Taimen was angry when I returned home. It's almost funny to see him get angry. He's bald and has a large goatee, so when he turns red, it's really only from the tip of his nose to the top of his shining scalp. I don't laugh, though, because I know that he's serious and wants me to take it seriously as well.

"I got a call from Chief Botan this afternoon telling me that you had showed up in one of her jail cells. A jail cell!"

I didn't "show up" in a jail cell; I was brought in. And I was only in there for a total of five minutes.

"Then, you disappear for hours, and don't even bother to let us know that you planned on being gone that long. Look outside, Eriko. The sun is setting."

I didn't plan on being out this long either. I'm waiting for a moment when I can tell him about the Rebels and the events that followed.

"And on top of all that, you didn't bring home the groceries that Sage needed."

I would have, if the list had not been destroyed by the pond water. Like my bandages, the list had dissolved into nothingness.

"I would've overlooked your tardiness if you had at least brought them like you promised. But you didn't! How do you explain yourself?"

I've never understood the purpose of someone listing the events of your day when trying to punish you. I already know what happened in day—hence the fact that it is my day—but I think pointing that out to someone like Taimen will only get me trouble.

Behind me, I knew that his children were around the corner, listening in on his lecture. Any moment now, they would run away, giggling, as their mother scolded them for being nosy. She would then join me and Taimen in the living room.

"Oh, Eriko," said Sage as her kids scurried away in a fit of giggles. She rushed into the room—as fast as a woman who is eight months pregnant can rush—and wrapped me in her soft arms. "I'm so glad you're back."

Sage and Taimen are the definition of the phrase "opposites attract". For starters, they're from two different species: Taimen is a Vampire, and Sage is a Hunter. Taimen is disciplined, stern, and a bit of a traditionalist—despite the fact that he has married a Hunter. Sage is kind, understanding, and open-minded.

"Where did you get those clothes," Sage asked me as she went to stand beside her husband. She interlocked her fingers with his and wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

"Probably from the money we gave her to go shopping," Taimen answered bitterly.

"Actually," I said slowly, trying to think of how I should word this. I decided to follow Taimen's example. Whenever he tries to explain something to me, he starts off with a question. "Have you ever heard of the Rebels?"

"I know of them," said Anna, the oldest, as she and her siblings appeared in the room. I understand why Sage wishes that there was another Hunter in the family—the children almost frighten me when they just show up like this.

Her younger sister Hisa bounced up and down on her toes. "The Rebels are a group of male Vampires in the city, right? They fight in the Revolution."

"Well, they don't fight," Anna corrected her gently. "They—"

"They're bad influences on kids like you," said Taimen sternly. His face was red again.

"Yeah, guys," said Mineo, the youngest with a large smile that was missing its two front teeth. "They're a bad influence!" He raced around the room, much to his parents' annoyance.

Taimen sighed. "What about them, Eriko?"

And that was how the story started. I told them everything. I told them about the Hunter who had stolen my wallet; the misunderstanding that landed me in Chief Botan's jail cell; the conditions I'd been forced to adhere to in order to repay my debt; and the group's revelation that I was, in fact, a female.

Taimen sat down on the couch and placed his head in his hands. "Is there anything you didn't do today, Eriko?"

Well, I didn't get the groceries.

"I can't allow you to go on with this. I will pay the debt myself. How much did the vase cost again?"

"Eight million yuons," I told him in a quiet voice.

His facial expression reminded me of my own reaction when I had heard the amount. He sighed heavily and looked to Sage for advice. She seemed to be at a loss for words too, though. I knew what they were thinking: there was no way they could pay that off. Taimen and Sage lived a pretty financially stable life, but it wasn't so stable that it could afford to effortlessly pay off eight million yuons.

"Taimen," I said evenly. "I gave them my word, and I am nothing, if not a woman of my word. I promised to pay off the debt this way, and I will do it. I won't ask you guys to pay it off for me."

Sage smiled and placed her hand on Taimen's shoulder. "That's very mature of you, Eriko."

"Sage, we have to do something about this," Taimen fumed.

"Taimen, I think we should just let her do it. Eriko's already resolved to handling the matter herself."

After a few moments of silence, Taimen sighed again and said, "Fine. Let's just hope that this whole thing will be resolved quickly. I don't want Eriko to get into any more trouble." He shot his children a stern look. "Let's all get to bed now."

The kids and I hurried to our rooms. I pulled out the photograph of my mother from my wallet and stared at it under the moonlight. I scratched my head as my hair suddenly returned to its original length. I pulled my hair into a ponytail, put my mother's photo away, pulled the covers up to my chin, and fell asleep.

When I woke up, the sun had already risen past the horizon. I remembered that the Rebels had asked me to meet them at the mansion at dawn. With a groan, I got myself ready, packed a lunch, and brought a bag to carry the clothes they'd given me.

"Eriko, where are you going dressed like that," Sage wondered with a disapproving look at Taimen's jacket. I stopped by the kitchen to pick up my blood supplements. I didn't like the idea of taking my daily blood form a pill, but it was better than taking a life. Plus, it helped to ease the temptation.

"The Rebels asked me to meet them at their place," I told her

"I thought they knew that you were a girl. Why do you have to continue wearing my husband's clothes?"

Because Sage only had maternal clothing now, Anna's clothes were too small, and I had sold my clothes to help me travel to Sai City. "Um," I said slowly, trying to think of a way to word all of this.

"Never mind," she told me. "I'll have to remember to take you shopping later. Do you have any idea when you're going to be back?"

"I have no idea. They're very unpredictable."

Anna swallowed her pill and said to me, "You're going to see the Rebels, aren't you? Mom, can I go with Eri?"

"No," said Taimen suddenly as he appeared in the kitchen. "You are to stay at home with your mother and help her out around the house. It's bad enough that I have one of you mixed in with all of this." He straightened his tie and kissed Sage goodbye. "Eriko, come with me. You can take my ferry."

I waved goodbye to the family and followed Taimen to the boat that led from his island. Though Taimen and Sage were gentle people, there were many in the city who did not agree with their relationship. A guarded boat was used to transport us safely form the island to the mainland.

If I were able to use my Vampiric powers, I'd walk across the river that separates us. But Taimen wants me to use my powers as little as possible.

That's why it took me thirty minutes to get to the Rebels' place. I walked—like the Hunter they thought I was—to their mansion and waited for someone to open the door for me.

The twins answered my call. "Oh, it's you, Eri. You're late," they said with a frown.

I frowned back at them. "Forgive me for not being used to coming somewhere at daybreak."

"Do you have a problem with the way we do things," Kasai asked as he stepped out of the shadows of the room upstairs. He smiled and pushed his glasses up his nose. "Be careful what you say—you owe us eight million yuons."

Honey pushed past all of them and smiled at me. "Eri, you made it! Come and eat breakfast with us!" He pulled me up the stairs and into the dark room.

I remembered to turn on the light—adjusting to a Hunter's life was difficult. Sure enough, I had interrupted the Rebels' breakfast. I couldn't name half of the foods on the table.

"Originally, we had planned for you to get our breakfast," said Kasai. "But seeing as you didn't show up on time, we were forced to improvise."

This was improvising?

"But don't worry, Eri. We'll find something else for you to do to make up for that."

"Eri," cried Taoreta with a smile as he stood up. "I'm glad you could join us. Could I interest you in anything?"

I glanced at the table and decided that I was better off sticking to the foods that I knew well. "No, thank you."

"Then what would you like? Say the word, and I'll have the cooks prepare you anything!"

"Anything?" I thought about the foods that I had yet to try at the market, but had always intrigued me. "There's this fancy-looking tuna at the market. I wonder—"

"You've never had otoro before?" he exclaimed.

The boys crowded around me. All of them seemed so surprised that I had never had such a thing before. I think Kasai was shocked that I hadn't known the actual name of the food.

"Someone," cried Taoreta, "bring Eri some otoro quickly!"

"No, no," I shouted, remembering all the people who seemed to be hard at work already. "I don't want it right now. It's too much of an inconvenience for others. I pushed them all away from me, giving myself room to breathe.

Taoreta spun me around by my shoulders and looked down at my clothes. "Why are you still in those clothes? I'm running out of patience. Eri, I want to see you as a girl!"

"You didn't see enough yesterday? Pervert!"

"I'm not a pervert," he promised. "I just don't understand it! The only ones who know that you're a girl—outside of Taimen and his family—are us. Why keep your gender a secret?"

"It's not that I'm keeping it a secret. I don't have any other clothes to wear."

"That's easy to fix. Give me your measurements, Eri. Daddy will buy you some new clothes immediately!"

"That's really not necessary," I told him quickly. "I don't really care if I look like a dude."

Taoreta let out a long groan. "Girls should never refer to themselves as a 'dude'!" He turned toward the others, who were starting to give him weird looks. "Mommy! Eri's using dirty boy words!"

I looked up at the others for help, but they were too busy with something else.

Keiji crossed his arms and said, "I'm sorry, but who is 'Mommy'?"

Kasai sighed. "Based on club position, I'd say that's me." He looked just as embarrassed as he sounded. I would've felt bad for him, if I didn't know him to be such a devil.

"Look," I said, changing the topic, "didn't you say that you had some errands for me to run?"

"You're not running them alone, Eri. You're joining us," said Taoreta with a smile.

His personality changed that quickly? "What are we going to do?"

He shushed me with a finger to my lips. "Daddy won't spoil the surprise for his dear daughter," he told me.

"Are you insane or something?" I asked him as I pushed him away from me. "You keep saying you're my father." I didn't really have a father figure in my life growing up—I don't feel comfortable with Taoreta jumping into this position. If anyone would be allowed to refer to themselves as my father, it'd be Taimen. He's the closest thing I have now.

We ended up going to the stadium to watch a Hunters' match. I hate these types of things. It's just senseless violence, if you ask me. During the day games, teams of Hunters pair up with each other and try to battle themselves out of the ring. At night, teams of Vampires come out and do the same thing.

The twins and Taoreta were really into the matches. They cheered and participated with the rest of the crowd in every game. Honey and Mori left to get snacks. I'm still thoroughly confused by the relationship between the two of them. No one's explained why they're so close, and I'm not sure what to think about it.

Kasai seemed to be the only one who was just as bored as I was. "You don't enjoy these things, Eri?"

"Not really. With all the fighting that's been going on, they might as well call it 'combat practice' instead of 'games'." Some of these moves definitely seemed like they'd been repeated in some of the street brawls.

Kasai smiled and pulled out a notepad. Even though they all refer to Taoreta as their leader, I'm pretty sure Kasai is the brains behind this whole operation.

"Is this all we're going to do today?"

"Pretty much," he said with a shrug. "For your sake, you'd better hope Taoreta keeps coming up with ideas."

"Because if he doesn't…?"

"Then it's my turn to give you something to do."

His spiteful personality reminded me of this character from one of the fairy tales Mom used to tell me. "Shadow King," I whispered as I looked away from him. Honey and Mori returned, and not long after that, the tournament finally ended. We shuffled out of the stadium and formed a congregation off to the side. Once again, I was bored by the talk of the games.

The cry of a girl drew my attention to Kasai. A girl around my age had apparently fallen at his feet. Since he made no effort whatsoever to help her up, I took it upon myself to do so.

"Are you okay," I asked her.

"Yes," she told me as she dusted herself off. "I'm fine, I just—"She stopped as she caught sight of something to my left. "It's you," she whispered.

I followed her gaze and found that she was staring at Kasai. He gave me a confused look and then turned to her. "Me?"

"Yes," she cried. "Kasai Osamu!" She threw herself at Kasai.

Osamu? As in the family that basically runs Sai City itself? I glanced at Kasai sideways. Now I understood why he was in charge of managing.

"I'm sorry," said Taoreta as he stepped forward. "You know Kasai?"

She stopped hugging Kasai and whipped her hair across my face as she turned on Taoreta with a frown. "Of course I know him, you idiot! He's the son of Yoshio Osamu, the famous business man. He's also a part of the Rebels!" Her frown deepened into a glare. "You should be second-in-command, not him," she told Taoreta.

"How do you know Kai," Honey asked with a raised hand.

"I'm his fiancée," she shot back quickly.

Kasai shared the same look as me again—this time it was confusion. I looked back at the girl. She was a very pretty brunette who was thin and lacked curves. I didn't have much to say about her outfit—there was a lot of skin showing—and she had randomly added a pink bow to hold her hair back. I couldn't imagine Kasai being engaged to this girl.

"His fiancée," I repeated.

"Yes! We haven't ever met before, but I know him as if we have! He's the kindest, gentlest, most compassionate person there is!"

The twins exploded with laughter. I had to keep from laughing myself. "Are you sure you've got the right person," I asked her.

"Of course I do! I know him better than anyone!"

Realization seemed to strike Kasai. "Could you perhaps be Rena Himura?"

"You know her," I asked.

He nodded. "Her father is one of my father's best clients." Kasai pushed his glasses up his nose and smiled at her. "Shall we take this conversation somewhere else?"

"Of course," she swooned as she weaved her arm through his.

When we got back to the mansion, Taoreta immediately went and began sulking in a corner. "What's with him," I asked the Rebels.

"He's sulking because she criticized his leadership skills," said Hiroshi.

"Come on, Tao, you've gotta let go of that," Keiji told him.

Kasai sent Rena off to the bathroom to freshen herself up and then turned to all of us. "Like I said, her family's important to mine. Please try not to aggravate her."

Taoreta raced out of his corner and up to Kasai. "Mommy, how could you have kept this from Daddy? Why didn't you tell me that you were engaged?"

"I never said that I was engaged to her. Like she said, this is the first time I've met her. And would you please stop referring to us as if we're married?"

"I still don't know how you can expect me to be nice to her when she's so mean to me."

"You don't have to be," said Kasai. "She really only needs one of us."

I knew where this was going before they even turned to look at me.

Taoreta placed his hands on my shoulders and smiled. "Eri, we'll leave her to you, then."

"What?"

"Consider this as part of repaying your debt to us." With that, the Rebels sped away until it was only me and Kasai left in the foyer.

"Wait," I called after them, but it was too late. Rena was already down the stairs. I was to be stuck in the house with an obsessed Vampire fan girl.

"I want to make some cookies for you, Kai," she told Kasai.

He smiled at her. "I would be honored." As he turned toward me, his smile disappeared. "Right, Eri?"

"Right," I told her.

Kasai leaned in and whispered, "The kitchen is just through those doors at the end of the hallway. Everything you'll need to cook will be in there. Don't make more than a dozen. If you do, I'll know and I'll add it to your debt." He smiled at me. "Have fun," he said before he disappeared as well.

"Right this way, Rena."

She followed me to the kitchen. "Are there spare uniforms anywhere? I don't want to get my clothes dirty."

I had trouble finding some, but I finally succeeded. The uniforms were really cute—but oddly form-fitting. Just what kind of service did these workers provide exactly?

"This won't do at all," Rena said with a frown. "I'll need help putting this on. Where are the other female workers?"

"Actually, I can help you," I told her.

She gave me a gentle smile. "That's very kind of you, but I don't think Kai would appreciate it if another boy saw me indecent."

"I'm a girl, actually," I told her in a quiet voice.

Her eyes widened and her face turned apologetic. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to assume that you—I mean, it's just that clothes led me to believe—Why are you wearing those clothes?" she demanded as I helped her into the uniform.

"I don't have any other clothes to wear. This belongs to my benefactor's husband."

"Why hasn't your benefactor taken you to buy new clothes?"

"We haven't had time yet."

She helped me zip up the back of my uniform. "Well, I'm going to give you my number. And you give me a call when the two of you finally decide to go, okay?"

I was thankful that she wasn't on this side of me to see me roll my eyes. "Of course," I told her, remembering that Kasai had asked—ordered me to be nice to her. "Shall we get started on those cookies?"

We worked together to find all of the items we would need. It took us a while to get things organized because I wasn't familiar with this kitchen, and she wasn't familiar with a kitchen. I could tell that these cookies would probably not turn out that great.

I decided that this would also be a cooking lesson for her. Since I was only allowed to make a dozen cookies, I decided to split all of the ingredients so that I could make six and she could copy me.

Making the cookie dough part was pretty easy. I told her how I had gotten mixed up with the Rebels—she seemed almost jealous of me for some reason. However, when we started making the cream it proved to be a difficulty for her.

"Eri," she asked me as I placed our cookies in the oven. "Can we put sugar in the cream?"

"Yes," I told her as I tightened my bandana around my head. "How's the chocolate?"

"Look," she said proudly as she pointed to the pot on top of the stove. "It's melting properly."

It was not melting properly. I hurried to the stove, lowered the heat, and took the pot off of the eye. "It can't be heated over direct flame. Chocolate should be melted using a water bath."

Rena wasn't paying attention. She was staring out to the space behind me. "Um, I think the cream…"

I turned and realized that the cream was beginning to foam and bubble over. Once I got it to simmer down again, I allowed her to take over. "So," I asked as I watched over the chocolate, "what is it that you see in Kasai?"

"He's warm to everyone," she said with a gentle smile. "He would never ask anything in return, because he secretly enjoys the company of others. This is because he is actually very lonely." Her face contorted in a frown. "You think I'm wrong again?"

"If that's what you see in him, then who am I to correct you? Everybody is entitled to viewing another person the way that they choose to."

Her frown disappeared and melted into another smile. "I didn't think you'd understand, Eri."

"Why? Because you thought I was a guy?"

"No, because you're a Hunter."

"Why do those things matter to you guys? I know that the fights have broken the peace between Hunters and Vampires, but that doesn't mean that everyone has to follow their examples. I think Hunters and Vampires are more capable of understanding each other than either species knows."

I was interrupted suddenly by the sound of a door closing. I looked up just in time to barely catch a glimpse of six heads as they disappeared behind the doors. I started to walk over and investigate, but the timer on the oven started to go off. I pulled out my tray of cookies and started to take out Rena's, but she stopped me. "If we let them sit longer, they'll start to burn," I warned her.

"They don't look dark enough. I want Kasai's cookies to be perfect. I'll take them out when I think they're ready."

And that was how her cookies ended up being burnt on the bottom. She tried to cover up the taste with the cream and chocolate, but I'm not sure that'll work the way she wants it to.

After we cleaned up the kitchen, Rena put her cookies on a lovely plate. "Do you think this is presentable," she asked me as she stepped back to admire it.

"Of course," I told her with a smile as I placed mine in a small box. Anything that I didn't eat, I'd take home to the kids.

I followed her out of the kitchen and led her to the dining room upstairs. She held the plate up and smiled at the Rebels. "I've made cookies!" she cried happily.

"Oh, isn't she ladylike," Taoreta asked with a wave of his hands as he came to meet us at the door. "I'm so moved by your generosity!"

Her smile immediately turned into a frown. "I didn't bake these cookies for you, you phony prince."

Even for a Vampire, Taoreta moved unnervingly fast to the corner opposite of the room. I'm still amazed by his sudden personality changes.

Rena skipped up to Kasai and held the cookies out to him. "They're a little burnt," she told him apologetically, "but I know you'll appreciate anything I make, Kai."

"Rena," said Honey as he and Pabu bounced up to her. "May I try one of your cookies?" He picked one up and shoved it into his mouth. I watched as his face contorted with disgust. "She wasn't kidding. These cookies really are burnt."

Mori appeared behind Honey with great speed. "Mitsuaki, stop eating those." He took the cookie from Honey's mouth and threw it on the ground. "They're probably bad for you."

Rena turned on them fiercely and began to chase them out of the room. I stepped to the side and tentatively tasted one of my cookies. "I think what I made tastes better," I mumbled to myself with a smile.

"Eri," said Hiroshi as he appeared before me. He cupped my chin and tilted my head back until I was looking at him. "Let me see." Before I could say anything, he bit down on the other end of the cookie and snapped it off by pressing his forehead to mine.

On the other side of me, Keiji wrapped his arm around my shoulder and used his other hand to hold my head still. "Oh, Eri, you have cookie crumbs on your face." He leaned down and ran his tongue from the base of my chin to the top of my cheek.

I shrugged them away, finished the cookie, and wiped the saliva off of my face. When I turned around, I frowned at Keiji and said, "You know, if you had just told me, I would've gotten them off myself." I switched my gaze to Hiroshi. "And if you wanted one, just say so. There's plenty right here."

Taoreta cupped the sides of my face and pulled me closer to him. "Your reaction is all wrong! Other females wouldn't react so calmly!"

"Please stop sexually harassing me," I told him as I pushed away from him.

"Sexual harassment," he cried. "If I'm harassing you, then these two are twice as guilty!" He turned on the two of them with an accusing finger. "What were you thinking? Don't you know where the lines between men and women are?"

I sighed and walked away from them. I made my way over to Kasai, who hadn't even touched his cookies. "You didn't like them either?"

"I'm not a fan of sweets," he said with a shrug.

I smiled and said, "So much for knowing you, huh?"

"The same could be said about you, Eri. I didn't know you were so close with the twins." He smiled too, but his smile was much darker than mine. It seemed to go beyond simple teasing.

"I'm not," I replied with a frown. I don't plan on being close with any of these guys. I just want to finish my service and repay my debt.

"How did everyone enjoy the cookies," asked Rena as she came back into the room with a large smile.

In the second it took me to blink, Kasai stood up and placed the uneaten cookies in my hands. "They were great," he said with a smile. "Thank you."

"I knew you would love them! I think we should all go for a walk now. Wouldn't that be lovely? A nice stroll through the city at this time of day would be wonderful."

She was starting to ask a little much of Kasai. I could tell that it was starting to annoy him. Still, he agreed, and we ended up following Rena through the city. The only good thing that really came of the walk was that I got to discover new places.

As we started to make our way back to the mansion, Rena joined me in the back of the group. "Eri, can I ask you something?"

"Sure," I told her.

"I want Kai to like me. I know he does, but I don't think he knows. How should I help him figure it out?"

"You can't force someone to like you. The only thing you can do is be yourself." In her case, it'd probably help if she was less of herself. I think her personality is a bit too big for him.

"Yes, we've all heard that before. But I was thinking that maybe he would realize how important I was to him if something bad happened to me."

"What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking that maybe I can find some guys to kidnap me."

"Rena," I hissed as I pulled her to the side. "That's a horrible idea. You could really end up getting hurt."

She smiled at me. "No, see, that's just the thing! I'd be paying them to act like they're going to kidnap me. Then, when Kai comes in and saves the day, they can stop pretending."

"And what if they get hurt in the process?"

"That's why I'll be paying them. It's compensation for any injuries that might occur during the act."

I shook my head. "I still don't think this is a good idea, Rena."

"Eri," said Taoreta suddenly. "I think we're done for the day. You can go now, if you'd like. Meet us here tomorrow at daybreak again, please." He and the other boys went into the mansion.

Rena walked me to the ferry. The entire time, she talked about her plan and how she knew that Kasai would come and rescue her. When I got to the boat, she said, "Tomorrow morning, I need you to lead the boys to the Vampire market. I'll be waiting for you guys, okay?"

"Rena? Be careful," I told her.

"There's nothing to worry about," she promised me before she disappeared. I wasn't so sure about that.

The next day, I managed to get to the Rebels' before daybreak. Like Kasai had promised, I was supposed to get their breakfast. Fortunately, my lack of knowledge on their type of food allowed me the perfect excuse to suggest that we go to the market.

"Will this be a trip to the Hunters' market," asked Taoreta with an indulged smile.

"No," I said with a frown. "You won't find anything you're looking for there."

"Speaking of not finding what we're looking for," said Hiroshi.

"What's with this coffee you brought us," said Keiji. "We can't figure out how to make it."

I sighed. "It's instant coffee."

"What is instant coffee," they asked me.

Taoreta sped over to me. "Isn't that the kind that just needs hot water?"

"You bought us the legendary commoner coffee," asked Kasai, for once, looking intrigued.

"You bought so much for such a small price," cried Hiroshi.

Keiji said, "So the rumor that commoners don't even have time to grind their own coffee beans is true."

I frowned at them all. "I'm very sorry for not buying you the high grade coffee beans that you all are used to. When we go to the Vampires' side today, I'll buy what you want."

"Wait!" cried Taoreta. "I'll drink it."

"Don't do it because I've already bought it. I'll just take it back home with me."

"I want to drink it! Promise me you'll make it for us the moment we return from the market."

"Fine," I said, annoyed. "Now, can we go, please?" I was embarrassed to have to buy the things they were asking for at the Vampire market—they each asked for something different! What was worse, they had to compare the price and quality of their food at every store that sold it. Damn rich people. I found myself hoping that what Rena was planning came quickly.

Fortunately, it did. As we passed by an alley, we heard a girl scream. We turned and saw Rena obviously fake-running from a couple of guys who were obviously fake-chasing her.

"What's the matter…girly," said the one with red hair.

"Yeah," said his brunette companion stiffly. I bet Rena had made them read a script beforehand. "We just want to play…girly."

"Someone, help me," Rena screamed dramatically. "Anybody!" She "happened" to glance over at us. "Kai!" She ran up to him and threw her arms around his waist. "Won't you help me?"

"Certainly," he said, surprising me. At least, it surprised me until he said, "I suggest the next time you rehearse this, you try to compensate for the enthusiasm of the other actors. They seem rather dead compared to your animation. Now, if you'll excuse us, we have to get back for breakfast. I hope the show goes well." He smiled and turned to leave the alley.

"Stay right here," I told Rena, who looked devastated. I raced after the boys and caught up to Kasai. "That was a little harsh, don't you think?"

"What was, Eri," he said with a shrug.

"Don't tell me that you didn't know what she was doing. All she wanted was a little attention from you. Would it have been so hard to do that for her?"

"Haven't I done enough for her?"

"No, you haven't, actually," I told him. "I know that Rena can be a little…overwhelming, but she means well. The least you could've done for her was—"

"What she did back there was annoying and unnecessary. I didn't see anything that would've profited me from participating in that silly skit. I'm not the person she thinks I am, Eri. I can't and don't want to be."

"I'm not saying that you have to be that person. I'm just saying that maybe you should've thought about her feelings the way she's been thinking of yours. Everything she's done, she's done it because she wanted to please you. She may have a deluded vision of who you are, but the gestures didn't lose their sentiment." I turned around.

He sped in front of me and gave me a sharp glare. I could see a hint of red in his eyes. "Where are you going? I believe I said that we were going back for breakfast. And as our errand girl, you have to make it."

"And I will," I said sternly, holding my ground against him, "just as soon as I check on Rena." I pushed past him and walked back to the alley. No one else followed me.

I found Rena as she was paying the two boys. She must've heard me, because she said, "I guess my plan didn't work out the way I thought it would. Kai thought it was a joke."

"Rena, I think you have to accept that you might have Kasai's true personality confused."

"I don't have it confused! I can't," she whispered. She finished dealing out the yuons to the two men. "I can't have him confused."

"Hey," said the brunette. "What is this? This is all we get for helping you out with that stupid skit?"

She flashed angry eyes at him. "Had you been more realistic, the skit wouldn't have been so stupid, and you would've been paid more! I'm not paying you for such a mediocre performance." She spun on her heels and started to walk away from them.

"Hold on just a minute, girly," said the brunette with a growl as he grabbed her wrist and pulled her back to him and his friend.

"You think we're stupid," asked the ginger with bared fangs. "We know who you are, Rena Himura. If you won't pay us, we know someone who will."

"Let go of me," cried Rena as she struggled against him. She clamped her teeth down on the brunette's hand, freeing herself as he jumped back.

"Damn you," he cried as he shoved her with his other hand.

I forgot that I wasn't supposed to be using my Vampire powers. I sped over and caught her in my arms, but the weight of Rena as she was knocked into me forced me into the brick wall behind me. I wish being a Vampire meant that you didn't feel pain.

Stars danced before my blurred vision. I could hear Rena screaming, but I couldn't make out what she was saying. My head hurt so bad that I couldn't even feel it when it moved. Random water was running down my face, and I wasn't sure where it was coming from.

"Eri," cried a male's voice suddenly. I looked up and managed to make out the golden hair atop his head—Taoreta. He rammed his fist into the red head's face and slammed the brunette into the wall by the scrunch of his shirt. "Were you the punk that pushed her?"

"No," said the brunette nervously. "I didn't do it on purpose."

"Get out of here," he growled. He released the brunette and the two friends disappeared almost immediately. Taoreta helped me to my feet and kept his hands on my shoulders to steady me. "Eri," he said softly. "Are you all right?"

I nodded my head as my vision began to clear up. "Yeah, though I feel a little silly about crying."

He laughed softly. "Even when you are dressed like a boy, you can't change the fact that you are indeed a girl, Eri."

"Is everyone all right," asked Kasai as he and the others came around the corner.

Rena squealed with pleasure. "Kai, you came to rescue me after all." She ran to hug him again, but he stepped away from her. "Kai, what's wrong?"

"I can't allow you to be around us if you're only going to do things that will endanger the lives of my club members. That irritates me."

I could tell that Rena's world had been shattered again. She shook her head with a deluded smile. "This isn't right. This is the part where you're supposed to tell me not to worry about it and then gently pat me on the head!" Tears raced down her face as I cleared mine. "Why would someone as kind and affectionate as you—"

"That's not Kasai," said Taoreta gently.

"I…I don't believe that," she cried as she fell to her knees in anguish. She looked up at me as I joined her on the floor. "Is imagining such a bad thing?"

"Not necessarily," I told her. "But if it keeps you from truly getting to know someone, it can be. Even though Kasai isn't the person you'd dreamed he'd be, is that so bad? I think if you gave his true personality a chance, you might end up liking that side of him more." I smiled at her and helped her to her feet.

Rena took a deep breath and turned to face Kasai. "I want to apologize for the way I've been behaving, and thank you for indulging me earlier. But now I know the truth, and I can stop with my reckless actions. I'd like to get to know each of you for who you truly are, not who I make you out to be."

Kasai smiled—he actually smiled—and said, "Well then, now that this is settled, will you be joining us for breakfast?"

"What," she asked, surprised. "But I thought—"

"I said I couldn't be around you if you were putting us in danger. You're not endangering us now, are you?"

Rena might as well have had little hearts in her eyes. She squealed and nodded her head eagerly. And that was how we ended spending more time in the Vampire market so that I could accommodate for her tastes as well.

She did, however, help me cook them. This time she managed to be better in the kitchen. "Eri," she said as we started to take the trays up to the boys. "I want to thank you for your advice. I'm sorry for judging you earlier, too."

"I forgive you," I told her kindly as we entered the room. As I had promised, I made everyone instant coffee. Rena had a hard time swallowing it, but the boys loved it—especially Taoreta.

"Eri," said Taoreta quietly as he made his way over to me. He handed me a bag as his face reddened. "You wouldn't give me your measurements, but I wanted to buy you something anyway."

I reached inside and pulled out a large pink bow that was similar to Rena's. "Thank you," I said as I flipped it over in my hand, "but I don't think I need this."

"You do," he insisted. "Now that you have Rena around, I'm sure you'll want to embrace your feminine side a bit more. So, I plan for you to quickly grow your hair so that you can wear this bow along with your new girl clothes."

I groaned.

"Please, Eri. Daddy wants to see his pretty daughter in some girl clothes!"

"I already told you that Sage will be taking me shopping soon. And would you stop acting like we're related? I'm starting to think you really might be insane." I watched as he sped over to the corner again and crouched in it.

I made my way over to Kasai. "What made you change your mind about Rena?"

"Don't go assuming things, Eri. I haven't changed my mind at all. I'm merely…broadening my horizon."

I raised an eyebrow and crossed my arms at him.

"Besides, it was the least I could do."