A/N: Wow... I have been writing soooo much the last couple months... I'm not used to having so many documents in my Doc Manager... It takes forever to scroll through the darn thing...
Anyways, I had planned to upload this yesterday, but I was seriously not in a writing mood, so that didn't work out... but here it is now! Once again, I want to thank everyone for the continued support and I hope everyone continues to enjoy the fanfic! Reviews encourage me to update faster!
Disclaimer: I don't own Ouran Host Club
Chapter 7
Haruhi started backing away from the Lobelia vampires, but Beni swooped over, catching the startled girl around the waist.
"I was so furious when you escaped from my clutches last time… But we're nowhere near Ouran's borders, so no one will be coming to your rescue tonight, my beautiful flower," she whispered, pressing her finger gently against Haruhi's racing pulse.
Haruhi took a deep breath, then swung the bag carrying her books as hard as she could, catching the beautiful vampire off guard and knocking her to the ground. Then Haruhi took off running into the woods.
Slightly dazed, Beni snarled as she sat up, her eyes blazing red. "Chizuru, Hinako, what are you waiting for? Catch that damnable girl at once! I will taste her blood tonight!"
"Yes Mistress Beni!" the other two girls exclaimed, and they swooped into the woods after the fleeing human. As soon as Beni was on her feet, she was following them.
Haruhi was gasping for breath as she stumbled through the undergrowth of the woods. Beni was right, she was so far away from Ouran… and even if she did get there, it seemed just as likely that she would be killed now that she had refused to become Mori's human servant. Hearing noises behind her, she started screaming for help. It was extremely unlikely that anyone would come to her rescue, but she was going to try anyways.
Haruhi never knew how, but she was able to successfully dodge the vampires or beat them off with her bag of books for a few minutes, but finally she tripped over a hidden root. Beni took advantage of that and sprang forward, pinning the girl to the ground.
"I will not wait any longer!" Beni snarled, her eyes glowing bright red. Her fangs glimmered angrily in the moonlight, but Haruhi could do nothing. Her arms were pinned over her head and her legs were pinned beneath Beni's. Haruhi screamed again, but Beni ignored her, wrenching the girl's head to one side to expose the milky white throat.
And then Beni was hit hard, sending both her and Haruhi rolling across the ground. Haruhi took advantage of the confusion to kick the female vampire away and scrabble backwards. She was absolutely stunned to see Mori standing there. His dark eyes were not quite red, but they were certainly blazing with fury.
"Keep your hands off of her," he hissed.
"Or what?" Beni snarled, already on her feet. "You think you can stop me?"
"I know I can."
"Chizuru! Hinako!" Beni screamed. The other two vampires appeared, and the trio surrounded Mori. "We'll deal with you first, then take our time draining the girl."
Mori didn't say a word, just waited for the girls to attack. He didn't have to wait long. Hinako was behind him, so she went for his back. Mori seemed to know she was there though, and he grabbed her in midair, throwing her right into the charging Chizuru and sending both girls flying into a tree. Beni uttered a screech of rage and she flew at Mori, her fingernails extending into sharp claws. Her claws dug into Mori's neck, but he pried her off with some effort.
Chizuru and Hinako were on their feet again. Hinako went for Mori's legs, knocking him off balance. Chizuru took advantage of that to dig into Mori's side with her own claws. Mori hit her with his elbow and kicked off Hinako while tossing Beni to one side. All three girls were starting to look a bit battered, but Mori was definitely taking the worst beating.
At a signal from Beni, Chizuru and Hinako swooped forward, sinking their fangs into Mori's shoulders and trying to pin his arms. As he struggled to fight them off, Beni attacked his defenseless abdomen, ripping into it with claws and fangs. Mori grunted in pain and tried to kick her away, but he couldn't get enough leverage. Realizing that Mori was completely overwhelmed, Haruhi ran forward, striking Beni over the head with her bag of books as many times as she could manage it. Dazed, Beni was forced to stagger away from Mori, clutching her head and hissing with rage. She turned on Haruhi with a snarl, bloodlust flaring up in her eyes. Haruhi backed away from the enraged vampire.
Somehow Mori managed to knock the heads of his two attackers together and he was free once again. Seeing Haruhi being backed into a corner by Beni, he managed a low growl and dove at Beni, knocking her to the ground. Claws appeared on his hand and he dug them hard into Beni's back, lifting her up and flinging her into a tree. Then he grabbed her by the throat and hurled her as far away as he could. Beni fell limply to the ground, clearly knocked out and badly hurt. Chizuru and Hinako shrieked with rage at a raggedly-breathing Mori, but they didn't attack him. Instead they swooped to their mistress's side, lifting her up between them and vanishing into the darkness.
Haruhi sank against a tree, her shaking legs unable to support her. Mori was clutching one arm, pierced by claws during the last attack. His shoulders, side, and abdomen were all ripped open, oozing a tarry black substance that strongly resembled blood. He turned to face Haruhi.
"Are you okay?" he hissed, his voice low but shockingly steady.
"I'm fine. Thank you. How did you…?" she gasped.
Mori just shook his head. Then he sank to his knees. Haruhi finally found her feet and hurried to his side. She could see his wounds beginning to heal along the edges, but it was slow and he seemed to be in so much pain…
"What can I do for you?" she whispered, kneeling next to him.
Mori shook his head. "Nothing."
"Don't try to tell me you'll be fine, because I can see you won't be! I'm pretty sure those wounds should be healing a lot faster!" Haruhi exclaimed.
"Don't worry about me," Mori hissed. "Just go. You're safe for tonight." He had practically collapsed onto the ground by now.
"What about you though? You're hurt so badly!" Haruhi murmured. She placed his head in her lap and ran her fingers through his spiky dark hair.
Mori just shook his head. "Go. Escape."
Haruhi stared directly into his eyes. "Be honest with me, Mori, please… Are you going to die if I don't do anything?"
Mori didn't answer and his eyes flicked away from hers. It was enough of an answer for her though.
"What do I have to do? What do you need?"
"Nothing you can give."
"That isn't an answer! Damnit, Takashi!" she exclaimed. "You just risked your life to save me; I'm not going to let you die if there's something I can do to help!" Tears were forming in her eyes as she gazed helplessly down at him.
Mori blinked, met her eyes for a moment, then looked away again. "Blood."
"What?" Haruhi asked, blinking away her tears.
"I have not fed tonight. I need blood."
"Then take some of mine!"
"I can't."
"Why not?" she demanded.
"It will bind us."
"So what?"
"You don't want that," he reminded her.
Haruhi exhaled slowly, her fingers tangling themselves in his hair. "Takashi… I can't just let you die… You saved my life."
"I wanted to…" he murmured.
Haruhi gently caressed his cheek. He was so selfless. Why she deserved this devotion from this quiet vampire, she simply didn't understand. But she knew that she wasn't going to let him die here in the middle of the forest because of her.
"Listen to me…" she whispered. "The only thing I want right now is to save your life. We'll work the rest of it out later. You're the only vampire I would ever do this for. Now please…" She rolled up the sleeve of her dress, exposing the bluish veins of her wrist. "Please…" she begged, so softly he barely heard her.
Their eyes locked for a long tense moment. Finally Mori's lips parted, revealing his fangs. Haruhi waited patiently, knowing that if she flinched or showed any hesitation, he would refuse her offer and he would die. She held as still as a statue and finally his fangs pierced her skin. A single scarlet drop of blood appeared for just a moment before his mouth closed over her wrist.
The feeling was unlike anything Haruhi had ever experienced in her life. After the initial pain, she was overwhelmed by a sensation she couldn't name, but she wanted more of it. Her breath caught, then tore itself from her throat in a harsh gasp. A warm feeling was developing low in her stomach and the fingers she had left tangled in his hair clenched involuntarily.
She could not have said how much time passed before Mori released her, but suddenly she became aware that he was cupping her wrist in his hand and his head had settled back into her lap. His breathing was steady and she could see his wounds healing much faster than they had been before.
"You okay?" he asked, eyes soft with concern as he looked at her.
"Yeah… I guess I didn't really stop to think about how it might feel," Haruhi admitted with a smile. "I… kind of liked it though…" she added, her cheeks reddening just a bit.
One corner of Mori's mouth twitched up a little, then his eyes slid closed. Haruhi relaxed and ran her fingers through his hair some more, letting her other hand rest in Mori's. They remained like that for quite some time while Mori healed.
Finally, only a few hours before sunrise, Mori sat up. His shirt was in tatters and stained with the dark-colored substance that had oozed from his wounds. He was as steady as ever, but somehow looked very tired to Haruhi. His hand still cradled the wrist he had bitten, and his fingers curled around it, gently rubbing the skin.
"I'm fine," Haruhi told him gently to cut off the concerned question she knew was brewing in his brain. "And you look much better."
Mori just nodded. Haruhi leaned closer to him.
"Thank you. I don't know how you knew I needed help, but thank you for being here for me," she told him. He didn't respond verbally, but he wrapped his arms around her waist and drew her close to him. She let him do so and settled herself against him.
'I could get used to this…' she thought.
She felt Mori go still against her and she lifted her head to look at him.
"Mitsukuni is worried. We need to go," Mori said quietly.
"Okay," Haruhi murmured. He let go of her and she stood up, grabbing her few bags. Mori scooped her up in his arms and soon they were practically flying across the landscape in the direction of the castle belonging to the Ouran clan.
A/N: I know, I know, it's another short chapter! But I still have quite a bit I want to cover and I think that will make a great final chapter. Yes, that means the next chapter will be the last one. And that means I need to get started on that Kyouya/Kaoru-centered companion piece! Whee! I'm such a child…
Um, since I have to finish this fic AND write the first chapter of the companion because I'm going to post them at the same time, I'm going to guess that I'll update on Saturday. Might be Sunday if progress is slow, but I'm going to try for Saturday!
