I'm back with chapter two! I'm trying to follow that lovely D theme from the manga with my chapter names... we'll see how long that lasts. I'm really happy this fic is getting some interest! 4 reviews out of only 35 views... I feel so loved (sob sob)! You guys are great!

I don't own the Count, D's pet shop, or anything else, really... depressingly. But enjoy chapter two anyway!


Enchanted, Rhine broke into a sprint, her eyes fixed upon Chinatown and a surge of ecstasy coursing through her veins. It had been years since she'd been able to do as she pleased and she'd never once been free to go where she wanted. She wanted to break all the rules set for her by her father while she was already committing the most treasonous act against him of all – running away. Maybe dashing towards her destination when she was already at her limit was stupid, but the adrenaline she was experiencing kept her going.

Her first step into Chinatown was… magical. She felt something deep inside her heart shift, and an invisible, crushing weight vanished from her shoulders. Chinatown was even more wonderful than she'd remembered it. Even without another soul lingering on the streets and in the pouring rain, it shone with light and life in vivid colors and ribbons hanging in shop windows and over entryways.

Rhine began to laugh, and halfway through her first chortle she choked and broke into a violent fit of sneezing. The cold and rain, she realized, was getting to her. Shelter would have to be her first priority, and she could take the time to admire the majesty of Chinatown later.

She settled down beneath the first awning she came to. She dropped her backpack and collapsed against a pillar, fatigue washing over her as she watched the bag topple over, top-heavy as it was. Curling her knees into her chest and sighing, she glanced at her surroundings. According to a sign near the door, the place she'd opted to camp out at was a pet shop, owned by a Count D. It opened at seven in the morning. She assured herself that she'd be gone by then, before the owner arrived to start his work.

The heat was becoming almost unbearable, but she was trembling nonetheless. Her every limb ached and although her stomach stabbed painfully at her for food, Rhine felt too nauseous to even think of eating, not to mention her throat was beginning to ache something fierce. Even swallowing agitated it.

Sniffling, Rhine shut her eyes and rested her forehead on her knees. Just a little bit of sleep…

"Oh, my. A customer, are you? The shop doesn't open until morning, you know," a smooth, silken voice informed her from the doorway, startling her out of her light slumber.

Rhine looked up at once to find a tall, slender person with glossy black hair reaching down to a point just below their chin and styled so their right eye was hidden. Their left eye was an enticing violet and they had a slim face and painted red lips. Rhine had to take a moment to process what gender the person was, especially since their clothes gave nothing away. They were wearing a simple Chinese ensemble, with loose-fitting pants and a blue top resembling a kimono, lined with gold. Rhine decided the person was a man by judging their voice alone.

She would have gotten up, but her legs felt like lead. "I am so sorry!" she exclaimed at once, looking at the man with wide, horrified eyes. She'd blown her cover. "I'm not looking to buy anything! I was just trying to find someplace out of the rain… I had no idea you lived here! I didn't mean to bother you or anything like that!"

The man looked at her appraisingly. "You weren't a bother. Had Q-chan not informed me there was a girl on our doorstep, I fear I would never have known."

Rhine stared at him. He was speaking to her as though she were both a child and something he almost… wanted. She squirmed uncomfortably. She wasn't getting a rapist vibe off this guy, but one could never be too careful. "I'm sorry," she said again, wondering vaguely who Q-chan was and how he had known she was out here. "I'll leave now."

"Oh, don't leave on my account," the man smiled. "You're welcome to sit there. Watching the rain is always so refreshing, don't you think? Of course, one is typically more comfortable inside, especially in weather such as this. You're more than welcome to come in and join me for some tea."

A shudder ran down Rhine's spine. "Um… no thanks. I'm fine out here. I'll be gone before your customers begin to show up, though. I swear."

The man looked a mix between disappointed and dejected, and he stared at Rhine intently for a few moments. She had to wonder if he was going to grab her and force her into the shop, and she realized with a pang of fear that she was in no state to struggle if he did attempt to take her in by force. But he simply shrugged and turned back around, offering a nonchalant, "Suit yourself," as he shut the door behind him.

Rhine let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. She wasn't exactly sure what she had been expecting, but more than that. She wasn't even quite certain if she was relieved or not. "Well… that was anticlimactic," she mumbled, getting slowly to her feet.

A knot of unease twisted inside Rhine's already sensitive stomach. That Chinese guy was probably inside calling the cops to inform them of the street urchin camped out on his doorstep right now. And even if he wasn't, she had been caught. She didn't feel comfortable staying on the threshold of the pet shop now that she'd been discovered. It was definitely time to find another awning to set up shop beneath.

Sighing, Rhine stooped down to pick up her backpack. As she straightened her spine, her vision blurred fiercely, sending everything in her line of sight fuzzy. Rhine gasped and clung to a pillar in a desperate attempt to maintain her balance. Nausea took ahold of her with a vigor and she gagged on bile leaping to her throat. All she could see of the world was everything spinning, spinning around her in a horrible display of colors, blurring together until she was completely delirious.

She had reached her limit.

"Damn it," she whispered as her knees buckled and her bag toppled out of her hands. The world went black.


Rhine regained consciousness slowly, and in stages. She first became aware of the atmosphere surrounding her. It was thick and heavy with mingled auras – there was mystery, hope, desperation, longing, fear, and desire, all swirling together in a way Rhine hadn't thought possible to be combined. She next became aware that the room possessed an overwhelming scent of bittersweet incense. It was as though everything was saturated with it. Carpet, walls, furniture…

She heard the faint sounds of animals. Wherever they were coming from, they were not close. Howls, grunts, snarls, roars, chuffs, whinnies, meows, barks. She even heard distant splashing sounds.

At last, she regained the sense of feeling in her body. She was laying down on what she assumed was a couch, low to the ground. It was firmer in some areas; those with less stuffing were adorned with puckered lines of thread that suggested tears that had been mended. She was still unnaturally hot, her throat still burner, her head still throbbed, and her limbs still ached.

The only part of her that felt alright was her forehead, which she felt was covered by something.

When she felt the back of someone's hand press gently against her cheek, Rhine nearly jumped out of her skin. Her eyes flew open and she bolted into a sitting position, though she underestimated quite where the armrests were and fell backwards off of it. The wet cloth from her forehead fell into her lap. The wind knocked out of her, Rhine breathed heavily as she lifted her gaze to meet that of the Chinese man she'd met in front of the pet shop earlier.

The man looked somewhat startled by her reaction, an almost feminine look of shock in his expression, before he smiled innocently. "I didn't realize you had awoken," he said pleasantly. "I apologize for frightening you."

"Screw that!" Rhine spluttered, glancing wildly around the room. It looked like an oriental living room, draped in multicolored sashes and ornamented with traditional Chinese décor. She normally wouldn't have cursed at a person she just met, but she was both humiliated by her display of clumsiness and horrified to be found in a new, unexpected situation that all thought of manners fled her mind. "Why the hell did you bring me in here?"

"I thought I might enjoy tea outside this evening with you," the man replied effortlessly. "It is always so stimulating to meet such fascinating people as yourself. However, when I returned to my doorstep I found that you had collapsed. If I may say so, you are burning up. That must be quite a fever you're running."

"Yeah, tell me about it," Rhine mumbled, attempting to clumsily pull herself up by bracing herself on the armrest of the chair she'd fallen out of. Her arms felt as weak as limp noodles and when she achieved standing up she leaned heavily on the chair for support as the world spun enough to trigger a slight bout of nausea. Rhine took a deep breath and adjusted her glasses, which had gone askew. "Sorry for ruining your evening and all," she apologized, bracing herself to stand up and leave. "I should really be—"

She was cut short when the man neatly – and with almost frightening precision – stuck a thermometer beneath her tongue as her mouth was still partially open from speaking. Her first instinct was to immediately reach up to pull it out, but her grabbed her wrist and shook his head, still smiling.

Rhine felt like a castigated child – and he hadn't even said a word.

After a minute of tense silence, the man pulled the thermometer from Rhine's mouth and stared at the reading, taken aback. "This is certainly alarming. Are you aware that you're running a temperature of 102.7 degrees Fahrenheit?"

Rhine caught herself before her jaw dropped open. Feigning apathy, she replied, "Nope. But thanks for informing me. I'll just get out of your hair, then."

Ignoring the way the room spun when she got to her feet, Rhine snatched her bag up off the floor from where it had been resting against the leg of the table in front of the couch and strode towards the door.

The Chinese man followed her. "Wait while I get an umbrella."

Rhine paused. "Oh, no – I'll be fine. It's just a little rain. You don't need to give me an umbrella."

The man smiled as he pulled a simple black umbrella from an ornate umbrella stand in the corner of the room. "It wasn't my intention to give you my umbrella. I'm walking you home."

Rhine started. "Oh – that really isn't necessary—!"

"With a 102.7 fever? I find it very necessary. What will you do if you collapse again?"

Rhine bit her lip and stared at her shoes. "I'll deal. Besides, it's impossible for you to walk me home. I don't… exactly have one anymore."

The man's smile grew wider with a look resembling triumph, but only briefly. "That is a shame," he said sympathetically. "Of course, if you have nowhere to go, I encourage you to stay here. I may be able to assist you in planning what to do next if you have been suddenly found on your own."

Rhine swallowed hard. Maybe one night would be okay. She was exhausted, after all. And sick…

"Okay," Rhine said at last with a heavy and uneasy sigh. "But just for a little while. I'm Rhine Bradford." Remembering the sign near the door, Rhine asked, "And are you Count D?"

The man smiled. "That is my grandfather's title. He is the owner of this pet shop. I am simply watching over it for now."

Rhine waited for him to tell her his name. He never did. So, for now, he was Count D to her, anyway.


Did I do alright with D's character? He's such a difficult guy to capture the essence of... Anyway, a couple more reviews and chapter three will be coming your way!

Phantom, out!