Challenge level!

"Don't call me Big Sister," I growl at her, vectors well at the ready, and her in plain view of range.

"Yuki, Zero?" I gasp. Ichiru walks out, his hair the same amount of longer than Zero, his violet eyes warm and gentle, and his posture more healthy than with the last time I saw him. He spots me, and laughs. "Kaede!"

Mariko stares at him like he just grew vectors, not me. "Who?"

He points at me and Mariko grins at me, laughing. "That's a stupid name! I think you're glad you changed-"

I slam her wheelchair into a tree, making her precious, fake right arm screw loose. She cries and throws her vectors at me, but I fight them back, my eyes pulsing pink. I twist a few around the others and throw several back at her. Ichiru stares at me with that friendly smile, so I stop, taking it as a 'cool down'. Zero sighs and walks over, checking my forehead for fever no doubt. He pries it off and hands me that bottle with the purple liquid. Now that I think about it, I now notice it. I gulp down the small cup he provides and Ichiru comes over to pat my head, cringing at the blood. I don't blame him. Mariko scowls and glares at Ichiru.

"Eh, hem!" she pouts, crossing her arms (the little brat).

Ichiru sighs, but I hold his arm. "Don't help her, she's the bad one!"

"Oh I'm the bad one," she mimics. "What proof do you have that you're any better than any other Diclonius?"

Something slams the side of her wheelchair, which brings me to the familiar face of 25. "Stop bad mouthing my aunt," she mutters. "Hello Kaede."

I wave and Mariko raises an amused brow. "Aunt huh?"

"Don't think about it," another squeaky voice cackles. "Our Queen is far stronger than you'd ever be, Mariko."

A ten-year-old drops down from a tree, a black, puffy short sleeved dress swaying lightly. Fifteen vectors come out, and I raise a brow. Why are all these levels over ten so far? Mariko glares at me, then Zero, and then Yuki. "Who are you're little friends huh? Who's Jack Frost and Alice also, Kaede?"

I glare and slam her wheelchair. "'Jack Frost' is a famous poet. 'Alice' is a character in a fictional book and the name of an Abby Dawn song. My 'little friends' are the speakers inside of me that prove that I need to quit decaf."

Ichiru muffles a laugh. Man is he healthier than ever! Mariko growls. "Quit the act and tell me, you-"

"Oh, this must be Mariko!" I hear the Chairman greet.

Gulp. I turn to him as he enters the area. "What do you mean?"

"Why, he father enrolled her."

Yuka stares at me as my jaw drops. "Lucy…"

I stiffen, resting a hand on Yuka's shoulder. "Her father is supposed to be dead, Yuka."

Fifteen, by what I can figure, primps while leaning against a tree and looks up at Zero, interested as far as I can tell. I shoot her a look, so she just cackles. The once sunny day turns stormy, and now it looks like it's going to snow. Does every level have an extra ability?

"Some more than others," Twenty-five informs mentally.

"Level?"

"She has a bunch," she shrugs, and I mean she actually shrugs. "One, she can control that doll in full effect-"

"What doll?" I blurt, staring at her.

Zero blinks at me. "Huh?"

Twenty-five smiles. "The doll Level carries around. She spends most of her time cleaning dirt off of it though."

I glare at Zero and he glares back. What is he glaring at me for? He's the one who put it there! He's the one who remembers everything! I stomp my foot and glare at the Chairman. "You can't accept Mariko here into this academy."

He raises a brow. "Why not?"

Maiko smirks, but Ichiru, Yuki, Yuka, and Zero all have my side, Fifteen and Twenty-five acting more like guards at the moment. "She has twenty-six vectors," I count the excuses off my fingers, "her vectors are eleven yards long, she's blood thirsty, she is eight and a Diclonius, her dad tortured me for years, she's evil, she's one of the reasons my horns were gone-"

"Really?" Ichiru blurts.

I nod at him with a fake smile, returning to the excuses. "-and she's a reason why Nana, my friend from my day one, is living with us and not a family."

Yuki covers her mouth, but Yuka whispers something in Yuki's ear and it seems to calm her down a little. Mariko glares and Fifteen restrains her vectors, just to be safe. The Chairman looks at me. I sigh and cross my arms and mouth 'she can't live if you don't want people to die'. He nods, understanding. That's when her head explodes under the force of all thirteen vectors.

^.^

Oh yeah, she's dead! WOHOO! Just kidding, I'm not that happy. Yuka got a call from Kota saying things weren't going very well, so the Chairman decided to drop her out, yet allow her to get the work and get full credit to boost up her college chances. I'm sitting in Zero's dorm, watching the two brothers play an old game Level and I apparently made up. The goal was to see what the other twin was thinking based on what you know about them. I'm holding the package that Twenty-five left, like, really early this morning. Fifteen also left, and I rip open the wrapping. I take out a red, hard-cover scrapbook, large red lace ribbon on the left side of the book and looping through the cover to the back to hold the book together securely. Ichiru smiles over at me.

"Hey, Level's old scrapbook!"

I blink and stare up at him. "Wait, this is her old scrapbook?"

Zero nods. "Did you think she was going to give you one of how she was doing or something?"

Ichiru turns to Zero. "Actually, that'd make some sense."

Zero shrugs. "Well, in Lucy's case, it wouldn't."

Ichiru raises a brow. "Why is everyone calling you Lucy, Kaede? That's your middle name!"

I nod. "I didn't know that when I lost my memory, so I changed it to be original. Mom beat me to it of course…"

I stop, in which Zero walks over and pats my arm. "Don't worry; you're not the only one who lost a mom."

I widen my eyes and suddenly, he's pinned to the wall, my eyes focused on him. "MY MOM WHAT?"

Ichiru gulps. "I don't think she remembered that."

"You…THINK!" Zero chokes.

I pull back my vectors and grip the arms of the chair. Mom…

Blood dripping down our vectors….

No…

Level's crying, along with me…

No…

Where's Mom, where's Dad, why are we stuck in a bathroom? Why are there holes everywhere? What's that creaking? Who's screaming outside?

NO…

"We love you!" Mom waves goodbye at a bus stop as I walk with Level to visit the Kiryu family. Dad is next to her, his eyes sparkling red. The scene flashes to corpses on grass, hearts in their palms, and the blonde hair of the man covering the eyes and the red-pink hair of the woman clear when revealing a smile, as if she expected to die…

NO!

My vectors shoot out, but by luck, they miss Ichiru and Zero. I put my head in my hands and drop the scrapbook. This can't…my one chance of living parents…gone…I killed them along with Level…we didn't want to…someone pats my shoulder and I look up with teary eyes to Zero. He sighs and hands me the scrapbook, kneeling at the left of the chair and Ichiru crawling over to kneel at the right. I open the scrapbook and on the first page it has: 'Friendship Memories' scrawled onto it in elegant, loopy writing. There are four separate pictures. One is the upper right forth of Ichiru's head; the second is the lower left forth of Zero's head, then the upper left of Level and the lower right of me: a collage to make a scrambled face. I admire her creativity. I flip the page to see none other than Mom, holding two little girls' hands and laughing into the camera. Her hands were tight around ours, so I think I can get what Zero is trying to tell me now, even though he doesn't get it that I know.

"She loved you, so don't feel so bad," he pats my shoulder.

Okay, how does that help a person? I mean, I killed my mom, and he's telling me she loved me. Doesn't that make a person bonkers? I sigh. Apparently not. My chest feels cold when I look at the next picture; Level dancing and that girl not far, looking at Zero far at the left of the stage.

"Hey, Zero!" she calls behind her, twirling a lock of hair.

I growl under my breath. Can't she just die already, end it? Wait…end what? I hate her…she hurt Level…How? CAN'T SHE JUST SUFFOCATE? BE CHOPPED UP BY A-Jeez I was more violent as a kid! Ugh, at least…wait, where's Level?

"Level?" I call. "LEVEL?"

We're supposed to go to Grandma's…Grandma isn't here…where is she?

"Hey, stupid," that chick calls. "Are you looking for Creepy?"

I clench my fists. Just do it. Who said that? No, Dad always says to be the better person. He's just a stupid vampire. Vampire? Shut up. "She has a name, Yuck."

She rolls her eyes dramatically. "It's Yak, and I wouldn't talk, Kaede. I mean what kind of stupid woman would name their child that?"

"Shut up, it's a nice name."

"Admit it, even you hate it."

"Shut up."

"Make me!"

I bite my lip. Be the better person Kaede, be the better girl. I try to walk away, but that's when I find Level holding grandma's hand, the doll Kimia in the other. "Kaede! I found Granny!"

"Can't she act her age?" Yak puffs.

"Can't you be any more egotistical?" I snap.

Grandma and Level walk up, Grandma with her aged white bun and her pale wrinkled skin. Her eyes are deep brown with a faint luster of blood, and her nails are fine and long. Yep, this is Dad's mom, the one who can't die easy. "How's my little Kaede?"

I hear Yak laugh slightly behind me. I swear that girl is going to get it. "Good."

"Hey, why don't you tell her about what you tried to GIVE ZERO ON VALENTINE'S DAY?"

I notice Zero stopping somewhat a few feet away, clinging to his mom's arm. He raises a brow and I look down. Yak shouldn't have mentioned that, she shouldn't even know! "How did you…?"

She dangles a white doll ribbon off her pinkie, making Level pale. "You promised!"

Yak smirks and tears it, letting the pieces drop to the floor. "Oops."

Grandma steps in front of me. "You'll be sorry little girl," Grandma promises, scooting us away.

"You're so brave Kaede, having to be saved by a hag!"

I stop, Grandma trying to push me forward. "What was that?" I mutter through gritted teeth.

"I said-"

She jerks her head to the left, spitting teeth out mixed with blood. Something invisible to a lot of people punched her. "It's called a rhetorical question."

"Hey, what was-"

It hits her again, more teeth being knocked out. "At least I have my family, orphan."

She growls. "Shut up! I'm glad I don't have a freak of a sister!"

"I'm glad that you're mother was slowly murdered," I grin under my mask of hair. I want her to be angry, just to charge and to allow me a reason to hit her.

She forms fists. "Shut UP!"

"I'm glad that you get along so well with the warden…tell me…how's the kid?"

People gasp. I know all about how the warden rapes her and he has a kid, a dead wife, and now a little slut, A.K.A-Yak. She screams and charges, my vectors not reacting in time. She tackles me, ripping at my flesh and trying to rip the cap off to pull at my hair, but I can't. Zero doesn't know about the horns, none of his family does. I push her off with my legs and stand up, Level ducking behind Grandma and Grandma trying to get me to come behind her, but I refuse. Yak, the thirteen-year-old trying to get at Zero, she's gotten on my nerves for the last time. I want her to be hurt, but I won't kill. Mom said killings bad. Have you tried? Shut up! I stand there, my twenty-vectors slipping out from my back and ripping up the ground, throwing parts of floor at her. Zero runs up to me, seizing my shoulders from behind and shaking me.

"Stop it!" he cries. "Stop it!"

I blink, my vectors frozen in place. I see Yak's pushed off of the stage, her ankle twisted. She's crying. I'm ten, and it's the month of my birthday, almost to that very date. I turn to Zero. "Z…Zero…" I feel my eyes moisten.

"How did you…are you…huh?" he pants, his eyes wide.

I bite my lip and run. He'll hate me forever if I tell him. Forever…

I find myself on the floor, but I can't move anything, well, my lungs I can but by barely. Zero…

It's been two days from the incident and it is Christmas, three days from my birthday. Grandma had to go home…

I sit up with strain. I get the picture that Grandma wasn't there, so she might be living. Ichiru hauls me up and sets me onto one of the beds, patting my back. "What's wrong?" he asks.

I look up to Zero. "FREAK!"

"I'm not!"

"You're right…VAMPIRE!"

"SHUT UP! YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ZERO!"

"EXPLAIN THE HORNS!"

"I WAS BORN WITH THEM! HAVEN'T YOU NOTICED THE CAP?"

"I TRUSTED YOU! All this time…YOU WERE ONE OF THEM!"

"NOT ALL VAMPIRES ARE BAD!"

"SO YOU ADMIT IT!"

"NO! I'M NOT AN F*CKING VAMPIRE!"

"Hey," Mrs. Kiryu rushes out, "what's going on here?"

Of course I put my cap back on, but my vectors were appearing. "YOU JERK!"

I shove Zero into the river behind my house. He thrashes, but my vectors hold him there. Mrs. Kiryu tries to help him, so I let him go for her sake, not Zero's. He sputters and chokes, glaring at me. Soon, everyone is out. Level stops, Kimia clutched firmly in her hand. Even I can smell it; blood, Zero's blood. She clutches her throat and her red eyes flicker with blood. She looks at me with panic. She hasn't had her monthly dose.

If you ask me what 'monthly dose' means, I can give you a fair bet it means blood. Hey, if Dad was a vampire, don't you think something like that would happen to his offspring? Mom apparently wasn't, so that's good in a way. Where did our vectors come from? Did they just come? I bet you it's an affect of the vampire blood. I black out again. I'm four, and I know this is how it started, but my head hurts. It's a part of memory transitions. Who said that? I fall on the floor, lifeless as someone plants thoughts in my head. There's only one person I can think of that can truly start this. I know who it is…Level 30.