Note: While I like the character of Sekitan Ria, which several authors have begun to use, I am here to tell you that I will not be using this character in my story. Perhaps in another that I write, but for the purposes of this current story I will be using Akua with a slightly... modified personality to make her a bit more similar to Ria, but not quite. Enjoy!

Beneath the Surface

A Family Visit

Moka Akashiya's eyes fluttered open. She woke up extra early today. And for her that meant she was up before the sun had even begun to poke its head above the horizon. Her eyes gazed steadily at the ceiling, as if she could will herself to look past it and up at the stars that she knew were up there watching. She did not move save for the up and down movement of her chest from her breathing.

Why had she woken up so early? It was her birthday.

Two very different emotions welled up inside her as her eyes began to notice the light in the room beginning to brighten ever so slowly. She felt both excitement and apprehension.

The first emotion was excitement. This was because it was her birthday, and how could one not be excited for one's day of birth? And of course the fact that she was spending it with Tsukune helped in that regard. Her mind pondered for a moment what they were going to do that day, but ultimately she decided that it would be best to ask Tsukune what he thought they should do.

The second emotion was apprehension. This was caused by the fact that, without fail ever since she had left, every birthday of hers elicited a visit from family. And while she did love her family, she was not overly fond of them. Particularly when there were humans around. And more specifically with Tsukune around today she was very apprehensive indeed of their impending arrival.

They never told her when or where, not giving any warning in advance. . They always seemed to find her, no matter where she happened to be. While she should be used to it by now she could not help but feel this apprehension because today was different. Today Tsukune might meet her family.

Of course, if she had anything to do with it, they would not meet.

At least not yet, she thought.

-xxxxxx-

The doorbell rang, a sing-song chime that made Moka jump in surprise. She carefully drained the remaining blood in the transfusion pack before disposing of it and, making sure her appearance was clean and bloodless, she headed for the front door. Who could be at the door? From the faint scent that she could sense coming from beyond the door, she knew it was definitely not Tsukune.

Her family had arrived. Early. Much earlier than expected.

I hope things don't get complicated, she thought. Her inner self said nothing, though a feeling of agreement came from that part of her that was hers and yet also separate.

She reached for the handle of the door, her fingers touching the cool metal. She let her hand linger there for a moment before she took a deep cleansing breath and opened the door. Moka expected to see her entire family there, yelling "Surprise!" as they usually did - well, at least her sisters did. Her father would merely grin ever so slightly and have an amused twinkle in his eye.

Instead of that, only a lone woman stood before her.

"Hello, little sister. Happy birthday," she greeted her with an innocent-enough smile, showing sharper than normal canines. Then she looked at her curiously with her red eyes, "You seem surprised to see me." It was meant more as a question than a statement of fact.

"Good morning, big sister. I am surprised to see only you. Usually the others are with you. What's happened? Is something wrong?"

Akua let out a short laugh, "Oh you are precious, Moka." She flipped her black hair a bit with her left hand. "Father regrets that he cannot make it, but sends his warmest birthday wishes and a tidy sum deposited into your account so that you can go buy yourself a little something."

Moka looked even more surprised. "What's happened? Did the Council convene?" That was the only reason she could see that her father would ever miss her birthday. It had to be seriously important enough to involve the Council of Elders of the vampire realm, of which he was the current leader.

Akua grinned and gave her a pointed look, "My, my sister. Have you lost all semblance of manners being in the company of such filthy creatures as humans that you would neglect to invite me into your home? Or did you really want to chat about this on your doorstep where any passersby could hear us?" Her sarcasm was sharp as a knife and made Moka wince slightly as it cut her.

"S-sorry! Please come in and make yourself at home, Akua." Moka pulled the door wide open and stepped aside to allow her sister to pass.

"Much better, though I can't stay long." She strode in, looking around with a critical eye. Her facial expression changed from neutral to disgusted almost instantly. "I can smell a human's scent in here..." Her eyes widened and she turned to her sister. "Have you...?" she trailed off into a growl.

Moka's eyes widened at the implication. "NO! No! Absolutely not! Of course not! I'm only fifteen!"

"Sixteen now," Akua reminded her. "Do shut the door, dear sister. It woudn't do to invite any unwanteds in here." She walked into the living room and spoke as she did so, "You know we aren't bound by the same rules and customs as humans. I had my first when I was fifteen you know."

Moka ignored that as she closed the door and walked over to where her sister had sat down on the leather couch, making herself comfortable. Moka stood, crossing her arms over her chest. She did not like Akua much, only as much as was necessary and expected out of a sister and nothing more. And while Akua did love her the same way, she allowed herself to forget that love at times and cause her some pain. For what reason she did this, Moka had no idea. But as the eldest of them, she was of course the strongest. Once, she had fought back and that turned out to be a big mistake as it had not ended well for her. Since then she learned to endure her sister's occasional desires to, as she once said, "make things interesting."

"So where are they? What's happened?" Moka asked again.

Akua flashed her a mischievous grin, her red eyes dancing with the knowledge of something important and it made Moka want to know even more. She was clearly enjoying this moment and Moka hated her for it.

"Oh, it's nothing you should concern yourself with, Moka. After all," she paused to look around and wave a hand at her surroundings, "You've decided to forsake your race and live amongst these lesser creatures."

Moka ignored her jab, though her body tightened slightly at that. "It is my birthday, big sister. All I want to know is why you are the only one here." Her tone was even as she held back her growing irritation.

"Dear sister, forgive me." Her tone was anything but remorseful as she glanced out through the window. "There has indeed been an emergency meeting of the Council. For what, I am not sure, but I have been ordered to report back after seeing to greeting you in person on behalf of the family."

Moka could tell she was not telling her everything. Yet it would be unwise to try and push for answers she knew would not come from her.

Akua's gaze settled once again on Moka. "Tell me, sister. Who is this human that you have brought to your home? I at first thought that it was perhaps the lingering smell of several of your prey... but now I know for certain there is only one specific human scent in the air. Is he to be your little juice box of blood? Perhaps even a lover?" She kept going. "Who is this boy? And when can I have a taste?"

Moka was torn between feeling embarrassed and angry. Embarrassed that her sister had thought that she and Tsukune might be lovers of some sort and angry with everything else she had said. She clenched her teeth, her fists balling up tightly and her back stiffening.

"Be calm. We do not want to make a scene, especially in this home. And especially with her. You know what happened last time," said her other self sternly.

"He... he's just a friend." That was all she managed to say, and the way Akua reacted to it made her regret even responding.

Akua lifted an eyebrow and smiled, flashing her teeth. "Friends?" She seemed genuinely surprised at that. "That's... interesting." She fell silent as she seemed to be thinking of something with great intent.

Moka did not like it one bit. "Akua. Big sister, please do not do anything to harm him."

Her eldest sister gave her a rather convincing but fake look of shock. "Why Moka, would you ever think I would be thinking of doing anything to your friend?"

"I know that look, Akua. Please just don't. Don't hurt him." Her hands came up to her chest and intertwined.

Akua didn't acknowledge her plea. "Does this particular human happen to be the one that you've been writing father so much about?"

For her part, Moka did not outwardly react to the revelation that she knew about Tsukune and that she had indeed been writing about him in her letters to her father. She had not really considered the fact that he might actually share some of that information with the family. With the clarity that comes with hindsight, she wished that she could go back and hide the fact that she had met Tsukune from her family. It was a mistake to let them know about him.

"How did you know about that?" asked Moka.

"Did you think that father dear would keep such important information from us, let alone me? Besides, it was easy enough to read the letters on my own if I wanted to. He keeps them in a pile on his desk after all," came the reply, the last bit of it said with a hint of bitterness.

"How does... father feel. About him?"

"Oh, he wonders what exactly your intentions are with the boy, but as usual he lets you do what you want." Again there was the bitterness in her voice. "Speaking of which, it would be a great honor to meet this wonderful young human my little sister Moka seems so very fond of."

Moka's eyes widened ever so slightly. This was going from bad to worse. It was bad enough that Akua knew about Tsukune, but now she wanted to meet with him. And she didn't want the two of them to meet. She didn't want the two of them within ten miles of each other if she could help it.

"I'd rather not introduce him to the family," Moka finally said. Hoping and praying for the impossible: that her sister would not be interested in meddling with her and Tsukune.

Akua gave her a pained look, "But dearest sister, I want to meet him. I promise I won't hurt him." She didn't say the last word she had meant to say, which was "much."

The pink-haired girl hesitated. She knew deep down that her sister was lying, that she was merely saying whatever she needed to in order for her to concede. But even if she still refused, she knew that her sister would involve herself anyway. At least this way Moka would know when they would meet and would be there when they interacted, in case anything untoward occurred.

"Fine." It was said with resignation "But not today. I'll let you know when..." Her voice was steady as she spoke.

Akua shook her head. "Since it's your birthday, I will agree not to meet him today. But I will return sometime this week, and ready or not I will meet this boy."

"But why?" asked Moka. She really was curious to know why her sister would take the time to meet a human, even after saying that she would not harm him which was usually a good enough reason for her to do anything.

The reply was swift. "And why not? Even father is curious about this human. Your letters went from boring and somewhat depressing to sudden glowing and happiness seemingly overnight after meeting this boy. Why wouldn't I be interested in meeting someone who has so clearly caught my dear little sister's attention?"

Her words made Moka regret ever writing home about Tsukune. She had clearly not thought of the implications of doing so. Well, she had thought a little about it before but decided that her father would not bring up such matters with her sisters and would not keep the letters out in the open like that. It was in hindsight merely wishful thinking.

Of course her father would talk about it with Akua. Of course he would be concerned since he isn't exactly the biggest fan of humanity. Of course her family would take an interest in Tsukune, given how much interest she herself had with him. Her first letter after meeting Tsukune was practically gushing about how nice and kind he was and how he was to be her first friend in the human world.

"Cat got your tongue?" asked Akua, another mischievous grin on display.

Shaking herself out of her thoughts, Moka hoped to change the subject. "The Council meeting explains father's absence... but where are Kokoa and Kahlua?"

"Kahlua was sent out on a very important mission for the family business last night. As for Kokoa, she is at home." Akua replied straightforwardly, "You know that father does not allow her to go anywhere without his presence because she is still far too young. Not even for the birthday of his beloved daughter will he make an exception."

"Oh. Right. I remember."

"You can always visit the castle, you know. It would make Kokoa happy." There it was. The confusing thing with her sister.

Moka never quite understood her eldest sister's rapid changes in demeanor. One moment she could be uncaring and devious, the next she could be caring and kind. It was enough to make her wonder if Akua was insane or not.

Akua's voice broke the silence that had settled between them. "Well, would you look at the time! I need to get going, little sister." She stood up and walked over to Moka, wrapping her in a hug, which was returned rather stiffly though Akua did not comment on it.

They walked to the door and Moka opened it for her older sister. Akua took one step out the door before she stopped and whirled around.

"Oh my, I almost forgot to give you my present." She reached into her handbag and pulled out a bottle of what looked to be wine. Moka knew, however, that it was not what it seemed and Akua confirmed it by saying, "This was freshly harvested today." The bottle was handed over to her and Moka held it gently, as if it would break. Even though she had already fed, the fact that this was fresh made her salivate.

"Enjoy," said Akua with a smile. She walked out the front gate and up to the black limousine that waited for her. A few moments later and she was gone.

Moka was still standing in the doorway, the bottle held firmly in her hands.

-xxxxxx-

Tsukune hopped lightly down the stairs and bounced into the living room, a smile plastered onto his face. The steadily brightening light from outside shining through the windows. He was dressed in a nice pair of fitted jeans, a white shirt over which he wore a dark blue polo that was buttoned up to the second highest one, leaving the collar a little looser and showing the white shirt underneath.

"Good morning, mom!"

For her part, Kasumi Aono did not ask him why he was in such high spirits. She already knew the answer, even though Tsukune would not admit his feelings she knew that they were real. Still, she could not help but feel worried about her only son being romantically involved with another girl. This was mostly because of the fact that she had yet to meet her and no matter how many times she asked or reminded Tsukune about this he would quickly change the subject.

It was as if he did not want her to meet this girl. As Kyoko would say, this was highly suspicious. But she kept quiet on the matter. She would wait for now, trusting in her son that he would do the right things and make them proud of the way that she and her husband had raised him. Also partly because she knew that he was quite clueless when it comes to the fairer sex.

"Good morning, Tsukune. What are you doing today?"

Tsukune's smile widened even more than she thought possible at the question. "Today is Moka's birthday!"

"Oh? Well that's wonderful, dear. What are you doing to celebrate?" Matriarch Aono was definitely interested to know.

The brilliant smile faltered a little and there was a nervous laugh as the young boy reached a hand back and rubbed the back of his neck. "Ahh... uhh.. well, I'm actually not sure. But we're hanging out!"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. You should have a plan to celebrate! Isn't this girl special to you?" Kasumi Aono said in disappointment at her son, causing him to look down.

He was still rubbing the back of his neck. "Well, if you put it that way... yeah, she's pretty special to me. But it's not like she's my girlfriend or anything!"

Oh Tsukune my boy, you are so clueless sometimes... she thought as she continued to cook breakfast. If only his father, Koji, were more present in his life, she thought. Even though it would have been perfect for both her and her husband to be there for their son and raise him together properly, it was not meant to be that way. Similar to most Japanese families, the father was the main breadwinner of the family and thus spent the majority of his time at work. It was the mother's duty to care for household and even more importantly the children.

"Well, do you want my advice?" She paused to look at him and their gazes met. He gave her a meek nod.

"Girlfriend or not, she is special to you and you two have planned to spend at least some part of today together. I am sure she is expecting you to come up with activities to do to entertain her."

Tsukune nodded, a look of realization and determination coming to his face. "Right!" His fist came up to his face, as if in triumph. An instant later he was scratching his head, looking lost. "But... but what should we do?"

Sighing, Kasumi continued with her cooking. Her son reallyneeded help with the ladies. "Do something that you think she'd like. You should know her well enough by now," and they really should since they seemed to have spent much of the last two months in each other's company. "And for the record, you are not leaving this house until you decide on things to do and run it by me for approval."

Tsukune's protests were ignored.

Author's notes: The next chapter will cover the birthday, a nice long chapter... but beware the calm before the storm.

On another note, I will be increasingly busier as time goes on. I will try to write as much as I can whenever I find the time. I appreciate your patience and I hope you will continue to follow and read this story as we move forward.