A/N:

Seems like some people got confused with the last part of the last chapter.

Natsume watched as Mikan fell not because he didn't care but because that was all he could do. You know the feeling of being planted on the ground while something is happening? This usually happens in car accidents I think. Well, that's that. He couldn't move and so he just watched. And the 'pathetic' part he said was referring to him not able to help her.

Koko! Koko hesitated to dash to Mikan immediately as soon as he saw her fall because he was still reporting to Natsume, mind you, reporting not just talking. And when someone is in front of his authoritative figure, it's common sense to not run off. Right? So when Natsume turned his back on him, he immediately grabbed that chance to run to Mikan.

Now, I think other questions will be answered in the next chapter.

And there are still a lot of surprises. The other characters are still not on the story, and I'm planning on letting in the whole cast. (hopefully)

Anyway, here's it!

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"We meet. We fall in love. And then we part again afterwards."

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Screams.

Smell of burning.

Wounds.

Blood.

Tears…

Everything was ruined in just one night. Everything they thought they have, would stand and would ever be; collapsed easily in an unprecedented attack. Why were they attacked? She doesn't know. She honestly doesn't know. Or does she? Can she honestly say she doesn't know why?

Because a part of her, a big part of her however she might deny, tells her it's all her fault. Somewhere inside her knows that it was, is her that they want.

Why would they want her? She's no one special, she's just an average seventeen year-old girl.

Lies…

She very well know why they want her. It has been explained.

But I refused to believe…

Yes. She didn't want to believe because she didn't –doesn't- understand. All of those stupid nonsense of a story about her supposing to be the inheritor of the moon's power are just so stupid. Sure, she can say she honestly believes about the other race, but that doesn't mean she's one special girl, blessed by the love of the moon. It's just absurd, because however she look at herself, she can't seem to find something to be worth noticing.

There is nothing about her that is special. Except perhaps her ability to read minds. But that doesn't mean that she's what they were saying that she is, does it? Not just because they told her meant it's true.

But if they believe that she's the one, isn't it possible that the other side of the war also believes she is the one?

Even though I'm not, damnit.

Not because they believe it's her doesn't mean it's really her. For all she knows, someone out there must be the real inheritor. There's just so few of proof to make her believe.

Anyway, even if she refuses to believe everything they have said, it's no denying that their school was burned down. And if they believe that it's her that they're looking for, that means it's her fault those innocent people got injured.

Mikan slowly opened her eyes and take notice of her surroundings. They were in a room, and if her memory is right, it's a room inside Hotaru's lab. She felt the cold sheets of the bed she was lain upon and felt it's comforting offer. Around her, the whole group gathers and for the looks of it, they still haven't noticed that she's already awake for quite some time now.

"How long have I been out?" Her voice was quiet and strained as she tried to sit up, her voice breaking the outstretched silence making everyone stir.

"Not long. Two hours." Hotaru, who she noticed is sitting on a chair beside the bed, answered calmly.

She remained silent for a while, rubbing her eyes. "What, what happened after I passed out?"

"Nothing much. Medics treated the wounded, the police came even though a little late." Koko, whom she noticed was sitting on the floor of the other side of the bed, informed her. He looked like a lost pup, his eyes shimmering with unshed tears. That made her smile. She reached out her hand to caress the top of Koko's head, reassuring her dear friend that everything is fine. Her smile widened more when Koko leaned in to her touch, really just like a little puppy. Or her smaller brother.

"Were you worried?" She asked like how a big sister would.

Koko creased his forehead, pouting in her absurd of a question. "Of course I was. You're like my mom!"

Mikan glared.

"…my sister…"

She smiled.

"Anyway," She turned to look at the others. "What happened to the school?"

Ruka, who was leaning in on a small drawer, stepped in closer to her as if giving a formal report. "Burned down," he said with a bit of a pang in his voice. "Half of the school is down, though the important documents were all saved. The dormitories, well, the girl's dormitory, though burned, is still standing. Only this room is left unscathed. The boy's dorms is the same, burned but not down."

"Injuries? Are there any casualties?"

"A few were injured but not seriously, and fortunately, no one died."

Mikan closed her eyes, thankful to whoever is responsible for ensuring their safety. And then she remembered…

She remembered the agonizing scream the girl let out when debris fell on her. Her hair stood up to its ends, sending chills throughout her body. That scream, it was so full of pain she thought she was going to gag all of her food. Up until now, it feels like the girl's voice still lingers in her ears. That ear-splitting scream haunts her, as if it's happening right this moment in front of her very own eyes.

Hotaru noticed the way Mikan started to tremble. She was about to ask Mikan what was wrong, but the girl beat her up to talking.

"You…" Mikan's quite and trembling voice echoed throughout the room. Her voice was so full of pain and fear and a bit of anger it was Hotaru's first time hearing it. "You people… you're powerful aren't you…?"

Natsume frowned. He didn't like where this talk is heading, nor the tone that girl is using.

"You're powerful…" He heard her say again. "You have super human strength… your speed is breath-taking… right? Then, why…? Why didn't you save her…? It could have been easy for you to jump in there and save her from the falling debris, why didn't you? I understand you didn't see this attack coming, that it came out of nowhere from within the academy grounds and the fire already started before you could do anything about it; but why, when you had the opportunity, didn't you save her? She was right in front of you!" Her voice shook with suppressed outrage, he noticed, and he didn't like it.

Not in the least.

No one answered her, and for once, he was annoyed with the silence. He caught the girl's eyes, which up until now were restless and unfocused. They were staring at each other, she was questioning him, and he was ignoring her.

"Why?" This time, her voice is firm. And accusing.

He, with his ever stoic and expressionless face, answered her with the most obvious answer he got. "Because we didn't come here for them."

Mikan's eyes widened like saucers. They didn't come here, they didn't – what? That's it? He hasn't got any other answer? She laughed a humourless laugh, her hand shaking as she raked her hair back. "You… you've got to be joking."

"No." Came his firm answer. She looked back at him, only to see him with that cold stare. "We're not here to protect them."

Something in his voice made her anger flare. It was the first time she ever felt this angry in her entire life that she found herself jump out from the bed and walk to him. "You've got to be kidding me. You're the reason they were involved in the first place and you think you're not responsible for it?"

"No. We're not, in any way, responsible for it."

"Bullshit!" They flinched in the venom in her voice, except for the boy in front of her and her best friend. It was the first they heard her curse, and something in her voice and firmness made that one word seem like a thunder. "You dragged your war here, and you're saying you're not responsible? What a load of bull! And you say you're the next head of the clan? I can only imagine what kind of doom your race will face when a bitchy, irresponsible leader top them!"

She didn't know what she was saying. She didn't even know where she got the guts to say them. Her head was light, and her heart was thundering inside its cage. Something inside him snapped, and she knows it. Maybe that's what she was waiting for.

"Fuck!" He snapped, his voice carrying venom worse than her curse. "We're no superhero, human!"

She walked closer to him. "Fuck, too! Even an ordinary human would have saved her!"

"Then, why, oh so great Yukihara, did no one in your flimsy fragile race came to save her? Huh?"

"Oh, I don't know, Your Highness. Maybe because unlike certain others, we don't have that kind of strength and speed! Because if we have, I assure you we would have saved her! And we won't toss it out like it's not our responsible!"

"Hah! Trust me, brat. When a human is given power, they would want more and topple the weak!"

"You would know, huh? Of course you would! You're so great! You're superior from humans!"

"Good you know."

"Then why? Fuck, why? If you're oh so great than humans, if you're so superior, why didn't you save her? As a leader, you should have known it's up to you to protect those under you!"

"Fuck. Don't give me that tone, human! She isn't under me! She's not under my care, brat!"

"Shut up! Don't give me that shit! No matter who's working under you, it's the law of nature for those powerful to protect the weak!"

Natsume's last thread of patience snapped. He grabbed the girl by her neck and slammed her up against the wall. Everyone was alerted, his underlings attempted to stop him but were blown away by his presence. Hotaru grabbed her bazooka only to be frozen firm on her stand as a powerful and menacing aura enveloped the whole room.

"No, Natsume, stop!" Ruka yelled, only to fail. He knows how Natsume is when his patience is tried. All this time, he thought that only Mikan can stand up against his pride and patience, but now that Natsume's power is overwhelming the whole room, or possibly the whole academy grounds (and everyone knows how huge the academy grounds is), he regrets to his heart why he didn't stop their exchange sooner.

Mikan watched as Natsume's eyes turned from crimson to cat-like golden. His hair grew a little longer. She could feel the firm grasp holding her neck, but not enough to choke her to death.

"Listen here, human." He hissed, making her heart thump louder, faster. She didn't know if it was because of the obvious danger in his voice or because their noses were almost touching. "Don't talk crap to me about the law of nature. If it's just that fucking law, then let me tell you this. Monsters kill humans."

She frowned. What the hell is he talking about? "You're no monster."

Natsume's eyes widened as he loosened his grip on her neck and stepped back.

What did she just say? Does she know what she's talking about?

But looking at her frowning face and determined eyes, he couldn't help but laugh.

Ruka and his comrades watched in horror as their leader laughed out loud. In the background, he could hear Koko muttering something about 'not good' and Yuu saying something about 'should have known'. He watched as Natsume palmed his face and bent his body in an attempt to stop his laughter. And then it burst.

Another burst of shocking wave of power, much powerful and oppressing than before, enveloped the entire room and (not possibly but surely) the entire academy grounds, making them kneel on the ground. His shoulders felt heavy, and his eyes went blurry. He looked at Hotaru and saw her slumped in the floor, hugging herself. A pained expression is on her face. The groans around him made him turn to his comrades only to find them crouching in pain.

Damn.

The humans out there could in no doubt feel this menacing aura, and they might be knocked on the ground because of this. He could only remember the last time Natsume went out of control; some even fainted and vomited because of this.

He heard Natsume's menacing laughter, and hell it sounds like a demon lord laughing his ass off while someone is being slowly and painfully tortured to death.

Really, he just can't seem to know how powerful Natsume really is because of the constant refrain his leader is doing for the sake of those weaker beings. He looked at Mikan, his sight distorted because of the weight of Natsume's presence, but he was sure the girl is also knocked on the ground.

Natsume continued to laugh, and it only sent more chills to Ruka. That menacing aura, the menacing laugh, everyone under his gaze would tremble for sure, and those weak hearted would be traumatized. Damn, even he, the right hand man, couldn't do anything to stand up straight when under Natsume's mercy.

"I'm not a monster?" He heard his leader's thunderous voice, noticing the tint of amusement in his tone.

"I'm a vampire, human." Natsume walked to the girl, gripping her in the neck and threw her back on the bed. "I'm a walker of the night, a creature all fears." He said as he walked towards the bed, moving over so he could straddle her by the hips. He leaned down, his face on her shoulder, his lips almost brushing her ears; and then he whispered. "I drink people's blood to live. I use my power to entrance them, so I could devour their necks. I corner them, giving no room for escape. And slowly, I sink my fangs on that flesh, tasting that crimson liquid." He chuckled as he watched her tremble.

"I can snap your neck in an instant without any effort, killing you immediately you won't even feel pain. You can hide, but I'll find you; I know your scent from a mile. You cannot even run, because I'll catch you. I can slaughter each and everyone in this godforsaken academy and no one would ever know it's me. Heh, I can even make it look like an accident and no one will question further. Now, tell me again that I'm no monster." He laughed again when she was frozen.

He closed his eyes and breathe in deeply, his presence back to normal and so is his appearance. When he was sure he was in control again, he got off her and stood up. Back to stoic and expressionless face, he started, "Anyway they weren't here because of me. They're looking for you, which is why it's necessary for you to leave here before anyone else gets hurt." Having said what he wanted, he left the room.

Mikan laid still, doing her best to calm her heart down now that she can breathe normally again. She didn't know why her heart was beating violently, truth be said. Maybe it was because of fear. If it was, then why, oh why, when he was straddling her and he was looking unwaveringly at her with those golden eyes, she just thought of nothing but beautiful? She was caught off-guard when he burst, true, she was terrified when he was laughing menacingly, but it was all drowned out when he leaned dangerously close to her. She heard him say his piece alright, but she couldn't process it in her head. All she was on about was how close their bodies were. How it tickled her when his lips would accidentally brush against her skin when he was talking, and how it sent shivers down her spine when his hot breath reached her.

She closed her eyes as she felt her cheeks flushed in embarrassment. She is in no way a pervert, damn it!

But really, she just can't get over how powerful Natsume really is. And it made her back to why they were arguing in the first place.

Ruka stood up when he felt the oppressing aura disappear and hurriedly went to help Hotaru on her feet. After reassuring that the girl is already steady on her feet, he turned his attention to Mikan who already has Koko by her side.

He has already prepared his piece to say to the girl so as to reassure her that Natsume meant no harm. He was even prepared to see the girl crying and trembling in fear because, well, who would be so brave not to buck under Natsume's presence? What he wasn't prepared though was when he turned to look at the girl lying still on the bed, was to see her blushing like mad.

How in the hell did that happen? Because he was fairly sure Mikan and Natsume were just fighting and yelling and arguing mere minutes ago, so why in the world did it end up to a blushing girl? And when he thought he'd ask if she's fine, her face suddenly crumpled in annoyance.

"That jerk!" She shrieked as she suddenly sat up. "I can't believe he forced his way out of this!"

That was another one he wasn't expecting to hear. He thought he'd surely hear her scream and told them to leave her alone and never to appear before her ever again. However, before anymore misunderstanding come to light, he decided to butt in.

"Sorry, Mikan-san, but… I think you misunderstand."

Ruka stiffened when her gaze landed on him. "What, pray tell, did I misunderstand?"

"Er," he thought he has already prepared his piece, only to stutter in front of their princess. "That is, well, we have a law in the clan, Mikan-san."

The girl tilted her head, indicating her confusion. "Well, our clan doesn't harm humans, Mikan-san. That's one of our laws. And, and those victims he was telling about, uh, I can't believe he lead you to misunderstand. Actually, they are blood donors. The clan associates with humans, and some of those humans are volunteers to be fed on once in a while. Though some other vampires really fed on humans just like how Natsume described. But the clan regulates the underworld, monitoring that no human would die."

Mikan's eyes widened. She could not believe what she just heard. She cannot even believe that Natsume just told her a bunch of lies! It was so frustrating the hell out of her, if only she could read his mind! "That… that idiot! But that doesn't mean anything if he let that girl be injured!"

"Um…" She saw the blond boy with the glasses stepped in. "Actually, she wasn't hurt."

"Stuuupid." The almost bald boy huffed and crossed his arms against his chest. "We didn't say anything because we were with Natsume-sama. It's common knowledge to not speak if your master doesn't wish you to, but you were just so stupid weren't you? Oooh! I was itching to tell you earlier if not for Natsume-sama's orders."

Well, would you look at that. She can't believe that those other guys with Natsume are capable of speaking.

"Mochu! Don't talk to her like that!" The boy with the glasses, she thought his name was Yuu, yelled at the rude boy.

"Why? Natsume-sama is not here anymore, I can now talk to her however I want."

"Stop it! Even if he's not here, she's still the princess, you idiot!"

"Not until her eighteenth birthday!"

"Just, shut up!"

"Well, if she wasn't that stupid and weak, she would have noticed Kitsu used his wind to make that falling debris fall beside the girl!" That perked her ears up.

Kitsu, she supposed, was the boy who almost looked like Koko, giving her a victory sign. He used his 'wind', his special gift? So, in short, he helped that human girl. He used the most natural, and unsuspicious means of saving that girl –without exposing their secret.

Oh my god… what did I just do…?

Her spirits dampened in an instant, sending a gloomy atmosphere around the room. She can't believe it. She said all those horrible things to Natsume and now she finds out it was all for naught. All those mean words she said in anger just hurt her friend, and now she finds out that her words were based off in a base-less fact.

Natsume has all the right to be mad at her. Why, because she just blabbered off without knowing anything of course.

I am so freaking stupid.

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I can't believe the school wants to have the THESIS and the FASHION SHOW done at the same time!

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Preview:

Ch. 12

Her voice was broken and sad. And now he knows why. It must be because of the guilt she's feeling right now. It's not like he wanted to make her believe to utter lies, but he just did not –doesn't like explaining his self and his actions. He's not a man of words, and everyone knows that. It's really idiotic to make him explain his self.

"Natsume?" She called out with curiosity and obvious discomfort in her voice. He should have answered her call, not to make her believe to something again. But his voice was conveniently stuck on his throat, egging him to continue feigning sleep and listen on.

He wanted to clear all these misunderstandings at once, to explain. But then he'd be contradicting his self on what he has just said about not wanting to explain his self. A low and inward groan left his throat.

Really, when a certain mind-reader and brat comes her way to him, all of his senses and mind-set gets fucked up. He has just said he doesn't like explaining; hell, he doesn't even like talking in general. So why, why in the world does he find his self now needing to stop all of these misunderstandings? For fuck's sake, he's Natsume Hyuuga. He's not supposed to care if people doesn't understand him.

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