As usual , I want to thank those who reviewed , in particular :
Lady - Silverkiss , turtlerad17 and JupiterLover.
AN UNWELCOME VISITOR FROM THE PAST
Four people went down a dark tunnel . Shido and Yayoi , each wielding a gun , were ahead while
Riho was by Megumi ' s side . Yayoi took out a flashlight and shined upon the gloom . Guni
had caught up with them . Megumi found herself intrigued by these people . She was rather surprised
at Riho , who seemed to her rather composed beyond her years .
" Nothing so far , " Yayoi said . " I ' ll tell you one thing . This Taki had better be here or else
I ' ll be extremely upset for wasting my time . "
" You 're upset ? " Guni asked . " What about me ? I mean , I ' m not too keen on cramped tunnels if
you catch my drift . "
Then Shido said , " Quiet , everybody . I think I heard something . "
It was then that a low growling was heard . What leapt ahead of them could barely be described as
human .
" Taki ? " A concerned Megumi asked . " Is that you ? "
" Lady , " Shido said , " I don't think that 's your boyfriend anymore . "
" True , " Riho replied , " a nightbreed has all but taken him over . " As Riho bit her finger to
generate a blood sword , Megumi then said , " I can't believe that ! I know my Taki is in there ! "
While Riho faced down the creature , Megumi suddenly shoved Yayoi away , then she snatched
Shido ' s gun .
" Hey ! " An astonished Shido yelled out before Megumi fired the gun . The silver - jacketed bullet
hit Riho in the shoulder .
" Don't move , any of you ! " Megumi exclaimed . " Taki ! It 's me , Megumi ! "
At the sound of Megumi ' s voice , the ' breed retreated within Taki , who then regained his human
features . " Me . . . Megu . . . Me . . . gumi ? " He asked .
Megumi went to support him and they both walked away into the shadows . Shido went to where
Riho was .
" Sheesh , " Guni said as Riho clutched her bleeding shoulder, " that ' s a nasty wound . " Then Shido
asked , " Are you okay , Riho ? "
" I ' ll recover , " she replied. " What about Yayoi ? "
" I ' m all right , " answered Yayoi .
" Well , in any case , " Shido said , " we lost track of those two . They could be anywhere by now ."
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It took a while for the bullet hole in Riho ' s shoulder to heal . Fortunately for her , this was not
like the wounds inflicted on her by that shadow mass , which required quantities of blood for
her to heal,blood which first Yayoi and then Shido provided . Now Riho was on the rooftop after
nightfall pondering what to do next while Shido and Yayoi were in the office .
" Well , my little one , " a familiar voice was heard , " we have a lot to talk about . "
Riho turned and was surprised to see Cain standing not far away .
" What do you want from me , Cain ? " She asked .
" For one thing , my dear Riho , you should tell your friend , the private investigator , to stay out of
this case . "
It was then that Yayoi showed up . " What the ? " She called out as she took out her gun .
" Hold it , Yayoi , " Riho said . Then Cain said , " A wise move on your part , my dear . Anyway , I
came to tell you that the Golden Dawn is at hand soon and I want you by my side to witness this ."
" Do you think I ' m interested in this Golden Dawn of yours ? " Riho asked .
Then Cain replied , " You should be , my dear girl . " After that , he vanished into the night sky .
Yayoi went to Riho and asked , " That was Cain , right ? "
" Yes , Yayoi , " she replied , " the one who turned me into what I am now . The one who holds my
memories of my past life . "
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While all this was going on , Shido was at his desk , where Guni sat .
" Guni , you ' ve known Riho for a long time , haven ' t you ? " Shido asked , to which Guni replied ,
" I certainly have . I must say , Shido , I may have given you a hard time before , but you ' re
definitely one of the good ones . So , what ' s on your mind ? "
" See , " Shido started , " there's so much I don 't know about her . So much . . . " Guni then said,
" There isn't much she knows about herself . You see , after she left this guy Cain , he took her
memories of her life before she met Cain . " Shido then asked , " Cain ? "
" A vampire . A real nasty one too , " Guni replied .
" Man , " Shido said , " that ' s rough . To not know who your parents were or even what your real
name is . " Guni watched Shido with interest .
" Anything the matter ? " He asked her .
" Shido , do you have . . . feelings for Riho ? "Guni asked .
They were both silent for a moment . Then Shido exhaled before saying , " You . . . you ' ll
probably think I ' m crazy , but I . . . I guess so . . . and not just in a big brotherly way either . I
mean , I realize she ' s not as young as she looks but . . . I guess most people would . . . I don't
know . . . think I was , er , robbng the cradle or something . . . I mean , it 's not something I could
admit without sounding like some sort of creep or anything , after all , I realize there ' s an age
difference between us , but . . . "
" Whoa there ! " Guni replied . " There 's an age difference all right , but it ' s not what most folks
would think . Shido , as you may or may not know , vampires live for an extremely long time , if
not forever . Do you know how old Riho is ? She ' s over a hundred and forty years old . Give or
take a couple of decades . "
" Hoo boy , " Shido replied as he slumped into his chair, " I knew she was older than she looked . I
just didn ' t realize by how much . " Guni then said , " Shido , you ' ll probably grow old and you ' ll
definitely die . After all , you ' re only human . Whereas Riho will live on and on , forever stuck in
the body of a young girl , so it ' s not fair for her to love you only to lose you to age and death .
She , more than anyone else realizes that ."
But Shido did not seem to hear this , for he said , " After I first met her , I thought that she ' d
make a nice wife if only she wasn 't too young for me . I never realized that I was the one who was
too young for her . "
Shido then stared ahead , wondering what to make of all that he had heard .
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Dawn had come , and Megumi and Taki were preparing to leave the apartment where they had
been holed up .
" Well , Megumi , " he said , " I think we better go . No telling when that thing inside me will come
out . "
" As long as you ' re all right , Taki. That ' s all that matters , " Megumi said .
