Kuro continued playing the game despite the annoying infant in his lap. She was squirming around, trying to get comfortable. He sighed and paused the game, "Now what?"

She stared up at him, her large brown eyes pleading under her thin, chocolate hair with incoherent babbles. "What a pain," Kuro grumbled as he opened his jacket, letting her get against his chest.

She giggled as he closed his jacket a bit, but after a couple minutes of squirming, she got still. Little Karma was the easiest child to take care of. The only attention she wanted was someone touching her or holding her, on occasion she would cry for no reason, but for the most part, she could be kept occupied with toys in her playpen which was next to the television so Kuro could keep an eye on her.

He might have been a cat, but Mahiru made him his daughter's guard dog, practically forcing him to sleep in the same room with her. He would pick Karma's room over staying in Mahiru's room any day. It was no secret Kuro hated Mahiru's wife. Keiko didn't know the truth about Kuro, but she knew him as "Ash", and Ash was a lazy, good for nothing, high school dropout. The only reason she allowed Ash to come around was because he didn't charge for babysitting. He wanted junk food and soda, but he still left a mess.

"Ash! We're back!" Mahiru announced as he opened the door.

And she had just settled down, too.

"Where's my baby?" Keiko called, her heels hitting the floor as she jumped into the room.

"Asleep," Kuro replied monotonously.

He felt Karma moved slightly, as she always did when he spoke. She smacked slightly, nuzzling into his stomach. Of the things in the world, she was the only thing that could tempt him to smile.

He paused the game when he heard Keiko behind him. The tv went black as she stepped around the couch Kuro was leaning against. "You'll wake her up," Kuro warned the moment Keiko saw Karma.

"Pervert!" She shrieked, which, as Kuro predicted, woke Karma in such a panic she began to cry.

Before Kuro got the chance to try to calm her, Keiko pulled her from his lap, gently rubbing her back to soothe her.

"Did you feed her?" Keiko asked, only receiving a bored look from the servamp. After checking her diaper, she narrowed her eyes, "I'm surprised her diaper's clean."

"You cleaned up," Mahiru noted.

"She tried to eat the bag," Kuro replied as he rubbed the back of his neck. "She's starting to be troublesome."

"I can get Lily to babysit," Mahiru smiled, knowing the vampire would not approve.

"He charges too much," Keiko said. "You can go now."

Kuro rolled his eyes as he headed to the door and walked out. The door didn't close as he took his cat form, heading back to the living room and taking his spot on the couch where he normally slept during the day. The past few nights had been a nightmare. Karma was teething or something and it kept waking her up.

There were nights it got so bad, nothing could stop the pain, so Keiko would just give up and let her cry. Those nights, Kuro took care of her. He had to be careful about it, but he would take Karma to the kitchen and get her teething ring, heating it up rather than freezing it. It stopped the noise, and that's what mattered.

"Your stupid friend gave her the wrong formula," Keiko grumbled.

"Ash wouldn't mess that up. He's lazy not reckless. He couldn't hurt Karma even if someone forced him to," Mahiru defended.

Kuro ignored the argument when he heard Karma cry. She was tired and ready for bed. He yawned, stretching before jumping off the couch, his jingling bell catching Mahiru's attention.

"It's late, Keiko," Mahiru said with a sigh. "Put Karma down and we'll talk more about Ash."

Kuro followed Keiko down the hall, joining Karma in her crib and curling up next to her. That was Kuro's life now. They had managed to find a safe way to break their contract when Mahiru got married, but Kuro was allowed to stay as a house pet and very convenient babysitter.

That was why Keiko hated him. Kuro was always available, even when her sister or mother was. Even when Keiko's mother or sister came to watch the child, Mahiru made sure to "call Ash" if anything were to happen.

Keiko and Mahiru's argument became white noise to the vampire while he snuggled against Karma who was starting to squirm again. "You're troublesome," he murmured, opening an eye as she smiled a bit.

All throughout the night, Karma seemed to squirm or cry. The door was opening and closing more often than a clock ticked. When Keiko left for the twentieth time, Kuro jumped out of the crib, picking Karma up and laying on the floor, the infant on his chest. Why this comforted her, he didn't know. Perhaps his breathing or heart beat? Maybe his body heat or, sometimes, lack thereof.

With how hot she felt told him of an oncoming illness, probably just a cold. Either way, it would be annoying. Keiko always stayed home and invited her mother and sister over when Karma got sick. The overbearing women refused to let Kuro anywhere near her, most of the time blaming the cat for her sickness.

He lazily opened an eye when he heard the door click. Mahiru rubbed his eyes as he looked down at the vampire with Karma on his chest. The human yawned as he turned off the baby monitor. "What are you doing?"

"I was sleeping," Kuro answered as he closed his eye. "Karma's getting sick."

"Great," Mahiru groaned. "Well, at least she's stopped crying."

Kuro grabbed Mahiru's leg before he walked out, "I'm not changing her diaper."

Mahiru sighed, "You're so lazy."

"Not my baby," Kuro replied as Mahiru pulled Karma from the vampire's chest. "So, have you thought about it anymore?"

Mahiru wanted Karma to be Kuro's eve, more for Karma's protection than anything. Really, the human didn't want the servamp to go, but he wanted Karma to have that friend she could always rely on. The world seemed to be getting darker, even after Tsubaki. Vampires seemed to still be present and active, all being subclasses of Tsubaki. Kuro was a target, but Mahiru was as well, even without being Kuro's eve.

"It's annoying," Kuro replied. "She should be the one to decide, not me."

The human stayed quiet as he dropped the diaper in the trash. "I know," he finally replied as he gently placed Karma back on the vampire's chest. "I just want her safe."

He turned the baby monitor back on, knowing as soon as he put Karma down, the vampire would be asleep. His daughter meant the world to him, and he knew Kuro had the power to protect her. He considered Kuro a dear friend...so, he would watch his daughter, right?

The morning came all too soon.

"Stupid cat," Rin spat as she grabbed kitty Kuro by the back of his neck and tossed him away.

Kuro landed on his feet, giving the old crone an unamused look. Rin was Keiko's mother, and Keiko was a carbon copy of the witch. Though she had aged, Rin still had the shiny, smooth inky colored hair, some grey strands glowing in contrast or sticking out in a wiry fashion. Her dark eyes were far too big for her face giving her an owlish look.

"I've told you a million times to get rid of that stupid thing," Kayda glared at him while he cleaned his face with his paw.

Kayda, Keiko's sister was probably adopted, looking nothing like either of them. She had brown curly hair that had been cut far too short making it an untamable mess. Her brown eyes seemed dull compared to dirty penny, and were very narrow and small.

"Mahiru just won't let him go," Keiko said with a frown as she held little Karma. "He's had him since he was in high school, so I can't just make him get rid of it."

"Then make him an outside cat," Kayda reasoned as she stood up, grabbing the vampire and walking to the balcony, carelessly tossing him out...over the edge of the balcony.

Kuro sighed as he started falling from the fifth floor of the apartment complex, landing on his feet in his human form as he touched the ground. He wasn't happy about being in the alley, but he would have to wait until Mahiru got off work and picked him up. Stupid humans. It annoyed him more that he could hear Karma crying despite the distance. At least he had his video game.

"How's Karma?" Mahiru asked as soon as he walked in.

He expected an answer from a Kuro, but instead received one from his livid mother-in-law. "She has yet to stop crying. I'm going to take her to the doctor tomorrow to make sure you haven't created some sort of addict as an infant!"

Mahiru felt his chest tighten as he heard the weak screams of his daughter coming from the arms of his wife as she tried to soothe the baby.

"Have you let her sleep by Kuro? That usually helps," he suggested.

"We put him on the balcony this morning," Kayda replied as she tried to calm Karma down with her teething ring.

"You what?! He can't be in sunlight!"

"Why are you so concerned about your cat when your daughter is in this condition?!" Keiko spat.

"Because she loves Kuro and won't calm down until he's here," Mahiru stated as he walked to the balcony to search for the cat. After searching all the shaded areas, he heard his name being called.

After he saw the vampire standing in the alley, he stormed back in, "You threw him over the railing?! You touch him again, and you're not coming back," Mahiru vowed as he pointed at Kayda then slammed the door behind him.

"I need to get you a phone. She barely has a voice left," Mahiru told the black cat in his arms.

"I'll take care of it tonight," Kuro assured with a yawn. "Or, you could just invite your friend Ash over."

"That won't work. I think Rin is planning to stay the night since she thinks I'm giving Karma sleeping pills and she's having withdrawals."

"She's so stupid," Kuro grumbled as Mahiru opened the door.

"You'll need a bath first, then you can snuggle with Karma," Mahiru stated as he stepped into the living room where Karma's sobs had turned dry.

"I don't think it can wait," Kuro answered quietly as he jumped from Mahiru's arms, landing lightly on the floor.

His small paws made light taps on the floor before he jumped to the couch and meowed. Kayda, Rin, and Keiko glared at the cat while Mahiru took Karma and laid her on the couch, letting the vampire nuzzle up to her.

Slowly, the dry, scratchy rasps began to get quiet as little Karma started to settle down. Kuro closed his eyes, happy for the rest even though he knew it would be short lived. He desperately needed a bath after standing in that sweltering alley all day.

There was a sigh of relief that washed over the room, now that Karma had been silenced. On occasion, she would whimper or whine, but when Kuro adjusted himself to where she was more comfortable, she would fall asleep once more.

She was still very hot and running a fever, something they apparently didn't get checked. If Kuro wasn't confined to a cat form in the sun, he would have taken Karma to the doctor himself since those idiots didn't.

"Alright, Kuro, bath time," he heard Mahiru say. "You even get to take it with Karma."

He hated sink baths, but he wasn't going to complain. Less work for him, and he was probably getting cleaner since Mahiru was the one that usually washed him. He wasn't allowed to be near Karma until his fur had dried completely, so he stayed in the same room.

The argument between Mahiru and Kayda immediately came back, Mahiru yelling that she shouldn't have tossed a cat out that had a skin condition and couldn't be in the sun thrown onto a sunny balcony and that she shouldn't have tossed him over the balcony. Her excuse was she hated the cat and believed it was Kuro's fault Karma got sick in the first place.

When that argument was settled, the winner being Mahiru since Kuro was his cat and Karma was his daughter, with the obvious change in the infant's behavior when Kuro returned to her side, Mahiru had to face Rin, who blamed him for being a terrible parent that made Keiko do everything. This enraged Mahiru since his wife had failed to tell her mother that she also had a job and that Kuro (or his high school drop out friend, Ash) took care of Karma while they were at work.

"You would let that good for nothing watch your child?!" Rin screeched at Keiko. "I live three floors down!"

"Mom, you wouldn't be able to handle Karma and Kuro. Kuro has to be with Karma at all times. He makes her happy, and that's what matters."

"I want to meet this loser. If I don't think he's capable of taking care of her, I'll be the one taking his place," Rin stated, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Fine," Mahiru agreed, much to Kuro's surprise and dismay. "Next week-"

"Tomorrow, after the doctor's visit," Rin ordered.

Mahiru paused a moment, as if he had to think over the demand. Could Kuro handle it?

"Tomorrow," he agreed.

Kuro sighed, annoyed with the proposition, but at least he didn't have to go to the doctors office.

"Crap, that means I have to go to the store," Mahiru gasped as he ran to the door.

The vampire was very picky, his food being ramen, chips, and soda. He was also very specific on the type of formula he would give Karma. They had run out of the soy based formula months ago, forcing Kuro to give the infant formula that made her sick and gassy.

He opened an eye when he felt the girl's tiny hands grasp his tail then went back to sleep. He would have to be on his best behavior or he wouldn't be allowed to watch Karma and make sure she was healthy. Obviously that woman couldn't do it.

As the night dragged on, Karma was soon put in her crib, Kuro joining her despite the loud opposition from Rin, who slept in Karma's room that night. With no way for Kuro to help her, he just had to deal with her cries while Rin tried to stop them, occasionally succeeding.

Karma's behavior made Kuro wonder about vampires and their legends. It wasn't as though Karma could comprehend how cute he was in his cat form. Were vampires so mesmerizing, even infants could fall under their spell?

Probably not. Though, he wasn't entirely sure, to be honest. Maybe if he remembered, he would ask Old Child.

The morning came all too soon for Kuro as Mahiru woke him up. "Rin's gone to the doctor, so you might want to get ready."

Kuro sighed as he jumped out of the crib, landing on his feet and standing, towering Mahiru in his human form. "You know no matter what I do, she's not going to be happy."

"I know, but that doesn't mean you won't still be helping. Karma loves you more than anyone."

"How annoying," Kuro grumbled as he headed to the kitchen, immediately grabbing ramen from the cabinet. He got it ready and placed it in the microwave, "You don't think she would hurt Karma, do you?"

Mahiru stepped to his side, the concern clear on his usually bored face, "What makes you think she would?"

"Some people are just insane, and they'll do whatever they can to get what they want. I think she might try to hurt her."

"If she does, she's not coming back," Mahiru said. "Keep me updated."

The former Eve left with a wave, leaving Kuro to eat his ramen in peace. Two bowls of ramen and a thorough cleansing later, Rin came in, a sleeping Karma in her arms.

"You're that good for nothing? You look like it," Rin spat. "It's the middle of the summer, take off that stupid jacket."

Kuro ignored her as he continued playing his video game. He heard something in the kitchen making him look over his shoulder. He was on his feet and next to a Rin before she could even comprehend what had happened. Taking Karma from her, he pulled the baby bottle from the microwave and sniffed it before pouring it out.

"You're wasting perfectly good formula!" Rin snapped as he tossed the bottle into the sink.

"She not even hungry, you idiot," he said as he walked back to the living room, placing the infant in his lap as he started the game again.

"What are you doing?! She can't sleep like that!"

Kuro ignored her, focusing on his game. When she heard her on the phone he could only sigh. This woman was going to drive him insane. He frowned slightly when he heard Karma whimper. Placing his hand on her forehead, he could tell her fever was getting worse. Did she even talk her to the doctor?

"Where's her medicine?" Kuro asked as he stood up, cradling Karma against him as she squirmed.

"I don't believe in using medicine," Rin answered. "She just needs to wait it out. Doctor's orders."

He stormed up to the woman, snatching her phone from her hand and dialing the first number he could think of.

"Hello?"

"I need you to get some medicine for Karma. We don't have any here, and her grandmother didn't get her any."

"Oh, my," Lily muttered, horrorstruck at the thought of such neglect, "Yes, I will get Dodo on it. Should I accompany him?"

"Not this time," Kuro answered. "And...thanks."

"Of course," Lily replied, a smile in his voice.

Within thirty minutes, Kuro had the medicine and had given it to the fussy infant. She had been whimpering and whining the entire time, almost to the point to put Kuro in tears for not being able to help her faster.

The effects weren't immediate, but Kuro could tell Karma was starting to feel a bit better as her body temperature lowered.

"Now, why couldn't you get the medicine yourself?" Rin asked with a smirk. "I could have watched Karma while you were gone."

"Lady, I would die before leaving her alone with you," Kuro replied coldly, heading to the couch and sitting in front of it, so Karma could lay in his lap.

He picked up the video game once more, trying to keep a cool head while playing. He had thought a lot about being Karma's servamp, and it was looking more and more like he needed to be with Rin being around. Rin was definitely ready to do whatever she needed to keep Karma.

Rin was nosy, always trying to get Karma from Kuro, or trying to turn off the tv and ruin his game. He took advantage of those moments, always getting up to either change Karma's diaper or check her fever.

He thought another fight was going to break out when Karma started whining again. As he started getting the formula ready, he had placed Karma in her playpen so she could play around with whatever toys she had. As he began heating it up, he kept an eye on Rin who decided Karma didn't need to be in her playpen.

It took all Kuro had to not kick the woman out of the apartment. He readied the formula, testing the temperature one last time before taking the bottle to Rin. He was skeptical about letting Rin feed her, but gave her the bottle anyway.

Standing a couple of feet away, he watched as Rin fed Karma, occasionally pulling the bottle from her mouth. Content that this was the one thing the woman could do right, Kuro let his guard down for only a moment. He headed to the kitchen to grab a bag of chips when he heard Rin put Karma in her playpen.

"She doesn't go in there right now," Kuro told her as he closed the microwave. "She goes in her room for an afternoon nap. She'll wake up around three."

"Why does it matter where she sleeps?"

"That's just how she is," Kuro replied as he carefully picked up Karma.

Almost immediately, she threw up on him. He sighed, "Great."

After taking off his jacket, he took off his shirt too, standing in the middle of the living room, wrapping the infant up in the warm shirt. She cooed and hiccuped as her brown eyes stared up at him. "Don't blame me. You threw up on me."

"Put a shirt on, you pervert!" Rin yelled.

Ignoring Rin once again, he took Karma to her room and put her down in the crib, "Now, get some sleep. I'll be here when you wake up."

She smiled at his cool touch, slowly falling asleep as he stood there. What usually came to two hours of playing video games, watching tv, or just sleeping as well, came to two hours of dealing with Rin who criticized everything he had done so far.

After tossing his jacket into the washing machine, he grabbed a shirt from Mahiru's closet, pulling it on and leaving the bedroom, Rin on the phone the whole time, complaining to her daughter about what Kuro was doing.

Getting on Mahiru's laptop, he sent the human an email, updating him on everything that had happened so far. Mahiru would listen to both sides, but in the end side with Kuro, who wasn't trying to impress anyone, just keep Karma safe.

Once the email had been sent, Kuro went to get his ramen from the microwave only to find it missing. He turned around, looking for Rin, then headed to Karma's room, hoping the ramen hadn't made its way in there.

"You idiot, are you trying to kill her?!" Kuro yelled as he quickly pulled Karma from her crib, holding her against his chest, "She's allergic to it!"

It wasn't a bad allergy, just causing her to sneeze a lot. Kuro wouldn't wear his jacket while he ate the stuff, leaving the item in her room, and even changing shirts after a thorough washing of his hands and face, and brushing his teeth and mouthwash.

That had been the last straw for Kuro. "You should leave."

"You can't just kick me out."

"Yes, I can," he replied coldly, his red eyes gleaming like freshly spilled blood as he glared at her. "If I even see you touch her, I will make sure you regret it."

The woman immediately left the room, though Kuro could tell it was probably some sort of intimidation tactic vampires had. His dark aura had caused Karma to cry, so he had to calm her down once more before leaving with the ramen.

He was mad, seething even, but his face remained stoic for Karma's sake. The last thing he needed was the girl to grow up having nightmares of monsters...like him.

As Karma's nap came to an end, Kuro went through his usual routine of practically sanitizing himself so Karma wouldn't be too miserable. He had taken a nap as well, exhausted from dealing with Rin for three hours.

Just as Karma woke up, the door opened, Keiko and Rin storming in. Of course Keiko would be involved.

"What authority do you have to kick MY MOTHER out of MY APARTMENT?!"

Kuro just looked at her, sighing as he gently rubbed Karma's back, while muttering soothing words to the slowly panicking infant. This was starting to become more annoying.

"Give me Karma," Keiko ordered.

"No," Kuro said bluntly. "Not while she's here."

The door opened once more, Kayda rushing in and stealing Karma from him before he could argue, "My poor, sweet Karma, having to deal with that nasty man all day."

He debated whether or not it was worth staying, or at least staying in his human form. After dealing with Rin all day, he was almost certain the woman couldn't handle Karma, or just wanted to cause as many problems as possible.

"Ash, you should leave," Keiko said firmly.

He shrugged, "Don't blame me when she dies."

He headed to the door, opening it, turning into a cat, and closing it as he trotted back in, jumping on the couch.

"Disgusting," Rin spat as she glared down at the cat. "He must hate that Ash, too, since this is the first time I've seen him all day."

As the women talked, Kuro kept an eye on the clock, counting down the minutes for him to get home. He would have to be ready to leave when Mahiru got home since Mahiru would want to speak with him in his human form about the day's events.

He woke up after falling on the ground. Fortunately, the sun had been in that spot he landed so he maintained his cat form. The noises of his dreams echoed in his mind, had been a reality of Karma crying once more.

He rolled onto his feet, jumping onto the top of the couch where Mahiru stood with paper in hand as he argued with Keiko over how Rin had treated Kuro and Karma all day.

"Why would my mother lie about that?!" Keiko asked.

"Because Ash has nothing to prove! We don't even pay him! He actually likes taking care of her!"

"And what does my mother have to prove?!"

"Obviously she doesn't think we think highly enough of her to take care of Karma. After doing everything she's done today, I can't say that I do trust her. I called the doctor, Keiko. Karma never showed up."

"Of course she didn't! My mother doesn't believe in medicine from a doctor!"

Mahiru rubbed his temples, "Thank God Ash has enough common sense to get medicine for her."

"That lazy bum didn't leave the apartment! Your rich friend sent his butler over!"

"He wasn't going to leave Karma with her! I don't want my daughter dead!"

"You know what, fine. We both stay home tomorrow with Ash to see how he takes care of Karma, then we both stay home with my mom to see how she takes care of Karma."

"Or set up video cameras," Mahiru suggested.

That was the last thing Kuro wanted, but it was what needed to be done. The very next day, Kuro was in the house, in his human form, staring at the formula in the pot for it to heat up. His jacket was clean so he could wear it again. Finally, he was ready to start the day.

It was the same routine, Karma had a bottle first thing when he got there then slept for a while in Kuro's lap until she wanted to move around when she wanted to play with the toys in her crib the process repeated until one when Kuro put her in her crib to sleep for a couple of hours. That's when he wrapped her up in his jacket, the only thing that really helped her sleep. During those two hours, he ate his ramen, washed off everything, changed shirts, brushed his teeth, then went to the couch to play a video game.

When three came, he gently woke up Karma, taking his jacket back and dealt with her as she needed. Keiko would return at five, and Kuro would be allowed to leave, though he usually stayed until Mahiru came home.

When Mahiru returned, Kuro turned to his cat form, he jumped onto Mahiru's shoulder to watch the videos he had recorded all day.

"Gross, he wraps her up in his jacket?" Keiko was absolutely disgusted with it.

"Whatever helps," Mahiru replied.

"Where is Kuro?" Keiko asked.

"There's no telling. Kuro hates Ash."

"Lets lock Kuro up tomorrow, see what happens," Keiko suggested.

"I don't think that's a good idea," Mahiru replied uneasily.

"She slept all day without Kuro. If she doesn't need Kuro, we can get rid of him," Keiko said.

"We're not getting rid of the cat," Mahiru stated firmly. "But, if you don't think she needs Kuro, we'll put him up for the day."

Kuro huffed, not looking forward to being locked up. With the cameras, he would be stuck in the room all day, without food. At least he would have a game system.

The next day started with him getting thrown in a room. The rest of the day consisted of Karma crying and Rin calling Keiko to ask for help. Kuro did his best to focus on his video game or sleep, but the cries kept his attention. All because he wasn't there with her.

The moment the door opened to let Kuro out, the cat stretched, looking up at Mahiru.

"It's just us."

Kuro took his human form, wandering down the hall to Karma's room as she chewed on a teething ring. She cooed when he picked her up, keeping a tight hold on the cold ring.

"You've spoiled her, Ash," Mahiru laughed, "She can't do anything without you."

"You can always rely on a cute pet to make someone happy."

"You're not that cute," Mahiru deadpanned.

"I'm not babysitting you. Her opinion is the one that matters," Kuro said as he poked her fat cheek.

"I don't think we'll be letting Rin babysit anymore, but Kayda might try to since she's pregnant too."

"I'm not babysitting both," Kuro stated, leaving no room for argument or pleading.

"I can't blame you," Mahiru agreed. "I can't say you won't be stuck with both of them, though."

"That doesn't matter." Kuro had become more gentle, his face relaxing as his gaze softened while he looked at the girl in his arms.

Mahiru smiled. Karma, though still little, had the ability to take anyone's heart, even a vampire. He would be her servamp, there was no doubt about that.

The months passed and soon Karma had a baby cousin named Eusebio, named after his grandfather. Kayda attempted to get Kuro to babysit the boy, but Eusebio was left in Rin's less than capable hands.

As the years passed, Karma began to learn how to speak, able to say Kuro's name "Ash", though it mostly came out as "Ass", and the servamp received a gift from her as well, a green collar with a star-shaped tag, "Kuro" etched in. She also called him "Kuo" unable to master the 'r'.

Eusebio came over more often than Kuro would have liked, but he tolerated being around the child as long as he didn't pull his tail or talk to him. However, the small boy was very mean to little Karma, something Kuro was not afraid to point out or scratch at when the child acted out of line. It was the days Karma was kept from Kuro that really bothered him.

When Karma turned three, she was starting to learn basic behaviors, how to share and other manners. She took all the lessons seriously, even saying please and thank you to plants. That was when everything started taking a turn...and not for the better.