Finally. After so much tribulations and blood shed, all of the school projects are done and winter break is up. God, so much cramming and rushing and money spending. Seems to me that every ending of a term, everything (projects and home works and research paper and plates!) would pile up to torture us. ESPECIALLY IF YOU HAVE A TEACHER LIKE JIN-JIN TO TORTURE YOU!

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Intuition is one of the girl's weapons. Because their instinct tells correct more often than not.

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I tossed and turned around. My head is a perfect mess and my arm is numb. No pain seeped in my injured arm, and though it is a bit helping me of agony, the uneasiness I feel for not feeling anything is still uncomfortable over me. With another deep sigh, I let my body sprawled across my bed, not bothering even if I was only wearing a too little cloth of a nighties. Besides, I got to talk with guys with only wearing this much, what's there to be embarrassed about? There was no one inside my room in the first place.

The ceiling has gotten quite interesting to me it seems as I stared at it quite blankly for a while. Ruka and Koko walked me back to my room as silent as they could possibly get. In the way, I thought about Hotaru. Should I go tell her what happened? She is my best friend after all. Those thoughts bothered me, but in the end, I decided not to tell her. At least not yet.

So much has happened in only a few days, and I couldn't keep at it. My mind couldn't properly digest what Ruka and Koko has said, nor the fact that I just had a face-off with a talking wolf and death itself, never mind the 'history' – as what Koko has put it – they have said regarding me.

An heir of the moon, they told me. Who would believe such story? I have lived my life normally –if you disregard the fact that I can read minds– and never have I experienced something like this. I have heard of different Psycho-powers, and as such I figured maybe powers really do exist in one way or another. But never have I heard of a talking wolf, a true superman out of the movie and in realm –if adrenaline rush is exempted, and a ridiculous story of a human being inheriting the powers of the moon.

Besides, just what the hell, 'power of the moon'? How did they expect me to believe such crap?

Wolves, Moon, vampires.

Vampires. I tried to look it up in the internet earlier and I just found myths and rumours. But those are just that, rumours. Well, aside from a true story of a certain someone bathing in maiden's blood to keep her youth. But if that's a vampire is all about, then I could say that monstrosity really does live inside every person's heart. A monster driven by greed and desires and selfishness. If that's all there is to it, then every person has the capability of turning into a vampire!

I groaned in displeasure.

Whatever. There is just one thing I have in mind which I know is true: I got a brief greetings with father Death. Sure, they got me convinced that I am in fact, in danger, but that is only due to the encounter with the wolves as they seemed to be searching for me. My mind refused to think that they were looking for me because of the moon, my mind just won't. I found myself desperately looking for other options as to why those wolves hunted me, and the Alpha had hurt me.

But try as I might to think of a reason, there was just none. I don't know any wolves or people who breeds wolves whom I got acquainted with and I have angered accidentally or not. I couldn't think of any valid reasons at all as to why they'd attack me, except what Ruka has told me (if it is true, which I refuse to even consider.)

The existence itself of those wolves have become bleak now. As a matter of fact, when I think about the encounters now makes it feel like a distant memory. Now that I'm calm, this voice inside my head says 'impossible' over and over, making me think again if any of it really happened. Doubts have clouded my mind, but then again, I would be convinced otherwise of my injured arm. But the injury doesn't clearly support the talking wolf. Sure, they have attacked me, but what if they didn't really talk? What if it was all a pigment of my imagination?.

I laid there in silence as I tried to rid my mind of any thoughts.

That was when another stream of nightmare bit me. I clutched my head tight, my default reaction. "Shut up…"

With all my might, I looked up at my bedside table and lanced at the clock. 1:23 am. The hour when people usually have their greatest nightmares. Not that they could even remember it after they wake up.

You're not wanted. Why would they give a damn when they already have their first-born son?

It's your fault… you shouldn't have lived.

your father killed her…

she doesn't want you…

pay for your father's sin…

why did you leave me…?

you're a trapped bird here…

a doll…

no choice…

isn't right…

liar…

Different images flashed before my eyes, different sounds, different voices. And a static flowed all over me.

"Shut up… shut up. Shut up!"

Stop. I don't want this. Why me? What have I done to deserve this kind of curse…?

But no matter how much I struggle or ask or complain, there's just no taking it back since I don't even know where this came from. No matter how much I cry at night, no matter how much tears have shed, I would still be me – a girl who can read minds.

I laid still, letting the pain make its way to me. Hm. It's not like I could do much anyway. So I just laid there, feeling hot streaks of wetness on my face. I stared at the ceiling blankly, and after quite some time, I found myself wondering what the hell happened as the images and sound and everything just faded into nothingness and silence.

I felt my eyebrow coiled in confusion. Why did it stop? Then, my question was answered when a voice echoed throughout my room from the balcony.

"That's quite a position for a lady." A low, husky voice. I know that voice quite well, and I couldn't believe why I even wondered why everything came to silence. Of course it's him. It can only be him.

"…What are you doing here?" I whispered against the throbbing pain of my head.

Another kind of silence answered me, and I almost would have thought he already left if not for the silence he ensues with his presence. Knowing he wouldn't answer anytime soon, I figured it be best to stand up and walk to him. Not because of anything, but just for the sake of being polite. We are not that close for me to talk to him while lying on my bed. And with people not in close terms to talk like that is quite rude – my mother would tell me as a young girl.

I eyed him suspiciously when I met him face to face standing by the open door leading towards the balcony. His hair is back to normal and so are his eyes. Those charming bloody eyes has come to meet me again. I couldn't help but think how unfair it is for him to look just as beautiful whether red or golden eyes while there are so many out there who have to put in extra effort to look lovely. And he, with his unruly layered raven locks frame his face just wonderfully.

"You're back to normal." And that was all I could stupidly say when I should have reprimanded him of coming to a girl's room in the middle of the night.

He scoffed and looked away, to anywhere but me. "You don't know what is normal."

I thought about it. Oh, yeah, he's a 'vampire' isn't he. What a joke. I rolled my eyes at him, wanting to pass on the hint that I do not believe any of those nonsense his friends have said; and he looked at me with raised brows as he received and understood my hint. "Why are you here?"

He looked at me sceptically for a moment and then he let his eyes stray outside. I waited for his answer, clearly curious as to why he really is here. He wouldn't have come here without a reason, would he?

My eyes wandered out to where he was looking, searching for whatever it is that has caught his attention and made him float in immense thought. The outside remains the same as before I went out for a walk some hours earlier. It has the same beauty, an eerily beauty. And it hasn't faded one bit even after the chase of those… wolves. The beauty of the night remained even after the mysterious horror it has presented.

"…sorry." Natsume's words rang a bell inside my head, reminding me that he's still there. I might have dozed off a little bit, I thought I heard him say 'sorry'.

"What?"

He frowned, obviously annoyed to repeat his already spoken words. "I said… I'm sorry. About earlier." Every word he spoke, his voice died down, announcing his embarrassment of asking for apology.

I looked at him in amusement, wondering if this is the first time he has apologized to someone. Because clearly, he looks like he didn't know what word to use or how to construct the apology sentence. "Whatever for?"

Those crimson orbs flashed with irritation, but it was gone in a blink of my eye. Natsume leaned down on the stoned rail and secretly huffed. "…I shouldn't have lashed out on you… sorry…"

I raised my brow.

"But you're still one hell of a stupid idiot." He looked at me, his face crumpled in anger – anger that was not directed at me. "You shouldn't have stopped running. What if I was fuckin' late for even a second?"

I studied his face for a while, thinking. He wasn't mad at me, that I'm sure. And somehow, the worry evident in his eye made something in my stomach flip and bubble. Surely it's because it's the first time someone is worried about me – aside from my family and best friend. It gave me a warm feeling, and I just couldn't help but laugh.

"What're you laughing at, moron?"

My eyes twitched. "I'll let that slide for now, retard. Since I'm feeling good and all."

"You've got a bloody injured arm and you feel good. Talk about strange." I punched him playfully on the shoulder with my good arm.

"Stupid, that's not it." I frowned, but as of now, I guess nothing can keep me from being happy. A smile made its way on my face, and I did nothing to prevent it. I just stupidly smiled at him. "Thanks."

Natsume looked at me with his eyes full of wonderment. "Are you the same girl squirming in pain a little earlier?"

I frowned again. Rely on him to ruin the atmosphere. "Of course it's still me. What's wrong with being in pain earlier and be happy now?"

"Hm. Let me guess. Ah, right, because it's weird no matter who sees you switching from one mood to another. Yeah. Great."

I huffed. "Well, sorry if your presence made me happy."

"…"

My eyes widened in realization. What I said just now… it didn't sound right, did it. Somehow, somehow… it sounded like something to be embarrassed about. Like a confession or something. I shut my eyes tight, not wanting to even look at Natsume's reaction. As of now, there is nothing more I would like to happen than a hole to open up and eat me alive. Trust me to make a fool out of myself.

The silence of the night didn't really help me from repressing the thunderous noise that is my heartbeat; and I prayed he wouldn't hear.

"You can read minds, can't you?" I looked at him in surprise. Somehow, his words didn't sound like a question. It sounded like he was stating a fact. "Well, I can see the past, so it's nothing to be fretting about. And there are still more I can do."

My mind turned blank. No thoughts in process, not until a few good seconds have passed then I blurted out: "Can you see my past?"

Natsume looked thoughtfully at me, as if thinking of something. And this is one of the time when I actually wanted to know what he was thinking about. "I can't."

I raised a brow.

His eyes wandered off to the landscape again, but continued nevertheless. "For some reason, I can't see your past no matter how much I try."

I frowned. Is that a good thing or what? "How can that be?"

He shrugged. "Dunno. Have you heard that a mirror or a doll can record its master's feelings? That's true, but not just them. Everything in existence has its memory. And I can see them." He looked at me again. "But not yours."

"Mine?"

"I can find out what you did and where you went to some extent because of the matter surrounding you; even your comb can give me what I want to know; but that's its memory. I can't see yours."

So he knew that I stopped running back then through my clothes or something? That certainly is… strange. Not that I'm better off since I can read minds and all, but, still, he can see everything. "Wouldn't that be hard on you? You can see what happened in an area if you touch a grass or a tree or a desk. Doesn't that mean that wherever you go you're being drowned by a sea of past?"

He looked at me amusedly, as if I just stated something he hasn't expected to come from me. "Hm. You're partly right. But I can somehow control it to some extent so those unnecessary things would be filtered out. But a strong memory is hard to ignore, which is why you're somewhat useful."

What? "Me? How can I be of use?"

The guy looked away, but I still stared at him in surprise. "You keep me in check."

And that was all I needed to hear to make my hairs raise to no end. It felt like I was just shocked with a mild volts of electricity. His presence keeps me in check; mine him. Would there be any more unbelievable coincidence like this? "Well, your presence is a controlling device to me itself." I whispered, but he heard it still.

"Hn."

"Wait, you told me you can still do more." Okay, this is all curiosity now. And if you have noticed it by now, I get curious in every little thing, which is why I'm accident prone.

Natsume was silent for a while, as if weighing if he could tell me or not, but he told me anyway. "I'm a pureblood. I can make people do what I want. Every pureblood can."

My eyes widened in surprise. "So that's why Koko and Luna couldn't even retaliate when you snarled at them when you first came here!" I couldn't help but talk excitedly as the mysteries when I first met him has started to be solved; when he made Koko move and occupied the poor guy's seat, and when he hissed at Luna to back off and no touching him – which they both complied to almost instantly.

The pureblood stared at me, and I couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking. In times like this, I would pray that my curse works on him. But it just doesn't. I just can't read his mind. So, I asked. "What are you thinking?"

He raised a brow, questioning me silently. "Well, I've got pretty much the same effect you have with me. I can't read your mind. Not a single thing." I was shocked to hear myself talk about my ability to a stranger so casually. Hm. Maybe somewhere inside me, Natsume is not a stranger anymore. Perhaps I have come to acknowledge him as a friend. Even if he has a very disagreeable personality and bad mouth. "How the heck did you guys know about it anyway? I was pretty careful about it."

"Just as I can't see your past, somehow, I can't seem to order you around." A smirk ran across his face. "I tried to, when I asked you who you are the moment I saw you. That's something not normal. No vampire nor human can resist a pureblood's order, so I observed. And you proved to be so much more than I was expecting."

So he was observing me. For someone like him, maybe one needed to have unnaturally good acting skills to deceive him. Not that I needed that in my normal world since, well, who would wonder if a person can read minds and all?

Pureblood. He's a pureblood, and he still can't order me around despite everyone obeying his whims. "Good. I don't want to go around granting your wishes like a genie now, do I?"

Silence fell on us, but it wasn't awkward in anyway. It brought me comfort for the very first time of my nights. Images disappeared, whispers evaporated, and the pain has subsided. Who would have thought that only a piece of Natsume Hyuuga could bring me out of my horrors?

I smiled.

"Would you stay with me 'til I fall asleep?" For the very first time, I found myself asking a guy to be with me without turning beet red of embarrassment and fear. Heck, it was even the first time I asked someone a favour, aside from Hotaru. And it's to stay with me in the middle of the night until I fall to slumber; to a guy nontheless. Did I mention he's a guy?

He looked appalled. Apparently, he was not expecting what I just asked of him in the least. "…are you that stupid?"

My face remained impassive. "Of course not." I was shocked to hear the calmness on my voice. "Well, would you? Please? It's noisy when you're not around, and it's painful in my head."

Even though his face didn't show off any emotion, I was so sure he thought about it. I remained quiet, waiting for his answer, fearing that if I even squeak a little bit of sound, the fragile glass would break and I'd be left behind.

"…fine." He trotted back inside my room, but then halted just as fast and turned to me with a menacing glare. "But you'll wear a robe over that little-piece-of-cloth-for-a-night-gown." He said as he walked again and slumped his self on the couch, grabbed his book out of his pants' back pocket, and read.

I smiled.

Then smiles turned to laughter as I felt my insides so light and warm.

And this was how my night turned to peace.

…and the nights that followed.

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End of Mikan's Point of View

This also ends the Volume 1

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I'll stop using a first person point of view now. Time to start the third person's POV to explore the other's thoughts. But I'll still stick close to Mikan as much as possible.

Hope you don't mind.

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Volume 2 Chapter 8 Sneak Peak:

"Oi, Polka. Stop that sighing, it's getting on my nerves." He spat on the girl, making his voice venomous and then adding more venom in his glare to be more convincing.

Mikan rolled her eyes at him. She really wonders how that bloody-eyed ass can concern his self with her in so many ways. And whatever happened to their night talk last night? If she remembers correctly, she encountered a not so difficult Natsume; and now that the day is here, he's back to normal. "Oh, please, Natsume. You can stop staring if you don't want to involve yourself with me."

He scoffed. "Are you stupid? One doesn't need sight to hear your sighs, baka."

She blinked. He's got a point, not that she would say it out loud. Saying it loud would just feed Natsume's head more air and cause swelling. "Then stop pouring your attention on me." She hissed and glared back at the boy.

"Dream on, Polka."

"Dream on what? That you never poured your attention on me or dream on that you'd ever stop pouring your attention on me?"

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Intuition is one of the girl's weapons. Because their instinct tells correct more often than not.

At least that's how it works for me.

But HE made that weapon useless, since he would always make it clear to me what he feels. Even if he's annoyed because of work or my constant blabs (I'm not really a talker but I found myself one coz of him since he doesn't talk that much), irritated of his friends because of unnecessary physical contact with me (I'd always laugh at this), or mad at my stupidity (even though he wouldn't really hate me). Or even if it's just to simply make me feel loved.

Hmm, no space left for hunches since he pretty much shows and tells me anything and everything.

So, why bother to doubt when he's been purely honest?