'Please don't let him be in here...'

Rima stood outside Shiki's dorm room, hand resting on the cold metal of the door handle, unmoving. Although she was fairly sure Shiki wasn't even at the Academy at the moment, she couldn't bring herself to go in. 'What... What am I really expecting to find here? I mean... Sure, it's like Shiki isn't himself, but is that really possible? And if it is, what proof will I find in here?'

On the other hand, she really didn't believe that train of thought at all. Takuma told her to look in the mirror, though he hadn't exactly specified which one, and he'd looked like it was killing him to do so. Rima had no doubt that, in the state he was in, he wouldn't have told her something unimportant. She trusted Takuma irrefutably. So, that thought in mind, Rima took a deep breath and pushed the door open.

That bastard was right... He... He was losing it... He could feel it... Although it was always cold here, the chill was becoming apart of him. It was as though his blood had frozen in his veins, his joints becoming frigid and stiff. Every labored beat his heart took was agony, such an extreme pain that he wanted to cry out. Not that he could, of course. His throat had long since stopped working, no decipherable sound escaping. Well, not that he could hear anyway, though he probably wasn't the best judge.

The physical pain wasn't what bothered him most though. Another thing the bastard had predicted was right... His sanity... It was... Fading.

'...Nothings changed since I was last in here...'

Her eyes scanned the pig sty of a room, taking in everything; The discarded clothing, books, school equipment, towels. Nothing unusual in a teenage boys dorm room, really. '...It's the mirror I'm here to see though'. She turned her head to see the mirror on the wall, still covered by that black cloth. Treading carefully, trying not to fall over, she made her way to the other side of the room, closing the door behind her.

Shiki wasn't here, as she'd predicted, but she still had that disturbing feeling of being watched. It gave her chills, goose bumps rising on her bare arms. Though, that might have been due to her still damp skin. Droplets of water ran down her face from her wet hair, mingling with the sweat that had appeared. It was... It was strangely humid in the room. Although the rest of the Moon Dorm was always kept at 18 °C, it had to be in the high fourties in here at the least. How strange. It wasn't like vampires disliked the cold. They didn't really care. They could never be toocold. They were cold-blooded anyway. So, why was the room so damn hot?

'...I'm not here to inspect the bloody thermostat! Damn it. Concentrate, Rima! Shiki could be back any minute!'. She'd reached the mirror, and her hand hovered in the air beside it.

'Am I really going to die?' He couldn't help thinking. His thoughts were rather cliche. Wondering why him. Listing off all the things he'd never had a chance to, and never would, do. 'It... It's not fair... Why do I have to be his son? Why am I the one he's using? ...Why do I have to die? ...It's not fair...'

"Kaname-sama." Seiren bowed, appearing by his side soundlessly. Kaname had long since stopped being startled by her ghost like self.

He tore his eyes from the fire, where they had been glued since Takuma had fallen asleep, to look at her. As usual, there was no trace of emotion on her flawless face. No minimal sign of what she was about to tell him. He hated that.

"Have you found him?" Kaname asked, tone clipped. He'd been less than pleased to not be able to trace 'Shiki'. He'd immeadiatly checked in with his Yuuki but she was the same as usual, much to his relief. Clearly Shiki wasn't setting that particular plan into motion just yet. Although he knew that, Kaname still found himself unnerved not knowing where Shiki was. So, he sent Seiren to find him. She'd been gone far too long for his liking.

"Yes. The news is not good, Kaname-sama." Seiren responded in her trademark monotone. '...Not good? ...But he didn't do anything to Yuuki... That's all that matters' Kaname thought, quirking an eyebrow to the lilac-haired vampiress in an indication to go on. Seiren nodded.

"I followed his scent to the Shiki Manor. By the time I found the trail, it was already fading. I can't know for definite how old it was but it was probably somewhere around mid afternoon. Possibly around the same time you were called out by Touya-san. However, by the time I arrived at the Manor, Rido-sama was gone. I attempted to follow the second trail leading away from the Manor but I couldn't. The smell of blood was too stron-"

"Blood?" Kaname cut off, frowning. Seiren nodded again.

"Yes. I'm afraid Shiki Misaki-san has been murdered."

Silence followed her statement, only punctuated by the sound of Takuma's steady breaths. Seiren waited patiently as Kaname processed the information. It didn't take long.

"...It has begun, then."

'Well, it's a pretty pointless mirror, I'll give it that' Rima concluded, staring into the black depths inside the golden frame. After what had probably been ten minutes of standing there, hand hovering in the air, Rima had finally worked up the nerve and pulled the sheet from the mirror. Hell, she had to admit she was disappointed. Nothing. Not even a reflection. What the hell kind of mirror was this anyway? It was more like a window than a mirror. The frame was pretty much normal; standard gold moldings of intricate design. Inside was just black. Just plain black. Thinking back, Rima remembered the last time she'd been in here and looked in the mirror. Had it been the same then as well?

"...Well, this is rather anticlimactic." She sighed. '...Last time... That's right... I thought I heard my name... Oh! And then something moved!'.

Shiki almost whimpered when light spilled into his dark prison. 'Not him... Not now...'. The last thing he wanted was for his Father to see him so vulnerable. Would he really come to watch him die? He'd never thought someone could be as cruel as Rido Kuran. How wrong he was.

The light was so overbearingly bright; he could almost feel his flesh burning from the contact of the rays. Pain, although already horridly familiar, was becoming too much. So, with the absoultely last burst of energy in his body, Shiki dragged himself from the position he'd been in for days into a less bright area of space.

Rima blinked. Twice. Then thrice. '...Okay... Either I'm going mad, which is a possibility I suppose, or something moved in there. Again... Is this something to do with what Takuma wanted me to see?'.She frowned deeply, leaning closer to inspect. A little bit too close.

"Ow!" Rima squeaked as her nose crashed against the glasswork, a hand shooting up to cover it. Her eyes watered automatically, momentarally blurring her vision. 'Bugger. I couldn't even tell that there was any glass there. It looks as though there's just a frame over a whole in the wall or something. Apparently not. Unless...'

"...!" Rima grinned at the sudden epiphany. 'There's something going on with this mirror. Something's behind the glass I think. Something Shiki doesn't want me to see. That's the only explanation! Last time I was in here and I saw something move, Shiki got all pissed! Ha! Figured it out!'

Grin widening further, Rima grabbed the mirror from the wall and tossed it onto the bed. The grin slipped from her face instantly.

Wall. Plain, cream coloured wall.

"...Crap!" She exclaimed, hands raising to feel the wall. To ensure it was as solid as it looked; it was.

Shiki cried out, apparently still able to do so, as he collided with one of the walls. 'Wha... What the hell?'. He opened his eyes to glance through the light. He hadn't looked before, not wanting to see his face staring at him with those foreign eyes. Now he did so, and his face crumpled at the sight before him. 'No... Why is she here?'

He couldn't be completely exasperrated at the sight before him; magnificent as always, was she. Platinum hair, taking on an almost golden look with the moisture, clung to her face and shoulders, wisps twisting into curls. 'It always irritated her that her hair curls when it gets wet'. She was still as small as ever, looking just as fragile as he knew she was. Her porcelain face was a mask of frustration, azure eyes burning. She was pounding on the wall, lips pressed tightly together. 'What... What is she doing?'

"Goddamit!" Rima shouted, pounding her fists into the wall, hardly noticing the feel of the plaster crushing into dust. Her only idea led to nothing. What was it Takuma wanted her to see? Why couldn't she figure it out? Tears of frustration glazed her eyes and she blinked furiously to fight them back. 'I'm not crying again. I've got to figure this out. I've just got to... Okay, lets go over what I know; It has something to do with mirrors. Specifically, this mirror', Rima dropped onto the bed, picking up the mirror she'd tosses there, 'Something is in the mirror? ...I don't know that for sure, but it's a possibility. Takuma told me to look in the mirror... Alright. Lets give this mirror another look'.

Sighing, Rima swiped her eyes to free them of any lingering tears and looked into the mirror again, trying to see anything besides black.

'...Where's Rido? ...Why is she in the room? ...She's looking in the mirror... If she sees me... Then she'll know to stay away from Rido! She's know it's not really me!'

That in mind, Shiki racked his brain. He could hardly move. He wasn't sure he could speak. So, how could he make himself known? 'I'll just have to try. Okay; here goes nothing'.

Taking the biggest gulp of air he could manage, Shiki cried, "Rima!"

Rima squeaked, jumping to her feet and glancing around her wildly. She could have sworn she'd heard someone shout her name! Actually... She could have sworn she'd heard Shiki shout her name. Her heart felt as though it was trying to break through her ribcage. She was positive the entire Moon Dorm could hear it. Was he here? Did he know she was in his room? ...Well, after what had gone on between the two, perhaps she could just brush that off. She shuddered, and it had nothing to do with the fluxuating heat in the room. 'Okay. Do not think about that or you may throw up...'.

"Shiki-sama. Welcome home." The maid greeted brightly, opening the door of the Moon Dorm for the young vampire. Said vampire grinned wolfishly, causing the maid the shiver and hurriedly scarper. How polite. His ears pricked at the sound of footsteps meandering down the stairs.

"Oi, Shiki. Where've you be..." Aido trailed off, sniffing at the air, usually ocean blue eyes taking on a crimson tint.

"...You... You reek of blood. It's not yours either. What've you done, Shiki?" Aido accused, taking a step towards Shiki, tensing. 'Fuck. I didn't have a chance to shower what with my ridiculous nephew's lackey trailing me... Hmm... Would the Aido boy fight me, perhaps? If he thought I was jeapordizing his precious Kaname's dream of co-existion? I haven't yet killed anything that fought back'.

A smirk.

"Nothing at all." Shiki replied, sounding as innocent as an angel before sauntering towards the stairs. However, he paused beside the blonds side for a fracture of a second, letting the facade slip to test the boy.

Aido felt his eyes widen as Shiki ascended the stairs to the rooms. '...Wha...What was that? That... That bloodthirsty aura! I... I'm shaking! ...And...Were Shiki's eyes always that colour?'

'...She heard me, but it's not enough... She's gonna have to see me...'

He wasn't sure how much longer he could keep this up, how long he could stay conscious, but he had to try. He was closer to the glass than he had been before since he'd been tossed towards it when Rima had thrown the mirror on the bed. He just happened to be in a shadowed corner. If he could just move forward into the light...

Mustering all the strength that he had left in his body, which wasn't much, he moved his arms forward, digging his now talon-like nails into the floor. A groan escaped his dry and cracked lips as he drug his suddenly unbearably heavy body forward. His teeth gritted, jaw clenching. Razor sharp fangs cut into the tender flesh of his gums as, with one last burst of energy, Shiki threw himself into the light.

From her peripheal vision, Rima saw movement in the mirror once again. Tearing her eyes from the door, she glimpsed into the mirror for a second then looked back at the door. It took a few seconds for it to hit.

"Eh?"

'...Okay. It's official. I have gone completely and utterly mad'.

She had to have gone mad, because she could not be seeing a gasping, emaciated and bloodied Senri Shiki lying inside the mirror held in her hands.