I do not own anything.
"Amu, what are you doing out so late?" The blue-haired vampire gazed at Amu with a quizzical gravity.
"Ah, it's nothing really, just clearing my mind. What have you been doing these past days?" She gave him a soft smile that hid her worries and agony.
"I was bonding with Tadase." He answered back with the similar knowing smile that hid secrets. They both knew the other hid secrets but decided not to pursue the other's discomfort.
"Are you out for a late night bite?" The pink-haired heroine inquired with no malicious intent. Her amber eyes blazed with a curious light.
"I don't feel particularly hungry, but if you so desire, you could be my next victim." Ikuto offered carelessly and added a chuckle. He had desired to drink her blood since the day he saw her on that balcony, but he never wished to harm or defile a person he held dear.
"Will it hurt?" Amu asked, rousing Ikuto's confusion.
"Well, I've never asked any of my victims the obvious truth. Anyway, Amu, what have you been doing for the past two days? I hear your mother came back." He attempted at a diversion, but that only strengthened her resolve.
"Ikuto, I could tell you whether the truth is obvious or not." She said, unraveling the red scarf. She couldn't forget the sight of him and that other girl. It was undoubtedly the most breath-taking experience of her life. Now that she had a chance to be one of them, she wouldn't let it go.
Ikuto would have been able to conceal his blood lust for her, but after seeing her blood pulse underneath her pale neck; his body involuntarily closed the margin between them.
"Amu," Shivers rolled down her spine at the sound of her name. She tilted her neck. Her arms wrapped around his neck, allowing her hands to delve themselves within his soft locks. Her body was magnetized to his, and apparently, it seemed the same for him. Ikuto gently placed his hands on her petite body. One hand traveled to the small of her back and pressed her body closer to his; the other held her face, which leaned into it.
His lips, touching her soft neck, sent another wave of pleasure down her body; but just as his fangs retracted, his body was torn from hers with a fierce force. Amu, left on the park's cobbled stones, stared at this blond stranger.
"You never had enforced this rule before, Utau. What makes this time different?" Ikuto stifled a growl towards the violet eyed woman.
"I'm not enforcing anything. I'm reminding you that drinking blood from another vampire is a very intimate gesture. Most vampires who marry don't even drink each other's blood." Utau shrugged off his glare. Her high blond ponytails swayed with the win. Her sharp, violet eyes focused on Amu.
"What do you mean? Amu's not a vampire." Ikuto said. He took a step to Amu, grabbed her elbows, and helped her up.
"Well, I'm partly not vampire." Amu gave a shy laugh, edging away from Ikuto. Ikuto raised an eyebrow in question. "I'm a hybrid, part vampire and part human."
"Who told you that? Vampires are infertile." He balked.
"Doesn't matter who told her. Hybrids are a very rare thing, one in a million chance; but it can still happen. Amu's the first one I've met, who still retains her human side. Usually, the vampire side eats the human within." Utau flashed Amu a pearly, malevolent smile.
"Care to explain further. Amu's parents are both vampires, but that was years after they gave birth to Amu." Ikuto suggested, crossing his arms. If Amu hadn't heard her parents in the hall, she would have been surprised and probably would have held a ghastly expression.
"While her mother was pregnant, I fed her my blood in small quantities, transforming both her into a vampire and her baby, hybrid. Since her parents were both human when they conceived you, you were still partly human." She explained casually, taking a seat on the park bench.
"Why?" Ikuto was too shocked to know whether he was feeling angry that Amu wasn't given a choice, sad that Amu's fate is condemned to be damned, or grateful that Amu could live as long as Ikuto.
"Midori saved my life. As a vampire, you should understand that an eternal indebted life isn't one worth living." Utau sighed, leaning back.
"How are vampires originally made?" Amu couldn't stop her curious mind from wandering off.
"Simple, a vampire gives you blood; and usually, that human will either die because the vampire blood eats away at the human or be reborn as a vampire, when they die. It's a 50/50 and really risky. Any more questions, Hybrid?" The pale vampire answered, twirling a lock of hair with her index.
"Hybrid's got a name, Vampire." The pink haired girl snapped back, infusing her name with all the hostility she could muster. At first, Utau looked taken back; but her mouth gradually rose to an amused smile.
"Indeed. Call me Utau." She said.
"Not until you call me by my name." Amu placed a hand on her hip and leaned on the other leg.
"Call me Utau." The blonde repeated, but as she spoke, her violet eyes swirled into a red haze.
"Call me Amu." She threw back.
"So the rumors weren't wrong. You are immune to compulsion." Utau opined, standing from her bench. "You know, Ikuto, some of the vampires don't agree with having a Hybrid in this world. They're a threat and too unpredictable."
"Are you one of those vampires?" Ikuto accused, pushing himself between the two girls.
"I came here to figure that out. If Amu proves to be a danger to the human or vampire race, I will not hesitate to kill her. Remember that." She threatened with a malicious smile.
"If her life is endangered, don't think for one second I won't hunt you down. I swear—" He let a growl fall from his throat.
"Swear by what? You don't believe in any deity." She pointed out.
"I swear on my life that I'll protect her." Ikuto answered.
"I can protect myself, Ikuto. I'm not some damsel-in-distress you can own." Amu stepped in front of Ikuto.
"You hear that, Ikuto. Damsel doesn't need a Knight in Shining Armor." Utau laughed.
"Name's Amu." She hissed between closed teeth.
"I know already, A-mu. We should talk again later. Maybe next time, Rima can be there." Utau waved, as she walked away.
"Ikuto, why do you keep on protecting me? Or do you think that I can't protect myself?" Amu fully turned to Ikuto and tried to mask her emotions with a scowl.
Her attempt to hide her emotions failed. Ikuto always could see past her scowl and eyes and understand that she felt betrayed. He knew that she could protect herself, but the thought of her suffering still pierced his very soul.
"Ikuto, be honest with me." She pleaded. While her whole body was tensed for the hit, her guard had fallen… for him; and he could see that.
"Amu, when I first caught sight of you, you were unbelievably gorgeous." The devilishly handsome man smiled at her, which must have taken her by surprise.
"Flattery won't get you anywhere." She declared, though the evident scarlet brushed her cheeks. His hands grabbed her arms, and his head tilted downward to look at her bea-u-ti-ful face. That word beautiful described her entirely but not quite enough.
"As I've grown to know you, you're more than a pretty face… I've." I've loved you more now. You wouldn't believe the utter pain this secret burdens me with! "I know you can protect yourself, but I still don't want you getting hurt."
"Why?" She whispered to him with an emphatic tone. Her eyes, searching his, caught his throat, snatching his breath and all it could with it. Somewhere through his words, he hadn't realized that his hands had traveled to her cheeks. Both hands were holding her face with such ginger care, and she placed her hands on his.
"What are we, Amu?" The words tumbled out of his mouth. As the realization dawned on her face, Ikuto mentally slapped his forehead. Amu just learned the secrets about her and her family, and he just had to pile more problems onto it.
"Forget it." Ikuto sighed, slipping his hands from hers. Her hands moved to grab at his, but they were out of reach faster than she could blink. He, masked with a lifeless smile, disappeared from her sight; it almost broke her heart to see how fast he could leave her.
Thanks for reading. I know it's summer, but I'm losing myself in its fast winds. I never remember whether it's the day, the night, or even if I haven't slept in three days. I'm too absorbed in books and my tv shows to realize how long it has been. Sorry.