[Haruhi's POV]
"Azu-nee? You have been awfully distant for the past few days," I tugged at her hand.
"Oh, sorry about that Haru-chan," she smiled at me.
"It's ok," I smiled at her. Seriously, what kind of major fight took place while I was asleep?
"Ah, drat how can I still be sleepy?" I stretched.
"Hmm, I know…you tend to sleep all the time!" Azumi poked me in my bellybutton.
"Ngh! Nee-chan, that's my weak spot~~~!" I whine.
A silence followed.
Azumi high-fived herself, "Haru-chan's weak spot is her bellybutton, recorded down!"
"Darn it!" I facepalmed myself.
"Hmm? Found out what?" Mizumi was coming in with breakfast, "Oh, eat your breakfast, and all of it."
I groaned at the word of 'all'. I typically don't have a big appetite.
"Oh, nothing," I hurriedly said. I dove into the breakfast to make sure she doesn't have any suspicions.
But she knows how much I am a fussy eater, so she raises her eyebrows, and asks Azumi, "You found out what?"
"Her weak spot," she grinned.
"And that is…?" Mizumi was starting to grin as well.
"Azu-nee!" I whined.
"Her belly button," Azumi stuck a triumphant grin at me.
"Is that true?" Mizumi shot a look of pure amusement to me.
"…yes…" I curled into teeny tiny ball. Drat.
"Aww, I can't know that until I try…" Mizumi smirked.
Azumi nodded.
Then a small finger hit my weak spot again and I yelped and doubled again. That was my ONLY weak spot.
"Theory confirmed," Mizumi and Azumi laughed and high-fived.
Before I could change into some random comfortable clothing, Azumi goes to the frilly dress section and gets a lacy blue sundress that has a neckline (kind of like a turtleneck), sleeveless, zipper running down the back, and reaches my knees.
With that, she brings out a white scarf, and flats. "Put 'em on," she smiles at me.
Yeah it was one of the numerous dresses and clothing articles that I received from the mother as a 'gift' in place of my lack of fashion.
I groan. Another day of dressup? And I wanted a pixie cut a week ago and Azu-nee said no.
"Aww," I pout as I go to change into the articles of clothing.
I come out, and Mizumi put her hands to her cheek and said, "Aww! Azumi's fashion eye is fabulous! Haruhi you are so cute!"
I sweatdrop. "Thanks," I nervously laugh, tugging annoyingly at my turtleneck.
Then I made a face, "And a pixie isn't considered cute and girly?"
"But I love your long hair!" Azu-nee pouted and shed fake tears.
"Long, twisted, and annoying," I muttered. My hair is silky, that is because Azu-nee doesn't mind taking forever to untangle it.
I want a cute cut like her, but for vampires, she says, growing hair takes eternity. So when she saw I had long hair, she went into a "motherly-mode" and objected me getting a haircut.
"Stop pulling at your collar. It ruins the beauty of it," Azu-nee snatched my hands away from the tight turtleneck collar.
I whine. This dress looks pretty, but hurts. Just like what the quote says, fashion hurts.
This is exactly why I wear cargo shorts and a tee because it is comfy and because dad doesn't spend any money on me.
I smile warmly at Azu-nee and said, "But I like this dress. I never wore such dresses and clothes in my life."
"Surely your dad spoiled you before your mom died?" she raised an eyebrow.
"But I was four, remember? Yeah I wore little dresses, but when she died he threw them out," I explained, matter-of-fact.
Her face darkened at the last sentence I said. This is bad, so I ask her, "Azu-nee? Did I say something wrong?"
She tried her best to smile, but it wasn't convincing enough. "Yes, Haruhi, I am fine."
I was clueless whether I should play along, or pester her further. But I grew attached to her, so I don't want to do anything or say anything that might make her feel slightly discomforted.
"If you say so," I try to smile my brightest, but I had a hit of sadness in it.
Azumi sadly smiled and hugged me.
"Well! Let's go downstairs, shall we?" Mizumi cheered.
"So much for my dream as a lawyer," I muttered to myself.
We were climbing down the stairs.
"Hmm, what?" Azumi darted an eye at me.
"I don't think I will be able to become a lawyer like mother like I always wanted to," I glumly said. And I was in the top of my class.
Stupid scholarships.
"Aww, but you seem like one to me," she pinched my cheek, as we were at the bottom of the staircase.
The whole air down there seemed tense, even Azumi tensed up a little bit, but she put her back to Hikaru and Kaoru and grinned at me as if those twins were never there.
"Gee, thanks," I giggle at her.
"Did you eat anything, nee-chan?" I poke her cheek.
"Yep! Well it is a nice day outside, why don't you go? I will come later outside with you, ok?" she forced on a smile, and it made me wonder… what happened?
[Azumi's POV]
I went to the window next to the door, and watched Haruhi walk into the garden and admire everything in her path: every rose, flower, butterfly and tree.
I tensed up when I heard soft footsteps.
Using my vampire sense of touch, as being a vampire sharpened my sense by tenfold, we were sharper than humans incomparably.
"Don't touch me," I don't know whether it was Hikaru or Kaoru but I don't even care. I don't want them hurting Haruhi.
"Azumi, it's me, Azumi," he spoke, "Hikaru."
"So?" I scoffed.
"Please, honey, don't give me the cold shoulder," Hikaru begged me.
Behind from idiot number one was idiot number 2. I scoffed and kept my back to them.
"No way," I scowled.
"Why not?" Hikaru came beside me, but I will not look at him even if I have to kill myself.
"Because now Haruhi has to become a vampire, and I don't know if she wants to become one," tears were falling but I hastily wiped them away.
Hikaru caught my wrist and spun me around to see him. "And what is so wrong with being one of us?"
"What if she doesn't want to become one of us?" I drawled the question.
Hikaru brought my hand to his mouth and upturned it so that my wrist was pointed towards his mouth.
"You never know, dear," he pointed the tip of his fangs to my wrist.
The moment he could've sunk them in was the moment I snatched my hand away from his death grip on my wrist. For a vampire and a girl, I was stronger than others my kind and age.
"No way, not now, not ever if I see Haruhi hurt," I snapped at him, ice filling the room due to my icy demeanor.
I broke it when my anger snapped and the ice shards fell everywhere, scratching Hikaru and Kaoru several times.
"I never told you this, but Haruhi reminds me of my sister," I coldly said. My hair was flying in disarray due to the high winds in the room, and my eyes which were normally cyan color were glowing red.
"W-what? You never told me of a sister!" Kaoru who was behind Hikaru, yelled.
"I never did, but that was because of my little sister's death, I became so dark, so closed off. She had big brown eyes, and shoulder length brown hair, and the age of 15. She died because another vampire drank all her blood. And guess who it was? It was a vampire she fell in love with," I coldly smiled.
Their eyes grew big.
"He didn't love her, and left her corpse to shatter into a thousand pieces after his thirst was quenched. And I never smiled after Mitsuya died," I icily continued.
Azu-nee!
Azu-nee!
Azu-nee, if you love somebody, then you will love him for his good personality and qualities rather than looks or money.
I will love you forever, Azu-nee.
Find someone to love, as I wasn't able to.
I will always be with you. Somehow I will be able to meet you physically. Maybe in my next life!
Please don't stop smiling for me, Azu-nee…
Smile for me…
Tears dripped out of my eyes, but they still glowed and ice shards stopped flying throughout the room and the wind died down.
Finally my eyes became cyan color again, but I was crying silently.
"Haruhi is my Mitsuya. She is my light; she is as innocent, kind, naïve, carefree, understanding, and pure as her. When I met her, I felt that Mitsuya had come back to me," I said.
My voice fell faint.
"I talked to her and spent time to her, and she acted in every way like her," I continued.
They stayed silent.
"So if my sister came back to me in the form of human, do you think I will let you harm her? Over my dead body will I let you?" I screamed, and a burst of ice hit them.
My black, black heart…
On that snowy day, I lost you…but why do I feel that you are somehow back?
Do you know how terrified I was to find now where? I could only see your blood heavily stain the snow and then it hit me.
You left me, Mitsuya.
But you came back as Haruhi. And I will protect you.
I will protect you with all my life,
Haruhi Fujioka.
"Why…am I a vampire?" I drawled on my queston, "Because one killed her, one killed her!"
Hikaru tried to hug me.
"Get away from me, whichever one you are! But do know this, lay one finger of harm on her and I am leaving!" I ran down the steps.
I am so scared.
I am so terrified.
If I lose Haruhi, then I will kill myself.
I don't know what I will be do without her, and without Haruhi, I might as well die.
I run down the stairs and out the doors to the garden.
A little tiny stone table and stone seats were in the middle of the rose garden.
I saw Haruhi petting a white bunny, laughing every time the bunny rolled over from its belly to its back for scratching intervals.
"Azu-nee?" her face was alarmed.
I smiled, "W-what?" my voice HAD to falter.
"You're crying, your hands are covered in scratches, and your hair is disheveled. What happened?" she asked bluntly. Just like Mitsuya, the bluntest girl of all.
"I-I j-just h-have to l-lick it and it will get better," I explained. It is how we vampires heal ourselves, and it is disgusting, really.
She stared at me as if she was considering I was lying, and Mitsuya always saw through was to cover up bad things.
"If you say so, but are you ok?" Haruhi's big brown eyes saw right through me.
I stepped forward and did something shocking.
I grabbed her into a tight hug, pressing her against me.
"I'm sorry, but you remind me of someone, and you brought out a nature I thought I would never experience," I sobbed.
She wrapped her hands around me in complete understanding.
"I understand, Azu-nee, I will always be with you," she vowed to me.
My eyes widened.
I will always be with you…
I hugged her even tightly.
"Thank you," I whispered, "thank you."
And now, for the first time in ages, I am complete…
[Kaoru's POV]
"Oh, my goodness…THANKS A LOT KAORU!" Hikaru was posing another tantrum.
I sigh in frustration. My fangs have been throbbing, an obvious indication of need in her blood.
Every day I see that girl, the throbbing is becoming worse and worse and worse and painful each time the throbbing continues.
I am using painkillers to subside The Thirst.
If it gets so bad, then I might have to mix blood tablets with water and drink it.
"Now she is thinking you or I am going to dislocate that girl's shoulder or something and she made a protective boundary around the girl and now our marriage is in stake? Oh what did I do to deserve this?" Hikaru childishly dropped to the floor.
My breathing was becoming raspy.
"And what should I do? It won't subside," I clutched my throat in pain.
"Oh, I know!" he sarcastically pumped a fist in the air.
I gave him a look contorted in pain, weak with anger because I am not trying to play him around for advice.
His eyes softened, but they held solemnity. I think the next thing he is going to tell me isn't something I will like hearing.
"You can try subsiding the pain with painkillers, blood tablets, wine, and blood samples from the blood bank, but you will eventually crave for her so much…" he started off.
I gulped. I knew where this is going.
"You love her so much…" he drawled.
I was silent.
"The day will come when you have to bite her to quench your Thirst," he finished.
And then realization hit on me like a ton of bricks falling from the sky.
What have you done?
Why have you done this?
What have you done to me, Haruhi Fujioka?