that I did not do an authors note and I can assure you that it does get better.