Well, here we are again with Chapter 3! This story is getting some really positive reviews, and that makes me very happy. If anyone is curious about the status of this, or my other story: Naruto in Hell, please, check my Profile page. There you will see a little counter next to the upcoming chapter, which will tell you how close it is to being done. I really don't have much to say except, let's get to the reviews!:

NightmareSyndrom: Sorry, no spoilers. Lilith's Mirror? He he he... You'll see

WarmasterRevan: Thank you. Yeah, Crona has a lot of problems. Crona doesn't know a lot about 'love' or 'friendship', so he's prone to seeing them as being his friends, and fails to see the deeper emotion. Blame Medusa for her poor parenting skills.

pyromania101: Yeah, Ragnorak is great. Inner Moka? While not making a physical debut yet, she will have minor bits to play before hand. I'm still trying to think of a good time to let her out...

Baron von Nobody: Thanks. Yeah, I'd like for this to be different from the original Manga, and getting Crona's personality just right isn't always easy. Something planned for the girls I don't know what you mean (whistles innocently). The trouble with the fight scenes is not making Crona too powerful. At full strength, he could likely wipe the floor with most of the monsters from the Manga. That's why I try and restrict his power, so he never uses more then he needs, less he draw Lord Death's wrath. Ragnorak's character type seems to lend itself to funny moments, doesn't it? And sorry about the mistakes. I try to catch what I can, but by the time I have a chapter completed, I get so excited to publish it, that sometimes things slip through the cracks. I like Mizore too, her personality is kind of similar to Crona at times, isn't it?

snow299: You're welcome.

serpent 12186: I'm glad you loved it. Yeah, Kurumu isn't afraid to get handsy to get what she wants.

The anonymous reviewer who just left (): Thank you, and as to the rest, no comment.

Animeguy1101: Well here you go.

darkhero what must be done: Well actually, I think Moka's hair is a more vibrant shade of pink. Glad you liked it. The ending to this chapter is... not like the last chapter.

The Lord of Pages: Many thanks.

crona maka: thanks, I need a good reason to make Kurumu fall in love with him, glad it panned out.

RobbyTheRouge: Um, thank you. However, I'm afraid you're a few chapters early. That's chapter 5. Hope you like this one though.

Diablo20000300002002: Glad to hear it. Yeah, Crona will go through a lot before the end of this tale. A harem? We'll see.

Majin Hentai X: Crona does have some awesome powers. I myself wonder what Crona would be like if he became a kishin.

Druss the Legend: Glad you like it. His personality was one of the reasons I picked him for this crossover. Inner Moka will be revealed in time, but how and her reaction will stay a secret. Tamao... well, look, here's the thing. I do have a plan to add a girl that isn't canon, but she's not it. Tamao is attractive, but so are most of the girls in Rosario Vampire. Plus, if you'll notice, the ones who get added to the 'harem' tend to be relatively non-violent. Kurumu's only big threat was the whole 'mind control' thing. Moka's only out to suck Crona's blood. You see this in the manga as well with Tsukune. Yukari and Mizore were only threats to Tsukune and Moka, respectively; though if they'll be a part of Crona's group remains to be seen. So that's my criteria for entrance into Crona's circle. They can fight Crona, but they can't be genuinely evil. Most of the girls were spurred to action by loneliness, or a sense of responsibility in the case of Kurumu. So people like Tamao and the Hitomi (the art teacher) aren't getting in. I hope I have properly explained myself.

Now, enough about that, it's time to once again follow Crona into another terrifying day at Youaki Academy. So, without further delay, let's begin:

-Dealing With Youkai Academy-Chapter 3: Dealing With Mermaids

Moka Akashiya looked lovingly into the eyes of Crona. She stood before him, unable to believe it was really happening for her. "It's… It's really alright? Crona…" she could hardly believe that the boy was offering himself to her.

"Y-yeah" he said, his voice stuttering a little. He had a deep blush across his face, but it was alright, so did she.

"I'm so happy, Crona…." she said moving her face closer to his.

"Moka" he said willing getting closer to her.

"It's… the first time, you know… " she whispered, close enough that she could feel his breath on her cheek.

"That you let me suck your blood!" she squealed happily, bitting into his neck. She sucked to her hearts content, drawing more and more of that superb nectar from within her friends body. Her arms were wrapped around him, pressing him to her. She did this for two reasons: 1) because the closeness made the taste all the better. 2) To keep him from running away before she was finished.

And she was so close too. It was a glorious buildup of pleasure, she just needed one more sip…

**RING**RING**

"GYAA!" Moka screamed as she was startled awake. Blinking her eyes confusedly, she took stock of her surroundings. It was early morning, time for her to get ready for the Academy.

She sighed in frustration. That meant that she hadn't been drinking Crona's blood. She'd been having that dream with increasing frequency. Crona had become better at avoiding her attempts, leaving her frustrated on many levels. Speaking of which…. Raising the sheets Moka could only sigh, a deep blush on her face. Crona's blood was so good, that it could affect her like that, even in her dreams.

Getting out of bed, Moka could only continue to hope that today would be the day. The day that she and Crona finally became close enough that would allow her to drink his blood without her having to sneak it.

-Dealing With Youkai Academy-

Inside Youkai Academy, their teacher prepared to giver her students an important announcement.

"This Academy's goal is to train monsters to adapt to human society… just as I've been saying all along. So that means, starting today you're all going to take up club activities!" She said, unable to contain her enthusiasm.

The rest of the class was less then enthused. Crona was of course, freaking out. "Club Activities? What does she mean by that? What will I have to do? I don't know if I know how to deal with something like Club Activities!" he thought. So in general, it was a normal morning for Crona.

Either totally oblivious or just plain ignoring her student's lack of energy, Neko-sensei continued "We'll get a deeper understanding of humans by experiencing with human-made activities through some sweat in club activities!" She ranted, happily smacking her blackboard with a pointer "To transform into humans perfectly, we must have a clear understanding of humans!" she finished happily.

One of the students raised his hand "But…Sensei, wouldn't that give you an 'F' transforming then?" he asked innocently while pointing at her.

Looking down, Neko noted that her cat tail was poking out of her skirt again. Looking at it, she looked back at the student you pointed it out.

"Rawwr!" the next thing the poor boy knew, his cat teacher had clawed his face. "Understand?" Sensei asked, pretending she hadn't just mauled a student. "Everyone will participate in club activities! Everyone please visit a lot of groups and decide which one you want to enter! Be sure to visit the newspaper club that I'm the advisor for, ok!" she said cheerfully and shamelessly plugging her club.

After that Crona and Moka left to try and find a club that would be right for them. Or at the very least, one Crona could learn to deal with.

-Dealing With Youkai Academy-

The Club festival was super crowded with all sorts of booths, and large amounts of pushing shoving students. Crona was having major issues dealing with the whole thing, not sure how to deal with all of these people touching him as they bump and shoved their way past. Luckily Moka was there to take charge, pulling him by the hand through the crowd. Ragnorak helped as well, though he claimed it was for his own benefit. The demon had no problems using his strength to violently move people that invaded his personal space.

The clubs themselves were as varied as the students that attended the Academy. It seemed like every conceivable group had someone advertising there. "Hey Crona, what group should we enter?" Moka asked him. She was curious what he would say. If she could find out Crona's hobbies, maybe she could find a way to get closer to him?

"I don't know" came Crona's reply. He had never actually had any hobbies, and most of his talents came in the form of killing things in painful nasty ways. What sort of club could he possibly be expected to join.

Moka sighed internally, she should have known. "Anyway, it's still too early to decided. Let's visit a lot of clubs since they've gone to all this trouble!"

This was easier said then done however. Not only did they have to fight the crowds to get anywhere, but they also had to contend with Moka's army of fanboys. Everywhere they turned there seemed to be another batch of boys with the hots for Moka. They'd had to flee the 'phantom photography' club, when they'd asked to take nude shots of Moka. Then there was the chemistry club, which wanted to make magical love potions with her. Then the acupuncture and mummy clubs had chased them around for about ten minutes, thoroughly scaring Crona with their persistence. "Don't they have any normal clubs?" he wondered as he dejectedly followed Moka.

Finally, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a small booth. It didn't have a lot of people around it which surprised Crona. The booth had a simple message, and the girl behind the table looked friendly enough.

Poetry Club

The name set off a memory in Crona. It was after he had joined the DWMA for the first time. Maka had told him he could express his feelings by righting them down in the form of poetry. He hadn't thought he could do it, but he had tried anyway for Maka. His poem must have been good, because every time someone read it, they immediately went and sat in Mr. Corner to think. The poem must have made them want to do some deep thinking about their own lives and fears. Maybe this was the club for him?

Tugging at Moka's sleeve, he pointed out the booth. Moka raised an eyebrow, but smiled and happily followed Crona for a change to the nearly empty table.

"Hello, and welcome. Would you like to join the poetry club?" the girl asked. She looked normal enough, with brown hair and green eyes. She word simple blue jeans and a white shirt that said 'Poetry Club' in orange letters. The only unusual thing that tipped off she wasn't human was that her ears were slightly pointed, like an elf.

Crona nodded shyly, not sure how to deal with this. The girl just smiled and handed him and Moka a piece of paper. "That's great, not many people take an interest in the club." she told him. "As sort of a test for possible members, we ask them to write a poem in about five minutes. Then, we see what they come up with. We don't grade very harshly, but we do want to make sure that they at least understand what poetry is" the girl said.

Moka and Crona nodded, though Ragnorak rolled his eyes, uninterested in the dinky club. Taking offered pencils, the two began to write.

Five minutes passed quickly to Moka, who hadn't come up with much of anything. She was never good with words. She worried because whenever she glanced over at Crona, he seemed to be immersed in his work. What if he got into the club and she didn't? What would she do?

"Times up" the girl at the booth said. Moka wondered what her name was, she didn't seem to be wearing a name tag or anything.

Taking Moka's first, the girl scanned it. She looked up at Moka "It's okay, but it needs some serious work. If you join the club, we're going to have to teach you a thing or two. Now how about your's" she said to Crona. As she took his paper, the other members gathered around her. They had seen how hard Crona was working, and were curious about the outcome.

As one, they read what Crona had written….

As one, they put the paper down. They turned went over into the corner, and curled up into the fetal position.

"Life is meaningless" the girl that had taken their papers said.

"What am I doing with my life" another said.

"Why must I continue my miserable existence" one boy cried to the heavens.

From there, they all broke down into historical sobs. Everyone near them sweat-dropped at the sight. They were overreacting surely? Moka found herself morbidly curious what was written on the seemingly harmless piece of paper….

"So… did I get in?" Crona asked. He was oblivious to the psychological damage his poem had just caused the small club. He just assumed he had written another great poem. He had based it off his first one, but had added onto it, giving it a little more of that something special.

If Crona would have gotten into the club or not was never answered, as Ragnorak chose the time to speak up. "Enough of this girly poetry crap Crona, I see a real club right over there!" he said pointing widely to a point just out of sight behind a mass of boys.

"I don't see anything Ragnorak" Crona said, unable to see what his partner was talking about. This only annoyed Ragnorak though, who grabbed Crona by the nose and forced him in the direction he had been pointing.

"Come on you little weakling"

"B-But what about the Poetry Club?" Crona asked. He had actually been a little excited about joining that club.

"NO! We are not joining that sissy club!" Ragnorak said adamantly. The last thing he wanted to do was join a club where Crona caused everyone to become suicidal because of his damn poetry.

"Then, how about the swimming club?" A new voice asked, causing the trio to turn around. They hadn't even noticed that Ragnorak had lead them, literally by the nose, to the booth he had seen.

"I'm the Swimming Club Captain, Tamao Ichinose! Why don't we swim together?" the woman asked sensually. She was tall, about half a head above Crona. She had long sea green hair that looked damp. She wore a white button up shirt open. Underneath she was wearing what appeared to be a purple fish scale bikini top, which barely contained her sizable bust. Around her waist was a simple dress, which was colored light blue, and on her feet were simple beach sandals. Her yellow eyes gazed at them, as though trying to invite them closer. All and all, she was quite the looker, drawing boys to her like moths to a flame, though she only seemed to be looking at Crona.

The Swimming Club seemed to have dozens of girls similar to the captain. All around Crona guys were ogling the girls in bikinis, desperate to attract their notice.

Tamao stepped foreword and put her hands on Crona's cheeks, causing him to flinch backwards. Her hands were clammy and cold. Tamao raised an eyebrow at him, before resting her gaze on Ragnorak. "The Swimming Club is currently all female" she told the little demon "The ladies will end up paying lots of special attention to the boy who joins our club!" she told him batting her eyelashes.

Dozens of boys started declaring their desire to join the swim club right away. Crona personally wasn't that interest, and Moka didn't appear to enthused either. But Ragnorak… "Well, it seems like the Swimming Club is normal enough, come on Crona." he said, attempting to follow after the hoard of girls walking out toward what he assumed was the pool. Tamao was still there though, looking at their group expectantly.

"But we haven't finished looking at the other clubs yet" Crona said, trying to be civil. A futile strategy against one such as Ragnorak.

Ragnorak bopped him on the head, "Be quite Crona" he whispered angrily to Crona.

"But I don't even like swimming. In fact, I don't think we even know how to-"

He was interrupted when Ragnorak swiveled around and put Crona in a head lock. "Damn it Crona, don't ruin this for me! This is a chance to see some hot girls nearly nude, and I want to be there for that! Who knows, I might even be able to sweet talk some action for us, but I can't do that if you puss out on me! So we are going to that pool, and we are going to have a good time!" he ranted at Crona. By the end, Crona and Moka both had blushes on their faces, though Tamao just looked slightly bemused by the little creature. If she was offended at all, she certainly didn't show it.

So, after having said his piece, Ragnorak let go of Crona. Throughly cowed, the demon meister and his vampire friend followed meekly.

-Dealing With Youkai Academy-

The pool was a flurry of activity when Crona's group arrived. The Swim girls discarded what little clothing they had on as soon as they got there, showing off super revealing swim suits. They all called to the boys to join them, offering spare swimsuits for those in needs. From there, they either lounged around showing off their bodies, or were enticing men into the water.

Everyone appeared to be having a good time, except for Crona and Moka. Tamao had left after they got there, saying she had business to attend to. Ragnorak was busy admiring all the beautiful women around him, looking like a kid in a candy shop. Moka was looking at the water like it was tub of acid. Crona had placed both hands over his eyes, his face flushed violently red. He had never seen so many attractive girls in such a state of undress, that his mind had overheated from trying to figure out how he was supposed to deal with all this.

"Umm," Moka said, stepping closer to Crona "Crona, Ragnorak, I…. don't really like swimming!" she said slow at first but finished in a rush. Crona let out a sigh of relief. He turned to her "oh thank goodness, I though I was the only one" he told her. Ragnorak just looked at her annoyed, his dream of seeing her in a skimpy swimsuit shattered.

"What are you still doing over here?" Tamao asked, as she jogged up with two other girls. "Hurry up and come swim with us!" Tamao begged playfully flinging herself onto Crona. Crona's blush got deeper, if that was possible, as the captain held him tight, two soft things pressing against his arm.

"Captain!" Moka squeaked, not pleased with the way the other girl was clinging to a clearly uncomfortable Crona.

"Oh, this one is so cute!" one of the other girls Tamao brought with her said.

"Take it off! Take it off!" the other one joined in. They moved toward Crona, a boy's swimsuit in their hands, and their intentions became clear.

"Wait a second!" Crona called as the girls started to grasp at his cloths.

Knowing that if the girls starting trying to undress Crona he'd have a situation on his hands, Ragnorak intervened. "Ladies, ladies" he said, getting their attention "Allow me" he told them. Grabbing Crona by the ears, he steered the rightfully upset boy behind one of the thick bushes that surrounded the pool. Pushing Crona into one of the bushes, the girls were treated to the sound of panic and fists meeting skin. Cloths were randomly thrown out of the bush, which was always followed by more panicked shouts on Crona's part, about how he couldn't deal with out a shirt, his pants, etc.

Then, as suddenly as it started, it stopped. Then, a confused looking Crona stepped out of the bush, decked out in a new outfit. It was like a diver's suit, and was very similar to what Crona had worn before Youkai Academy. It was solid black, and covered from his neck to his ankles. This was one of the few times Ragnorak was willing to compromise with Crona. It was covering enough to not upset Crona, but still technically a swimsuit, so Ragnorak could still be with the hot babes.

While all this had been going on, Tamao turned to face Moka, sizing her up. "So you're the rumored Moka Akashiya" she said, clearly unimpressed "Rumors say that you're a vampire, I wonder if it's true?" She shrugged "Well… anyway, this is a swimming club. If you have no intention to swim, then why don't you leave!" she said forcefully, though her face never changed expressions. She stepped away just as Crona came out of the bush.

10 Minutes Later…..

Moka sat at one of the tables beside the pool, watching an interesting scene take place. Crona nearly had been forced into the pool when the secret got out: Neither Crona nor Ragnorak could swim. There had apparently never been any call for it where he was from, so he had never learned. Tamao had solved this problem by offering to teach them, something Ragnorak was quick to agree to.

But once in the water, a new problem arose. Crona's black blood was apparently so dense, that wearing a suit made of it was akin to swimming while wearing a suit of armor. As soon as he got in the water, Crona had sunk straight to he bottom, and it took Tamao and too other girls to pull him back to the surface. Crona had been clinging to the wall since then. But even after all this, Ragnorak would not be deterred. He insisted that Crona toughen up and stay in the pool.

This lead to what Moka was watching right now. Tamao was trying to teach them the breast stroke. Apparently literally, because she kept sticking Ragnorak's hands (Crona's were busy clinging to the wall) into her breasts to show the motions. But Crona refused to leave the safety of the wall, and Ragnorak could only stretch from Crona so far. Tamao was clearly trying to provoke some kind of reaction out of Crona, because she kept trying to cuddle up to him. Was she another girl trying to seduce him? Moka didn't know, but it didn't seem to matter. Crona had his eyes shut tight and was too afraid of drowning to notice the girl pressing her breasts into his back.

He also seemed to be attracting a lot of attention from the rest of the pool goers. The boys, smitten by Tamao's charm, instantly grew jealous at the sight of her cuddling up so close to Crona. The other girls in the pool had a different reaction. They looked at Crona with something akin to awe. Here was boy, surrounded by beautiful girls, and he hadn't done anything perverse. Even though the creature on his back was acting like a lustful dog to Tamao, Crona was not, so they didn't judge the pink haired boy. They soon grew jealous of Tamao for snagging such a sweet guy.

Frankly, it was an odd experience of Crona. Being hated and loved at the same time? How on earth was he supposed to deal with something like that?

Tamao looked up from her spot by Crona's side to see Moka staring at her angrily. She smirked. No matter what the little vampire girl may wish, as long as Crona was in her territory, she wasn't about to lose to Moka.

-Dealing With Youkai Academy-

"Hey, by the way, did you hear! There's a rumor that Moka Akashiya might join the swimming club!" a random boy student said to his friend.

As the two boys continued their discussions about Moka in a swimsuit, they passed right by Kurumu, allowing her to hear everything.

"Moka in the swimming club?" she thought to herself, nibbling on one of her cookies. "I wonder if that means Crona will join the swimming club too?" as she pondered this, she felt her heart quicken at the thought of her Destined One. "After all, they're probably going to do something together!" Oh, why couldn't she have met Crona first instead of that stupid Moka!

"I'm not going to lose to Moka Akashiya" she said, turning and heading back to her dorm run, determined to find her sexiest swimwear "Because I'm going to make sure I join the same club as Crona too!"

She stopped her march to her room as a thought popped into her head "Huh… But isn't that strange? I though vampires and water…." oh well, maybe she was over thinking it. She had no time to waste, she had to get to her destined one right away!

-Dealing With Youkai Academy-

Moka could feel her self restraint cracking like a dam. The tick mark that had appeared on her forehead some time a go had grown and multiplied several fold. Seeing that girl, hold Crona, trying to pull him to her, smiling at him! OH! She couldn't take it anymore!

"Stop it already! When it comes down to it, you just wanted to join the swimming club because you wanted to get close to girls didn't you Ragnorak!" she yelled at them.

Crona looked frantic, but Ragnorak just raised a semi-nonexistent eyebrow at her, as if to say 'no duh'. Moka then focused her gaze on Crona. She could never be mad at him, but right now she was certainly frustrated "Crona, I've had enough! I'm leaving! Come and find me when you've gotten Ragnorak under control." she said. Then she turned and walked off in a huff.

"Wait, Moka, this is a misunderstanding!" Crona called after her, even though he knew his statement wasn't true. Moka had hit the nail on the head. Ragnorak had forced them here just so he could get close to pretty girls. And he was powerless to ignore Ragnorak, no matter how much he wanted too. And now Moka was mad because he wasn't hanging out with her.

Moka stopped and took a deep breath. She didn't want to leave Crona thinking she was mad at him. Turning around she faced the nervous looking boy "Crona… the truth is, I-"

By Moka was cut off when water from the pool splashed up and made contact with Moka's skin. She flinched back violently from it, as though it stung her. Tamao just shook her head at Moka "Though you're free to visit, fighting is such an ugly sight! And it looks so childish… whether you understand each other or not… how petty!" Tamao declared. Crona frowned. Moka looked like she was about to tell him something important, and he didn't think that was at all petty. "Between a man and a woman, the important part is finding out if you've had your heart stolen or vice versa!" she told the two, Ragnorak not included because he was busy staring at her cleavage. Frankly, Crona found that last statement to be a bit odd… what did hearts have to do with this? Moka wasn't upset because she had feeling for him right? It was because they were friends, and she wanted them to do something together… right?

He looked over at Moka, who was busy trying to shake the water off her. "Water…." her voice sounded pained, like someone had struck her a physical blow. Turning, she ran away as fast as her legs would carry her.

"Moka!" Crona called after her, preparing to exit the pool.

"No, wait Crona, wait there!" she called back, confusing him. Hadn't she wanted him to go with her? He tried to exit the pool, but found that Ragnorak was stubbornly clinging to Tamao, refusing to leave.

Tamao had a rather unpleasant smirk on her face "So the rumor was true…" she trailed off, but suddenly she seemed less attractive to Crona. Now if only he could get Ragnorak to feel the same way…

-Dealing With Youkai Academy-

Moka stumbled into an alleyway, before collapsing against the wall in pain. She slid to the ground, breathing heavily.

"You fool!" there was the voice from the Rosary again. Only this time it sounded quite upset. "Why were you so close to something like a pool!" it reprimanded her, but continued before Moka could come up with a suitable answer "Of course this would happen if water splashed on you! Water resists supernatural energy; as the power drains out, your body will be become paralyzed! Water is the weak point of vampires!" the Rosary said, it's tone indicating it couldn't believe it was having to explain something all vampires should know by heart!

Moka wrapped her arms around herself, trying to block out the pain "I, too, inhabit this body, so put an end to such reckless behavior! Do not let the likes of Crona or Ragnorak make you do such things!"

Moka frowned. She didn't like her Rosary talking about Crona. "No… No!" she said more forcefully, ignoring the pain.

"What?" the Rosary replied, not sure it had heard her right.

I'm sick of this body! Why can't I be like everyone else?" Moka asked, as tears started to roll down her cheeks. "I'm weird! I want to swim with Crona too…" she trailed off, expecting the Rosary to say something too her, but it remained silent. "I wish I could be with Crona too…" she said to herself, longing to feel him wrap his arms around her.

Suddenly, from deep insider her, Moka felt something stirring. The feeling seemed to come from her heart, and soon brought her comfort. It wasn't much, but Moka did feel a little better, though she didn't know how or why. The feeling was odd; so foreign, but oh so very familiar….

-Dealing With Youkai Academy-

Crona frowned as he looked out over the pool full of laughing teens. He didn't want to be here anymore. And not just because he didn't know how to deal with it, but because it just didn't seem like the place he should be.

He turned to Tamao, who was conversing with Ragnorak, and entered their conversation. "Um… Tamao, I…" he hesitated, not wanting to sound rude "I'm sorry, but I don't want to stay in the swimming club…" he trailed off, not giving the reason. If his friends weren't there with him, there was nothing there for him. Who was he gonna enjoy it with? Ragnorak?

"What! Crona what are you talking about! I want to stay here and play with Tamao's boo- "

Crona cut him off by raising his hand. Ragnorak stopped out of sheer surprise. It was a rare thing for Crona to stand up to him. "I'm sorry Ragnorak, but I've made my decision. Besides, nothing will change the fact that we won't be able to swim effectively like Tamao wants us too, so we're just wasting her time as much as ours." he looked at Tamao, who was shaking her head with a bemused expression on her face.

"What are you talking about you silly boy?" Tamao asked with the tone one might use to address a baby. Hadn't she heard him? Maybe she couldn't hear properly? How would he deal with her if she couldn't hear properly? "And just when I finally chased off that bothersome Moka!" Now that statement stopped Crona and Ragnorak. "Isn't the fun just beginning?" she asked him. Crona and Ragnorak shared a look… looks like they were about to be in for another fight.

"Didn't I say it clearly?" Tamao asked them. The demon meister and his sword watched as Tamao started to transform. Her fingers became clawed, and her hands became webbed. Actual scales were starting to grow on her. "Either you have your heart stolen, or you steal their's!" Tamao's voice became colder and more malicious, as she narrowed her eyes at them.

"Help! Stop it, why are you suddenly coming after me!" Crona turned his head at the cry for help, and saw a horrible sight: Two girls chased down a frantic boy, who was the one calling for help. When they were nearly on top of him, they proceeded to bite him with teeth that had suddenly become like shark teeth. Crona watched in horror as the boys seemed to age right before his eyes. In seconds, the once teenage boy had become an emaciated old man. A second later he died, his entire body collapsed into dust, and the two girls swam away.

"Wha… what is going on! Why did they kill that guy!" Crona asked. Hearing a splash, he turned and saw Tamao diving under the water. Only now, instead of legs, Tamao's entire lower body had become like a fish!

"Don't think to badly of us!" Tamao said, her voice seeming to come from the water all around Crona "Luring men into the water and sucking their life energy…" she chuckled "This is simply our natural way of life" she told Crona. She leapt from the water, showing her whole body at once. While her bottom half was a fish, her top seemed to have remained normal, save for some fin-like protrusions where her ears had been. That was when Crona realized he was dealing with a bunch of mermaids.

All around the pool boys were desperately trying to flee for their very lives. But no matter how fast they swam, the mermaids had the home advantage. It became a feeding frenzy as dozens of boys were caught, drained, and killed.

"Oh man, are mermaids really this scary! How am I supposed to deal with that?" Crona wondered aloud as he tried to pull himself from the pool.

"No need to panic, it's just fine" Tamao said, grabbing him by the waist and pulling him back into the water with surprising strength. Ragnorak tried punching her but she spun Crona around and slammed his back into the side of the pool, dispelling Ragnorak. "You're special Crona!" She told him as she ran one of her slimy fish fingered hands down the side of his face "The truth is, I've had my eyes set on you since the entrance ceremony" she was getting uncomfortably close. And unlike with Moka, Crona had the feeling he wouldn't survive a 'love bite' from Tamao. "Ever since then, I've spent all my time dreaming about you! It's just, you see… " Tamao's jaw's started to open wider, her teeth pointed like a shark "You have such a yummy smelling aura, Crona! Like nothing I've ever experienced before… it's been driving me mad!" Tamao's jaws split open, her whole mouth larger then Crona's head! "I've always wanted to eat you up!" Tamao screamed, her voice laced with hunger and madness.

"Crona!" Tamao and Crona turned to see Moka running toward the pool as fast as she could. "Crona, what's going on!" she asked desperately. Crona didn't answer, feeling that explanations were likely best saved for later.

Tamao growled "What, are you back here again? Don't get in my way!" she yelled warningly "Not that you could! You're nothing but a worthless monster that can't even swim" she sneered. Crona felt his fear giving way to anger. No one called one of his friends worthless. But wait… can't swim? Moka couldn't swim either? Why hadn't she said anything?

"I'm right aren't I?" Tamao gloated "It's a well known story! There's you can do, is there? Water hater!" she called out with a laugh, pulling Crona closer to her and farther from the safety of dry land. Luckily, he felt Ragnorak form and grasp onto the wall, in case Crona got dropped below the water. "Pitiful! At least watch quietly from over there…" she was cut off as Moka proceeded to do the one thing that everyone knew shouldn't happen: dive into water.

"Don't be a fool!" the Rosary called out to her in shock, but she ignored it.

"No!" Crona cried, fearing for his friends safety, but she ignored him too. Crona had saved her twice already, and she wanted to repay him.

As she was submerged in the water, arch of deadly electricity spread across the pool like someone had dropped a live wire into it. But for some reason, no one was affected. Except for Moka.

"What is this? Moka? What is going on?" Crona cried, having trouble handling all that was going on at the same time.

"What's going on?" someone repeated his question "Why did Moka jump into the water?" Crona turned Kurumu standing there.

"Kurumu?" Crona cried, happy to see a familiar face, one who hopefully could tell him what the hell was going on with the weird lightning! He didn't know how to handle weird lightning!

"Crona! Are you okay?" Kurumu asked running toward him. She had come with hopes to impress Crona with one of her swimsuits, only to find this catastrophe! She hadn't even had time to change!

She shook her head, she had to focus! "If we don't hurry and save Moka, she's gonna die!" she told Crona, whose eyes widened in shock, as did Ragnorak's. Seeing there surprise, the young succubus elaborated "Don't you know! Vampires can't go into the water! Because water drains a vampire's energy!" she explained quickly. She looked at the point where the lighting was spewing from "Is she nuts, jumping into the water like that?" she asked allowed.

Ragnorak and Crona concentrated on their link with each other as they tried to figure out how to save their friend. Ragnorak was actually feeling a little bad. He didn't know that about Moka. He didn't want the crybaby to die! She was one of the few people to offer unconditional friendship… and she gave him candy! He couldn't let her die! Oh, and there was the whole, 'friends with Crona' thing to he supposed.

Crona steeled himself, because he only had one idea, and he knew Ragnorak wasn't going to like it. Using all of his strength, he pushed off from the wall down into the water. They reached the bottom quickly, their heavy density dragging them like they had a cannon ball around their waist.

At the bottom was Moka, her eyes closed, electric sparks dancing around her. Grabbing her, Crona knew there was no way he could swim back to the surface with her. Nodding to Ragnorak, they both began to channel their wavelengths.

Up above, Kurumu and Tamao watched where Crona had dived under. Kurumu's head jerked up as she felt Crona's familiar aura rising. Something insider her told her to be ready for something, but she didn't know what. Then, the water burst up, as the unconscious form of Moka was thrown clear out of the pool. Kurumu seemed to know what she had to do: catch Moka, and get her away from the water.

Tamao stared at the water in shock. "No… this overwhelming feeling. What can that boy possibly be in his true form…?" she wondered, something she actually shared in common with the succubus and knocked out vampire.

Tamao hardened her features, but you could see the nervousness in her eyes. "Either way, that Moka girl is out of the picture for now." She snapped her fingers and called her fellow mermaids to her. Looking down through the water, she saw Crona still there "I had my eyes set on you Crona, and I'm never going to give you up!" she cried out. As one, the school of mermaids dived under heading for Crona.

Underwater, Crona found himself under attack by the girls, and wasn't able to do much. Tamao hung back, mocking him "I don't care how strong you are! In our territory, a mermaid will always be victorious!" and Crona could understand how she felt that way.

But clearly the mermaids had never gone against something like the black blood. They would swim past him, swiping at him as they did, a method quite similar to sharks. Only to find that their attacks had failed to penetrate his wet suit! Some of them even broke their fingers trying to get at him. When they tried to target his exposed face, Ragnorak was there to deal them a hearty punch to the face.

But it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. Crona wasn't used to moving under such great pressure, and he was rapidly running out of air. He had to think of something and fast… well, he did have one idea… an idea for an attack he had never had the chance to try out….

"If you're gonna do something, now would be the time!" Ragnorak reminded him over the mental link.

Crona nodded his head, ducking as Mermaid tried to decapitate him. Sending his idea to Ragnorak, they began their all or nothing gambit.

Up on the surface, Kurumu felt Crona's aura again, but it was rising! Soon, it was where it had been when he fought her! That feeling inside her told her she needed to get away from the pool. And not just form Moka, she needed to get as far away from the pool right now! Grabbing Moka by the shoulders she dragged the other girl none to softly away from the sight of the aura.

Underwater, the mermaids were circling Crona warily. They knew he would pass out soon, and then he would be there's! Seeing the demon on his back drawn back into the boy, they thought he was fading, and prepared to assault him. Just as they were about to charge, they noticed something: mouths had appeared all over Crona's body. They were on his chest, his back, his arms, everywhere. The largest was on his chest, being nearly as large as his torso. The rest were of varying sizes, but each one was stretched into a hideous grin.

"Screech…" Crona mumbled, his voice strained against the water. The mouths all seemed to clench up, as though waiting for some as yet unspoken command "Zeta!" Crona called out, just before all hell broke loose.

On the surface, it would appear as though a depth charge had gone off. No, more like a half dozen or so depth charges. The cement walls of the pool cracked and shattered. Kurumu, even though she was far away, was bowled over. All the water in the pool was blown sky high, along with the bodies of several mermaids. They landed in heaps, their bones broken both by the fall and sheer pressure put off by the attack.

Crona crawled out of the wreckage of the pool, just as the water fell down from the sky like rain. He had to admit, he hadn't thought the attack would work so well. The idea was to send a powerful sound wave in every direction at once, hitting multiple targets. He hadn't expected that water would transmit sound waves as well if not better than air. Looking around him, he saw that one of the mermaids was absent: Tamao. Somehow, she had slipped off without him noticing. Crona frowned; she was the ringleader, so she was the one he wanted to have a word with.

He didn't know that, being farthest from him when the blast went off, she wouldn't be near the others when she landed. She had landed in a bush, the one Ragnorak had used to change, and stayed their hidden. Like all good leaders, she knew when to cut her loses. But before she lost consciousness, she swore she would have revenge on that dreadful Crona!

Seeing Kurumu run toward him, he put thoughts of Tamao out of his mind… for now. He and Ragnorak gladly excepted her praises as they went to check on their other friend. Moka was still unconscious, so she would have to be taken to the school nurse. Crona felt bad. If he had known about Moka's weakness to water, he never would have allowed them to be dragged to the pool.

-Dealing With Youkai Academy-

The next day, Moka didn't come to class. Crona was growing more and more worried about her. If she died, he would never be able to deal with it.

For the next three days, Crona and Ragnorak spent most of their time with Kurumu. Crona had gone to see Moka when he could. But Ragnorak and Kurumu both agreed there was nothing he could do for his friend, so they had to keep him occupied. Kurumu was secretly happy about that. Her friendship with Crona had grown, and she felt she knew him at least as well as Moka did. Ragnorak appreciated the chance to be near a hot girl that wouldn't try to kill him. Crona was just glad that he had a friend there for him while they waited for another friend to heal.

On the third day, he was approached by Neko-sensei. "Just the person I wanted to talk to!" she said, her bouncy personality ever in place. "Have you decided which club you're going to join?" she asked him "The only ones who haven't decided yet are you and Moka!" she informed him.

Sadly, Crona was stuck there. He had tried to find the poetry group again, but for some reason had a great deal of difficulty, almost like they were avoiding him. When he had finally caught up to them to ask about joining, he received some sad knows. Apparently, after they left, a lot of other people had suddenly joined up all at once. So many, in fact, that they simply had no room left at all. They were very sorry, and they hopped he understood. Crona did, of course, after all, Poetry was very therapeutic. He wondered where the poem he had written for them had gotten to anyway? Hmm….

Realizing he was just staining their in front of a concerned looking Neko-sensei, he admitted "No, I haven't yet Neko-sensei" he told her.

The cat woman seemed to brighten up at that "Splendid! Then I wonder if you both wouldn't mind joining my club? The Newspaper Club… well, nobody has joined yet, and it might get shut down!" she told him. Crona nodded, it wasn't like he had anything else to join. Though, if Kurumu and Moka weren't there, he doubted he'd have much fun.

"Thats' great, I'll join that club!" a peppy voice said. Turning, Crona was pleasantly surprised to see Moka standing there, looking like nothing at all had happened to her. She waved enthusiastically to him "Good morning Crona!"

"Moka!" Crona said running to her. "I wasn't sure if you'd come back again… I wasn't sure how to deal with one of my friends being gone…" he trailed off, not sure how to express his happiness at her return.

"I kinda slept the whole time for rejuvenation" she admitted sheepishly, rubbing the back of her head in embarrassment at having slept for nearly four whole days. Crona didn't care though, he was just glad his friend was back. It wasn't the same without seeing the smile that adorned her face.

"Then the two of you have decided on the newspaper club right?" Neko-sensei said, her tail wagging rapidly in pleasure.

"I'm also joining!" Kurumu said, dropping down from one of the upper floors, inadvertently giving Crona a view of her panties, causing him to blush furiously.

"Kurumu!" Moka said, not sure how she felt about her rival joining the same club as Crona.

"We'll all be together again… I like that" Crona said shyly, one of his small smiles on his face. He looked at both girls, and was once more glad to have such great friends.

But it was in the back of his mind that he recalled something important. Something he had allowed to slip by while he waited for Moka to return. Now that she had, it was time for Crona to act.

-Dealing With Youkai Academy-

Tamao walked to her dorm building slowly, her legs still sore even after all the time since the 'incident' as the other mermaids had dubbed it. Most had suffered several injuries, and she herself had a broken arm. Not a day went by that she didn't curse that pink haired boy. She had brought up the possibility of revenge to the others, only to be shot down. They were now all afraid of the boy, whatever he was. They reasoned that any creature capable of what he did was not someone they wanted to mess with. They wanted to just avoid him, and pray he didn't hunt them down. The others began to avoid her, fearing that, as the instigator, he would likely target her first, and they had no wish to be caught in the crossfire.

What nonsense. Tamao knew Crona was willing to fight when he or his friends were in immediate danger, but she somehow doubted he'd come after her…"

"Tamao Ichinose!" a voice called. Tamao turned to face the one who called her, her mind not picking up on the owner of the voice before it was too late.

A black sword screamed out of the Academy fog, hitting her right in the stomach. It had been thrown with such force that she was sent hurtling backwards into one of the many trees on the grounds. The blade pinned her there, rendering her immobile. It wasn't exactly necessary, as with the wound inflicted on her, it wasn't like she was going anywhere fast.

Crona stepped from out of the fog, a hard glare on his face. The fearful boy that she had almost killed was gone, replaced by a determined looking young man.

"Tamao Ichinose, you have left the path light. Because of you, many innocent people died." he said, his eyes cold. Tamao tried to speak up, tried to think up something she could say to save her life, but it was impossible. When she opened her mouth, all she could do was spit blood, the red liquid dribbling down her chin.

Crona gripped the blade, but hesitated, giving Tamao a sense of hope. "Are you sure we should be doing this? Won't Lord Death be angry?" he asked. Tamao was confused, until she saw the blade grow a mouth and begin to speak in the voice of the little demon she'd seen with him.

"Oh course this is okay!" Ragnorak said. "Think about it Crona; you want to go back to the DWMA right?" he asked, getting a nod from Crona. It was true. Despite all the new friends he had made here, he still longed to be with his first friend. "Well, if you start showing some responsibility, maybe Lord Death will take notice and let you come back earlier. And what better way then to emulate his meisters. We'll hunt down the truly evil souls at this Academy, and stop them from becoming a real threat" Ragnorak explained slowly.

Crona frowned. That all sounded right, but he still wasn't sure. Would Lord Death want him to start hunting again? He would be killing the right people this time, not innocents, so that had to count for something right? What would Maka say if she was here right now? Would she pass judgement on this girl? "But are you sure we need to kill her?" he asked.

Ragnorak growled in frustration "Crona, because of her, a lot of people died today! She was the mermaids ringleader, and they all killed people in cold blood!" he said impatiently.

Crona opened his mouth, but closed it again. He had wondered if it was like Moka, where the Mermaids needed to drain people to survive, so he had asked around. It turned out, that the school provided for each type of monsters various needs. He had actually seen Moka drink from blood packs provided by the Academy, so he assumed the same was likely true for Mermaids. But that meant that they had indeed willfully and maliciously, killed several students.

"You're right" he said lowering his head. "Let's do this" he tightened the grip on Ragnorak.

Tamao wasn't sure exactly what was going on, but she knew her fate had just been decided for her. She tried to struggle against her bindings, but with only one working arm there wasn't much she could do. She had lashed out with her good arm, only for Crona's iron like skin to nearly break her hand. Ragnorak opened his mouth on the sword, and issued a soul piercing scream, causing the blade to vibrate in her, sending new waves of agony racing through her.

But over the screams, both from Ragnorak and herself, she could still hear Crona's final words to her "Tamao Ichinose… Your soul is mine!" and with a single gesture, the blade tore upward, splitting the mermaid in half. Her screams were silenced as her body dissolved into nothingness, leaving only her soul behind.

Crona was curious what a monster soul would look like. Witch's souls were purple, normal souls were blue, and Kishin eggs (the souls of the wicked) were red. It turned out that Tamao's soul was a vibrant green, with a red tinge. Crona wondered if that was for all monsters, or just mermaids. He shrugged internally, it wasn't like it really mattered. What mattered was that he now had a mission. Something he was sure would speed up Lord Death's trust in him. He would be the protector of Youkai Academy, and collect the souls of wicked monsters. Who knew, maybe he'd even make Ragnorak into a death scythe? What would Maka say then?

Then, as Ragnorak reached out and swallowed Tamao's soul, it hit him. This was an enormous responsibility he had just taken on. He was going to have to face even more horrible monsters! What if they were even scarier then the mermaids? Oh, why had he let Ragnorak trick him into such a task? He really didn't know how he was going to deal with all this!

End Chapter 3

And so ends the third chapter. I hope everyone enjoyed it, and if you did, please review. I noticed this chapter was a little shorter then the other ones, but I don't think the content was any worse for it.

In this chapter I invented a new attack for Crona. Why, because all the attacks he already had were either not meant to hit multiple targets, or could not be used at his current permitted level without alerting Lord Death. I hope nobody minds that, and if you do... sorry? This chapter ended on a more serious note then the other two, but there was a reason. I wanted a chance to show off Crona's more serious side, the side that will go to great lengths to help his friends. Will the swallowing of a monster soul have any effect on Crona and Ragnorak? Maybe...

Now, with all said and done, I once again ask you to please review if you liked it. Remember to check out my Author's Profile page for information on upcoming chapters.

Until Next Time...