Kaneki panted heavily as he wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand. He gave a disgusted noise as he noticed the blood that soaked his hands, knowing it now stained his brow. The dark crimson liquid pooled at his feet as it seeped from the barely breathing bodies that lie on the cold, hard ground and was splattered all over the fluffy, layered, sky blue dress that was slipping from his shoulders, the back having to be unzipped for his kagune to slip out. He had promised Hinami that he wouldn't ruin it, but… A groan slipped from Kaneki's lips at the state it was in. Hopefully he could find something that would wash the blood out.

Being attacked wasn't something he was expecting. Then again, it never was. The ghouls came out of seemingly nowhere and he hardly had enough time to tell Hinami to run back to the apartment before he sidestepped the first guy's attack and swung a glass heel into the back of his head. He could only thank Hinami's insistent, "You have to wear the glass slippers! You can't be Cinderella without them!" even if he had to deal with walking around barefoot so late at night because the heels hurt too much to wear and were difficult to balance in.

Footsteps echoed against the narrow, brick walls of the alleyway, making Kaneki turn instantly, ready to defend himself again if need be.

"Ah, Kaneki-kun! I thought that was you I saw." A familiar voice rang out before the purple haired man stepped out from the dark shadows, wearing a crown and dressed a bit fancier than his usual attire, but just as flashy with the colors. "Don't you look belle…"

"I'm Cinderella." Kaneki spat as he adjusted the dress to sit correctly on his shoulders before reaching around the back in search of the zipper. He wasn't even embarrassed, really, that Tsukiyama saw him like this. Maybe it was because a lot of people had already saw the sky blue, sparkly dress Hinami had begged that he wore to accompany her in her yellow dress as they went out trick-or-treating. Hinami wanted to try it, although she wouldn't be able to eat the candy. She ended up giving her bag to a little boy who's candy had been stolen by older kids.

Tsukiyama chuckled lightly as he walked closer, his footsteps still audible and echoing around them, until he stood behind Kaneki, who still had no luck in finding the zipper.

"Laissez-moi." Tsukiyama whispered softly, gently pushing Kaneki's hands away. A soft rrrrrip was heard behind him as the dress tightened around his middle.

"Thanks." Kaneki tautly said as he turned around, his hands somehow ending up in Tsukiyama's, their fingers interlaced together.

"Care for a dance, princesse?"

"H-hey! Wait a minute!"

One hand was released, the other still in Tsukiyama's was raised to his head and was twisted gently, urging him to spin around. Kaneki could only comply as his cheeks grew warm with a light blush. Once facing Tsukiyama again, their fingers intertwined and Tsukiyama placed his other hand on Kaneki's waist, Kaneki's naturally finding it's way to rest on Tsukiyama's shoulder.

"You're going to get stained with blood." Was the only objection that could find it's way to Kaneki's lips.

Tsukiyama snorted playfully as he took the lead, starting out slow. Kaneki tried his best to keep up with the steps, despite the unpleasant stickiness of the blood pooled under his barefeet.

"Ne vous inquiétez pas. Being stained with blood is the least of my worries."

Pull away. Don't let him do this. He's only plotting something. Don't let your guard down around him. He's still dangerous. Kaneki screamed inside his head, but…

But lately…

Lately he's been… okay. More than okay, actually. Good? Nice? Behaved? Those words were exactly it, but yet it was more than that. Kaneki couldn't quite find how to describe it, but whatever "it" was, he hated it. Mixed feelings stirred in his gut every time he looked into those narrow, violet eyes. He couldn't bring himself to be as aware as he'd like to be around Tsukiyama; he could actually feel almost relaxed around the man who had tried to eat him. It was unsettling to realize.

Kaneki's foot stepped on Tsukiyama's black leather shoe and an apology slipped from his lips.

"Vous êtes d'accord." Tsukiyama murmured softly as he spun Kaneki around again, pulling him even closure when they were face to face.

Their eyes met, soft, unreadable purple and heedful grey hues, as their pace quickened slightly. It felt wrong. So so so wrong, considering the unconscious bodies of his two attackers bleeding out at their feet, and dancing with Tsukiyama of all people… The man who went completely insane for just a bite of Kaneki's flesh. And…

And Hinami.

"I gotta go. Hinami is…"

Kaneki pushed Tsukiyama away, a bit rougher than what was necessary, and honestly he did feel a little bad. No, he shouldn't. After what Tsukiyama has done to him, he deserved more than that.

Even if he'd been nothing but compassionate for the past month or so?

Yes. Nothing could or ever would excuse Tsukiyama's earlier actions. He had felt so scared, so terrified, angry, confused, hurt, but most of all… betrayed.

"Kaneki-kun?" Tsukiyama called after him as he turned and fled. Did Tsukiyama sound… hurt? No, it must have been his imagination.

As soon as Kaneki unlocked and swung open the door, he saw Hinami standing cautiously near the door, a look of relief washing away her worried expression.

"You okay?" Kaneki asked instantly and Himani nodded, her eyes giving him a once over. He looked down, almost forgetting the blood that splattered the dress he promised not to ruin. "Ah, Hinami, I didn't mean to-"

"I know. It's okay, because you protected me. I'm just glad you're safe." A soft smile tugged Hinami's lips up and Kaneki returned the gesture.

"I'll still try to get the blood out, though." He promised. "But for now, how about you go get some sleep? It's late and we've had a long day."

"Thank you, onii-chan. Goodnight!" Hinami looked as if she were about to step forward to give him a hug, but instead gave a little wave before turning and heading to her bedroom.

Kaneki walked over to the kitchen sink, turned on the hot water, and lathered his hands in soap, watching as the usually white bubbles turned red from the blood that had dried on his hands. He tried his best to wash off as much as he could, finding the blood staining his fingernails impossible to scrub away. He deemed them good enough after a third wash before splashing water onto his face, then grabbed a towel to dab himself dry. It made him feel a little better.

A few knocks reverberated from the front door and Kaneki tensed, settling the towel down on the counter. He made his way to the door that he hadn't relocked and cautiously opened it.

"Bonjour." Tsukiyama greeted from the hallway with a hand behind his back.

Kaneki took a step back, ready to slam the door in the other man's face if need be, but Tsukiyama got down on one knee and presented a bloodied, glass slipper.

"I seem to have lost my princesse. One shoe had been smashed and this is all I have to find her. Wouldn't happen to be you, would it, mon cher?" Tsukiyama's head was bowed politely as he held out the shoe for Kaneki to slip on.

He hesitated, and Tsukiyama looked up, giving him an encouraging look. An almost silent sigh slipped past Kaneki's lips as he pulled up the many ruffles and layers of the dress to uncover one of his blood-dried feet and held it out. Tsukiyama gingerly slipped Kaneki's foot into the glass slipper and gave a smile.

"Perfect fit, princesse."

Kaneki watched him rise to his feet and give a bow, before turning and starting to walk away.

"Until next time. Au revoir, belle."

"I'm Cinderella." Kaneki called down the hall at the retreating prince.

Tsukiyama stopped and called over his shoulder, "Belle means beautiful in French, princesse," and continued to walk, leaving an exhausted, blood stained, and blushing Kaneki standing in the doorway.