The sun moved across the sky, keeping the terrors of the night at bay. The citizens of Tokyo went about their busy lives, ignorant of the real dangers waiting in the dark.

Night came over the city like a thick blanket. Megumi woke up to the smell of rotting garbage. For a moment she had forgotten where she was. When something crawled across her leg she miraculously levitated out of the dumpster. Unable to hold it in any longer she screamed. Her clothes were stained and stunk of decay and her hair was matted with fluid leaking from the garbage bags.

The noise caused a few people walking by the alley entrance to jump. This early in the night the main roads were congested with people again. A man stopped, squinting to see down the dark alleyway. Megumi didn't have time to waste. She moved further into the alley just as the man started to approach her. He called after her but never pursued. While running down another alley she remembered Atsuo. Was he still where she left him? If someone had found him, or if he had risen... there was nothing she could do about it. Not now. Finding her way back to Nanako's apartment took priority.

Rounding a corner she made a break for a side street. Cautiously, she stepped onto the sidewalk without drawing any suspicion. There were less people here. So began her search for Nanako's apartment building. People largely ignored her aside from the occasional sneer at her disgusting appearance. Walking up and down the main streets she tried to recall the path they took to the club. If only she had bothered to remember the names of the streets.

Hours passed. She entered three different rectangle shaped apartment buildings to no avail. There were at least a dozen more identical housing units in the area. Don't panic yet. Should I bite someone else and start over? Any of her club friends would make a good candidate. Finding them would be just as, if not more, difficult than Nanako's apartment. She doubted they visited the club every night.

The city was starting to lose it's appeal. In Sotaba, it was impossible to get lost. Every road led into the center of town. Even so, the people there were friendly enough to point you in the right direction. Although it would come at a price. They'd prod you with questions, about your clothes, where you're going, where you've been, what are your parents doing? Stupid questions all so they could gossip behind your back. In the city however, the people were colder. They didn't want to be bothered, they had things to do and didn't have time for small town girls.

For a time she mindlessly walked the streets. Her mind wandered, thinking about the future. Could she still be a fashion model in this state of existence? How can she explain not being able to do photo-shoots in the daylight? When was the last time I truly saw the sun? Only the agonizing visual of sunrise and sunset. No more sunny days at the beach for me. These thoughts had crossed her mind before but she had other concerns at the time like keeping the Kirishiki family happy. Not to mention watching over Yuki.

Moving further away from the downtown area. Another apartment building lay ahead with an attached parking garage. The parking garage! She remembered now. None of the other apartments had an attached structure. All of the weariness left her body as she leapt into a dead sprint. Once inside she searched for Nanako's car. A Mitsubishi Lancer. What color was it? Black? There were four Lancers in the garage of various colors. Regardless, this had to be it. She took the elevator up to the fortieth floor. The short red carpet and white walls were just as she remembered.

Nanako's door was in the center of the hall. Megumi was giddy with relief. Finally she could relax. She grabbed the door knob but it wouldn't turn. Nanako locked her out and she forgot to take a key. After everything, Megumi could only think of one thing to say, "Shit."

Kicking the door in crossed her mind. Pounding on the door until Nanako answered was another option. No need to cause a scene yet. First she checked for a spare key under the welcome mat. She was pleased to find one in such an obvious place. "Idiot," she muttered.

Letting herself in, she was surprised to see the lights were off. Megumi looked in the bedroom and found the bed empty. She called out, "Nanako?" No answer. She went from room to room. The girl was gone. Had she fallen out of her spell? Did she die? No, I barely took any blood from her. Maybe she left to run some errands. Megumi didn't know what to do next. Staying here might be dangerous if Nanako's thinking for herself again. Going back out on the street so soon didn't appeal to her either.

Screw it. Megumi decided a hot bath was in order. She stripped down, tossing the bloodied clothes near the laundry room door. While waiting for the tub to fill, she posed in front of the bathroom mirror. In that instance she pictured herself as a model, striking various poses. The fantasy reestablished her confidence. I can be a model, with a thriving nightlife.

The hot water felt good against her cold skin. The heat penetrated down to her bones. It gave her a similar sensation to sucking someone's blood. Using a scrubby, she cleansed the dried blood and dirt on her forearm. Atsuo's face appeared in her mind. Hopefully he was rotting underneath all of that garbage. She felt a little guilty for thinking that way, but that's life for a shiki. Kill or be killed. It wasn't her fault, not really, what was she supposed to do? Starve? As if...

Once she was clean, Megumi leaned back in the tub and closed her eyes. She allowed herself to slide underneath the water. Everything became very quiet. With no need to breath she wondered just how long she could stay underwater. Forever? For half an hour she stayed under in a zen like state. All of her fears were released. Nothing could touch her. The tranquil floating feeling of being underwater made her want to sleep. At last she broke the surface feeling rejuvenated.

The smell of a dead animal filled the air. Megumi gagged. This building must be full of rats. Disgusted, she emptied the tub and dried herself off.

In the bedroom she was presented with Nanako's challenging wardrobe. Boring, plain, unsexy. She made do with shorts and a t-shirt and skipped the bra. I'm not going anywhere tonight anyway. In the living room she turned on the TV and plopped down on the futon. Flipping through the channels, she recognized the word Sotaba on one of the news stations. They were talking about the fire.

The station reported the incident as a forest fire gone out of control. Many of the town's residents, especially the elderly, were caught off guard. The news anchors were puzzled as to why the death count was so high.

The topic made Megumi uncomfortable. All she wanted to do was forget Sotoba and the jerks who lived there. She flipped over to a cooking channel. The hostess was making onigiri with a pork filling. Megumi's mom used to make them for her school lunch. Thinking about her parents made her eye twitch. If they were still alive, would they take her back? Or would they heartlessly kill her for being a shiki? The very idea of being killed by her own parents made Megumi choke up.

She cleared her throat and swallowed her sadness. There was no room for regret. Not if she was going to survive in this new form. A Nintendo Wii sat by the TV. Megumi was never interested in video games but she was willing to try anything to get her conscience to shut up. The user interface was clunky and handling the Wii-mote took some getting used to. A bowling game was already loaded in the console. For a time she fumbled with the controls, throwing gutter balls and wild pitches. On several occasions the game made her want to snap the Wii-mote in half but something kept driving her. A need to win.

Time flew by as her skills improved. After making a few strikes she tried a different game, boxing. The game proved to be a great stress reliever as she pummeled one opponent after another. Satisfied with her own performance, she turned the system off. A cat themed clock on the wall read one thirty AM. Nanako still hadn't returned home.

Megumi spotted Nanako's laptop on the futon. After powering it up she was relieved to see there was no login screen. Megumi shook her head. "That girl is far too trusting."

Once online, she started researching modeling agencies in the Tokyo area. Some were for high fashion, most were for common retailers, and a few were more 'pornographic' in nature. The thought made Megumi grin but she was far too beautiful for that kind of work. She could see herself on the billboards of Tokyo, telling women what to wear and setting the latest fashion trend. The fantasy made her giggle uncontrollably.

The night was spent in front of the laptop, taking notes on different fashion lines. She had so many ideas for dresses and skirts and how to pair them with accessories. To get in the business of fashion she needed to make a portfolio to shop around. First she had to buy some proper clothes and take pictures. Unfortunately being able to buy said clothes depended upon Nanako's bank account. It was five AM now. Megumi punched a cushion and yelled, "Where is she?"

Putting the laptop aside she searched the apartment for Nanako again. Maybe she came in without her noticing. The bedroom was still empty. No one in the bathroom. The sky was starting to lighten and she felt sleepy. Nanako's whereabouts weighed heavily on Megumi's mind. Does she normally disappear like this? Maybe she'll be back tomorrow night. What if she comes back when I'm asleep? I'd be so vulnerable...

It was too late to go anywhere else. Megumi went to the bed and slid under the covers. For the first time she felt truly alone. She missed her parents. Sure, they were lame but they were her family. The only people who cared about her despite her flaws. The person she was when she was 'alive' felt so far away. It was as though she was remembering someone else's life. This thing she had become was much more callous and cruel. There was a ball of hate in her stomach and at times there was little she could do to contain it.

The pent up emotions overflowed at last as she wept into the pillow. She mourned for her old self, for her parents, and for the people she pushed away. Megumi let it all out until there were no more regrets. She clenched her fist to her chest silently making a promise to herself to create a better future. No one will stand in her way. With her mind clear, she fell asleep.

The bedroom was eerily silent save for the soft ticking of an alarm clock on the night stand. Several minutes passed, no sound, no movement. An hour passed, no sound, no movement. Megumi must be in a deep sleep.

The closet door creaked open. The noise seemed ten times louder than it was. Nanako stepped forward, holding a stake and hammer tightly in her sweaty hands. The strange bite on her neck, the faint memory of the attack, she had to be a vampire. How can I be sure? This is insane. Nanako held her breath as she approached the bed. It was now or never...

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A/N: I hope you enjoyed the chapter and I'm sorry about the cliff hangar, it's safe to assume the story doesn't end here ;)