Draco: {drums fingers on edge of keyboard}... I got nothin'. Characters, weapons, origins © Square Enix and Disney. Monsters, setting, and encyclopedia © Akihisa Ikeda.


Chapter 11: Purity Darkened

"Your friends came to save you... Now watch them die!"

A demonic angel with one wing in the fire; a dark power she had never seen before.

Desperately taking up the blades of an enemy; a helpless plea, knowing she didn't stand a chance.

"Leave my friends alone!"

Blades caught with only bare hands, and hell that she knew was coming.

"Fine..."

And lightning.

Lightning dark as the night beyond the stone as he shouted, his eyes pulsing like a black heart.

"Then they can watch you!"

+x+x+x+

"NOOOO!"

Kairi shot upright, her gaze wide, her breath heavy. The room was dark, and her body felt stiff... and sore... and her neck felt strangely... cold...

"Kairi?"

The human girl turned to see Sora standing there with a worried look on his face. He was leaning on a desk with a lamp - which, Kairi realized, was her workdesk in her dorm room.

"Are you alright?" Sora asked. "You were shouting in your sleep. You look kind of... pale."

Kairi winced. "Sora...?" A sigh passed through her lips. "I'm fine," she muttered. "I'm just... I feel kind of... weak." She paused. "Kadaj... we took down Kadaj, right?"

Sora smiled. "Yeah. We did." He coughed nervously. "Um, you, uh... are you hungry? You've been out for a couple days."

"I'm not-" Kairi was interrupted by a churning roar from her stomach. "I take it back," she muttered. "I could eat spicy angel wings."

A chuckle emerged from Sora. "Sorry," he chuckled. "Xion's fire freezes." He turned back to the desk and pulled out a small wrapped dish. "Perhaps you'll be satisfied... with this?"

Kairi accepted the dish from him to see a three-piece meal - rice, fish, and what looked like chicken tsukune. "This is... Did you make this?" she asked, raising her gaze to Sora.

Even in the dark, Kairi could tell Sora had a heavy blush on his face. "Um... yeah... kinda."

A smile rose on Kairi's face. "Thanks," she said honestly, unwrapping the dish.

+x+x+x+

"So... how did you guys finish things with Kadaj?"

Sora nearly pulled a spit-take with his tomato juice from Kairi's question. "Wha- you don't remember?" he asked.

Kairi shook her head, setting the chicken tsukune down. "I just remember... Riku got sent flying. You and Xion were trying to deal with Kadaj, and..." She sighed. "Then it just goes dark."

The vampire started to raise his drink again, then stopped. "You don't remember... anything?"

"Nothing," Kairi replied, raising her gaze. "Why? Did something happen?"

Sora opened his mouth to speak, to explain that yes, something did happen, and she deserved to know; but he couldn't bring himself to say so, and he only lowered his drink.

"No..."

A horrifying image became vivid in his mind - of Kairi with hair like obsidian, and eyes like seas of blood.

"...No, nothing happened."

Kairi was suspicious, but simply went back to finishing her chicken tsukune.

+x+x+x+

To Kairi's credit, she had managed to wake up on the weekend. Not having to rush back to class after having just woken up was a relief to her, and to everyone else.

The first one of their group she ran into was Naminé. She was sketching at an outdoor table when Kairi caught sight of her, calling to her as she raised her gaze.

"Kairi!" she exclaimed, surprised. "You're up!" She glanced at her work and quickly turned the page as Kairi sat down across from her.

"Yeah, I am," she assured the witch. "A little stiff, but it's nothing worth worrying about." She glanced at Naminé's sketchbook. "How's the art coming along?"

"Pretty good," Naminé replied quietly.

Kairi raised an eyebrow. "Those armoured shots coming along well?"

Naminé angled her empty hand from side to side.

"Alright." She yawned, stretching her arms. "Mind if I take a look?"

"Um..." Naminé looked kind of nervous about that.

Kairi didn't push it. "Never mind," she replied. "Forget I asked." She got to her feet. "I'm gonna go find Riku. Sora, you coming?"

"I'll catch up," Sora insisted. Kairi nodded and took off.

Naminé glanced in Kairi's direction. "What's up with her?" she asked. "She's acting pretty... normal."

Sora bit his lower lip. "About that..."

He kept his voice low, but Naminé nearly gave a shout of horror. She managed to keep herself quiet, though. "Nothing?"

"Nothing," Sora insisted. "Please, until I have a good chance... keep quiet about it, alright?"

Naminé nodded. "Yeah, no problem." Sora got to his feet and took off after Kairi.

The witch turned back a page in her sketchbook, revealing a beautifully detailed image - of Kairi against a flare of darkness, with fingernails like claws and hair like a dark ocean.

+x+x+x+

"Hey, Riku!"

The werewolf, who was working a punching bag, spun to see Kairi walking towards him, with Sora behind her. "Hey there, Kai-" He cut himself off with a grunt as the bag hit him in the back. Kairi gave a light chuckle as she and Sora approached it. Sora set his hand on the bag as Riku got to his feet, brushing himself off nonchalantly. "How you feeling?" he asked. "I was kinda worried."

"No problem," Kairi replied, glancing around. "There a spare pair of gloves around here?"

Riku raised an eyebrow. "What about your blades?" he asked. "I haven't seen you with those since Larxene ran into us at the Monster Tree." Under his breath, he muttered, "Not that I suppose you need them..."

Kairi turned to him. "Sorry?" she asked.

Sora had an stern look on his face as Riku raised his gaze. "Not important," he insisted hastily. "Here, take mine." He pulled his gloves off and handed them to Kairi, who put them on, slightly confused, and started beating on the bag.

Riku watched with a concerned look on his face, recognizing everything about how Kairi was fighting, but Sora dragged him out of earshot and whispered a few details into his ear. Then covered Riku's mouth before the werewolf had time to shout. The vampire gave him a stern look, and Riku nodded in understanding as they started back towards Kairi, who was starting to wear out.

Out of nowhere, Kairi arced into a spin, driving a roundhouse kick into the bag. The exercise tool swung slightly as Kairi stumbled back, gripping her leg - the attack hadn't connected where she was expecting. If she was expecting anything. She wasn't even sure where that had come from.

Riku stepped towards her. "Don't just start throwing kicks out of nowhere again," he stated. "You seem kind of worn down."

Kairi turned to face Riku, a suspicious look on her face. "What do you mean 'again'?"

"That... time you fought Yazoo," Riku replied hesitantly. "Remember, you swung off the rafters and kind of drill-booted him? It didn't end as well as it could have for you."

There was something suspicious about the way he said that. He wasn't technically wrong however, so Kairi decided not to push it - for now. "Alright," Kairi murmured, pulling the gloves off and handing them to Riku. "I need a drink. See you guys."

Sora nodded. "Yeah," he murmured. "See ya." Kairi stepped out, and Sora sighed, setting a hand on his forehead before following suit.

"Hey, Sora."

Riku's call caused him to pause, turning to face him.

"You can't hide it from her forever, you know?" he called.

Sora sighed. "I know," he admitted. "I just... I don't want to just throw it on her."

He turned away, stepping out as Riku turned back to the punching bag, trying to push out the image of Kairi with the face of a vampire.

+x+x+x+

A water bottle fell out of the dispenser as Kairi grabbed it, taking a long drink from it. "They're hiding something," she murmured to herself as she lowered the bottle. "I don't know what they're hiding, but they're hiding something." She took another long drink, trying to focus on what had happened during the battle with Kadaj.

"You look pretty thirsty there."

Kairi lowered her bottle, looking around. The voice was female, and suspiciously familiar. "Huh? Who's there?" she called.

"Best watch your back..."

The human girl reached for her blades, only to be reminded that she hadn't recovered them since Larxene ambushed her at the Monster Tree. "Who are you?" Kairi demanded, her gaze shifting from left to right. "Show yourself!"

She pulled a full three-sixty - and that's whens something brushing against the back of her legs caused her to go still.

"For a fighter girl, you're don't pick up that much, do you?"

Kairi spun to face her opponent, who likewise spun to face her. It was a familiar armoured figure; except now her helmet was gone, revealing flowing hair - stark, shining white hair. Her gaze was a pair of dark eyes that were almost black, coursed into a glare, and her skin seemed... very smooth.

"You..." Kairi bit her lip for a moment. "Okay, I recognize you, but I don't think I know your name."

"Same to you," the armoured girl replied. "I am Niju Blade. If the rumors are correct, you... are Kairi Chikai?"

"Yes," Kairi replied. "Now I remember - you're the one who was attacking students recently, correct? You ran into Sora and Xion in that cave... thing."

Niju nodded. "Although I do not appreciate being ratted out for it, I must say you and the others in the news club did an excellent job on the article."

Kairi proceeded to the point. "Why did you call me a 'fighter girl'? And... what rumors?" She paused. "Wait... you heard I used to be in the fight club?"

"Did you?" Niju seemed surprised. She shook her head, putting her glare back on. "That's not what I meant. I'm talking about Kadaj Jenova. The news club fought him and his allies in the abandoned dungeon building. You put him through a wall."

"What?!" Kairi was shocked. "No, Riku Kurai put him through a wall. I was just... there."

There was a blur and a sound like colliding steel; then Niju raised her hand towards Kairi. Except it wasn't her hand - it was a sharp, smooth, double-edged blade that encased her hand and part of her forearm like it had been replaced. Kairi yelped, stepping back.

"Don't try to fool me," Niju snapped. "The whole school's talking about it. Kadaj himself flinches when he hears your name. Who else could it have been?"

Kairi shook her head. "No, you've made a mistake-!"

"No, she hasn't."

Both Niju and Kairi turned to see Xion standing there with claws over her right hand. "There's no mistake about it," the snowgirl stated. "Niju, step away."

Niju scoffed angrily. "You again," she muttered. "I'm not getting mixed up in this. Between the two of you, that vampire is gonna show up and I am not crossing that thing." She stepped away, stopping to point at Kairi with the index finger of her uncovered hand.

"You. Meet me at the cliffs before sunset. Don't keep me waiting."

+x+x+x+

"What the hell, Xion?!"

Kairi and the snowgirl had retired to the school roof. Kairi needed an empty space to talk. Xion just didn't want to argue with her. Once they had made sure the roof was empty, Xion had ice-blasted a pair of comfortable - if cold - chairs together and sat down on one of them, wordlessly inviting Kairi to do the same.

The human girl glared.

"What?" Xion asked. "I'll melt them afterwards if it's that much of a problem for you!"

"That's not what I meant," Kairi snapped, sitting down in one all the same. She shuddered lightly against the cold surface - it was never cold enough at Yokai Academy to merit any specific attire, so she was sitting on ice in short sleeves. No, not ice... "You cushioned these with snow?"

Xion sighed in a matter that left Kairi with the impression of 'You're going to need the cool-down'. "Where do you want to start."

Kairi sighed. The ice had definitely helped calm her down. "What happened yesterday? During the battle with Kadaj? Everyone's keeping it from me."

The snowgirl drummed the fingers of her unclawed left hand on the arm of her chair. "He has a reason for this, Kairi," she stated. "He's worried about how you're going to react."

"I don't care," Kairi snapped. "Answer my question.

Xion sighed, trying to put the image of Sora out of her mind.

+x+x+x+

Three minutes earlier

"Sora?"

Xion stepped towards the vampire as he raised his gaze absently. He had a can of tomato juice in his hand, but though the seal was cracked, he hadn't even taken a sip. "Xion," he murmured.

"Why do you drink that stuff?" Xion asked, sitting down with a cold cola. "Instead of something more, I don't know... flavourful?"

Sora opened his mouth slightly, revealing his teeth had sharpened themselves into fangs for a brief moment, before closing it again.

"Ah," the snowgirl mused. "I see." She cracked her can and took a sip. "Speaking of which - how's Kairi? Naminé told me she's up and about again.

A sigh from Sora. "She's fine. She's grabbing herself a drink. If you're looking for her, she'll be at the vending machines."

His voice made Xion worried. "You two have a fight?" she asked. "Is she... upset about the vampire blood?"

"No," Sora replied. "That's the thing."

Xion saw the problem with the same ease a fighter sees an opponent. "You haven't told her. Have you."

Sora shook his head, taking a sip from his tomato juice.

The snowgirl sighed. "Can't blame you," she muttered, taking another sip of her cola. "So, that's it then? You're going to just hide it from her?"

"I wish I could," Sora murmured. "But the rumour's all over the school. I don't want her to find out the hard way, but..."

"You can't just cower away, Sora," Xion stated firmly. "She needs to know."

"Xion-"

He was cut off as Xion raised her hand. "If you don't tell her," she stated, "I will. And don't say I'm not giving you fair warning."

Sora sighed, setting down his drink. "I need caffeine," he muttered, getting to his feet.

Xion tried to offer him her cola, but Sora refused. The snowgirl was quiet a moment - then she turned to the can of tomato juice and picked it up, taking a sip.

A few seconds later, she quick-froze the mess and tossed it in a trash can when no one was looking.

+x+x+x+

"How far into the fight do you remember?" Xion asked of Kairi.

"Kadaj... he shot some kind of... energy at Naminé," the human girl replied, getting used to the ice-chair. "Riku knocked her out of the way and took the shot so it wouldn't hit me. You and Sora were using your Keys... right?" Xion nodded. "Then... then it just goes blank."

Xion thought a moment. "And... how do you feel?"

"Why are you asking?" Kairi demanded.

"Bodily, I mean," Xion insisted. "Do you feel cut, bruised, broken? Or are you just... stiff, sore?"

Kairi nodded. "Stiff and sore sounds about right," she replied.

Xion sighed. "It must have healed the wounds," she murmured. "Kairi, you took a heavy beating during the battle. You picked up the pieces of Kadaj's twin katana and kind of... rushed him."

"I... what?"

"It didn't end well," Xion admitted. "You know that launch-tazer trick of his? Well, he put that in overdrive and hit you through the katanas by means of lightning. Then he tried to blast Sora - and you pulled off his crown and took the hit."

Kairi shook her head. "Don't kid around with me," she snapped. "It would kill me."

Xion nodded. "It almost did kill you," she agreed. "That's why Sora had to take a desperate measure."

The human girl went quiet. "What did he do."

"Do you know what monster blood does?" Xion asked. "It holds an essence of the monster's strength. The more powerful the monster, the more volatile the essence is. Sora - claws Sora - he knew if you didn't get healed right then and there, you would have died.

"So he gave you a shot of vampire blood."

Kairi jolted in her seat. "What?!"

Xion nodded. "Vampires are among the most powerful of monsters. The blood took you from no breath, no pulse and took you on a zipline up to one-twenty beats a minute. The wounds faded. You healed like a miracle. When it hit your heart..."

The human girl reached for her neck. "What happened?" she asked. "Xion, what happened?"

"You had the power of the vampire," Xion stated. "You rushed Kadaj again and sent him flying through the next wall. You passed out for a while after that, but... it saved your life."

Kairi's heart was pounding heavily. "I... you mean... you're saying I-"

Xion raised her gaze. "Kairi, relax," she insisted. "Just calm down."

"Calm down. Yes, I can calm down. It's easy to calm down. You want me to calm down?!" Kairi snapped. "Xion, do you have any idea what I'm going through right now?"

The snowgirl closed her eyes. "I have an idea," she admitted.

It was then that the door to the roof opened, and both of the girls turned to see Sora stepping out to see the two girls sitting across from each other.

Xion sighed and got to her feet, leaping off the roof.

Kairi got to her feet, stepped towards Sora and slapped him.

Sora was the first to admit he deserved that.

"What the hell, Sora?!" Kairi shouted.

"Kairi, listen," Sora insisted, "I can explain-"

"Explain. Explain?" Kairi demanded. "Explain what!? What, that I-I-I-I'm I'm a fool? That I should have let you die so Kadaj could finish me off? Sora, how am I- What am I supposed to do? You put vampire blood in me! What should I do? Sora, I'm a human! Look, I know I'm not supposed to be here. This is a school for monsters, and I know that. Do you have any idea how many times I've just wanted to leave this place!? I know this place can be dangerous for me. If anyone finds out about me, I'm going to get killed! You think that's not scary for me!? That I'm not horrified that I might die in my sleep because someone managed to piece it all together!?"

"I know!" Sora shouted, cutting Kairi. "I know this is hard for you! I understand!"

"Then why did you do this?!" Kairi shouted back. "Sora, I don't want this! I want to be able to go back to my world! I can't- I can't just- just turn into this! I want to be human! I don't care if you're worried! I don't want you to put blood in me if it's just going to- to ruin me! You can't just make me a monster!"

"I know!" Sora cried desperately. "I'm sorry, Kairi!"

"Then what am I supposed to do?!"

There was quiet for a long moment, the two of them standing there with desperate glares locked on each other.

Sora was the one who pulled away, his gaze falling.

"I don't know."

Kairi held her gaze on him for only a moment more before tearing by him, racing back into the school and slamming the doors behind him.

A single tear fell from Sora's eyes.

"Kairi..."

+x+x+x+

Kairi didn't even pay attention. Students collided with her, sending her ricocheting across the halls, but she just kept running, tears streaming down her face as she ran. She burst through the school doors, but she didn't slow down - she just kept running, into the small woods.

I don't want you to make me a monster...

She was paying absolutely no attention to her surroundings, nor even the branches scratching at her arms and legs, so one might understand her surprise when she found herself near the edge of a cliff.

Kairi screamed, stumbling back and managing to not fall off the edge. "What..." She glanced around in shock, horrified. Why am I...

"You came..."

The voice caused Kairi to whirl around. Niju Blade was standing there, no helmet and no blades, a smile on her face. "I'm glad you're here," she called.

Kairi realized that her faceless wandering had taken her straight into a battlefield. "What... no, I don't..."

Niju laughed. "Oh, please. I invited you here. It's a battlefield just waiting to happen. What other reason do you have to be here?" Her smile fell.

"A monster can only run blind... and arrive at a cliff like this... when she seeks death."

A shot of horror went through Kairi as Niju gazed at her, worried. "Is that why you're here, Chikai?" she asked worriedly. "Has something happened? Something that's driven you to the brink? Because if that's why you're here..."

Niju sighed, turning away. "Then I won't stop you."

She started to leave, and a horrible realization arose in Kairi's mind. If she were to step away from the cliff, and return to the school like nothing had happened, it would just be one more piece for the suspicious to pick up. Niju Blade was dangerous - but leaving anything else that might imply she didn't belong here was worse.

"Wait, Niju!"

A smile rose on Niju's face as she turned towards Kairi. Plates of steel shot down over her hands, forming the visual 'replacement' effect that Kairi recognized. "I was worried, there, Chikai!"

Kairi gulped and took a hand-to-hand combat stance.

+x+x+x+

Sora was on the roof of the school, sitting on one of the left-behind ice chairs, tears falling from his eyes. Kairi had thrown the words at him that phrased her position in the worst way possible. She was scared.

And if Sora was honest with himself... he was, too.

He set a hand on the crown dangling from his neck. "What's going to happen?" he murmured. "To Kairi? I don't..." He winced. "I don't want this to tear us apart..."

The rosario lit up, shining out against the crown.

Wait. A. Shit. Did Kairi just say something about making her a monster?!

Sora's eyes widened. "What?" he asked. "What do you mean?"

You. Run. Find her. Now!

When the clawslinger spoke, Sora knew better than to question it. He stumbled off the chair and took off, looking for Kairi.

+x+x+x+

Kairi hit the ground weakly, fumbling her dodge painfully. Niju was fast - not Sora fast, but she definitely knew how to use those blades. Not to mention, she wasn't even fazed by the cliff edges - and she was actually fighting.

She set a hand against her neck. "Come on," she murmured. Come on! I fought Kadaj, right! I threw him through a wall! Niju should be easy to deal with! Yet she couldn't feel any power - she was just the same, weak human that she had always been.

Niju shot towards her again, and Kairi made as though to leap to the right; then, when she saw Niju swerve in that direction, she feinted and leapt in the other direction, tumbling against the ground as Niju nearly left battlefield from the momentum. Kairi backed up towards the cliff edge as Niju shot towards her again - but she was ready this time, and Kairi knew that if she tried to dodge, she was finished.

"Kairi!"

Niju spun in a horror to see Sora barging through the trees; and Kairi used that to her advantage, dodging to the side and lashing out with a weak kick that sent Niju tumbling off the cliff.

She stumbled away from the edge, nearly running into Sora before she stopped herself. "That... was... too... close..." she panted.

"Kairi, you..." Sora was in shock. "You tried to fight her?"

"I didn't have a choice," Kairi snapped over her shoulder, still somewhat angry at Sora. "If I didn't, it would have just been more suspicious, considering the circumstances."

Sora was surprised. "You... you didn't have trouble?" he asked, shocked.

Kairi opened her mouth to retaliate.

She didn't have the chance to.

A surge of water caused her to turn to see Niju shooting out of the water. Her glare was absolutely murderous, and she grabbed the edge of the cliff with her bare hands as Kairi saw... something starting to protrude out the side of her neck.

Kairi swore, bracing her stance. "How the hell are you...?!"

"Stay... away... from him!"

She shot forward, grabbing Kairi by the neck. "I will not let you call in the cavalry now, Chikai!" she roared. "You're the one who's here to fight!"

She spun, hurling Kairi into the ground so she skidded to the cliff's edge.

"So fight!"

Kairi stumbled to her feet, taking a low clawslinger stance. She saw Sora looking worried, but that didn't have time to register proper before Niju rushed her; no blades, only claws.

She lashed out with a straight kick.

The second her foot connected with Niju's armour, there went her strike.

The impact was enough to make Kairi's leg burn with pain as Niju drove her shoulder into Kairi's stomach, sending both of them plummeting towards the water. Sora screamed Kairi's name, rushing to the cliff's edge.

Kairi managed to propel herself away from Niju and arced into a proper dive, trying to avoid a full-body contact with the water. The good news was that she didn't paralyze herself. The bad news was she went pretty damn close to the bottom of the water before her momentum wore off, and it was a struggle to right herself so she could propel herself to the water's surface.

The other bad news: Niju's hand closed around her neck.

Sora's breath was heavy, his eyes wide in fear. "No. No. No no no NO! KAIRI!"

Damn it! I knew it! That fool must have jumped to conclusions!

Kairi broke the water's surface with momentum. That was a good thing.

Niju was flying after her. Not so much.

The human girl hit the water flat this time, stunning her long enough for Niju to grab her. She didn't look like an armoured swordstress anymore; her legs had elongated into a scaled, finned tail, and there were fins protruding from the sides of her face.

"Your boyfriend can't save you down here!" Niju shouted. "Now come on! Show me what you can do!"

Kairi gasped, grabbing at her neck. "What... are you?!" she gasped, trying to grab air while she was still above the water.

Niju smirked, cracks appearing across her face. "You thought I was one of those fairytale good-girls?" she snapped. "No, Chikai - this is what a real seagirl looks like!" She raised her high and slammed her into the water, forcing her towards the ocean floor.

Kairi opened her gaze to see her opponent shooting towards her - with three rows of sharpened fangs roaring at her!

Bite-Sized Monster Encyclopedia: Mermaid
Contrary to the sweet image projected in popular fairytales, sailors know that these terrible beauties portend shipwrecks and death.

Somehow, Kairi managed to dodge an aquatic foe moving at nearly the speed of a werewolf while underwater. She lashed out with a kick at Niju's stomach and shot towards the surface, trying to reach it for another breath of air.

Then a claw hooked itself in her leg and pulled.

Kairi's scream tore through the water and bored itself into Sora's ears. "Kairi!" he shouted. Like he needed another excuse. As he prepared to chase after her, his rosario lit up against his crown.

Don't even think about it! You don't stand a chance in the water! If you're that desperate to help her, climb down the wall and wait til she surfaces! Otherwise you're-

"I don't CARE!"

Sora took three steps forward and leapt, driving his feet against the edge off the cliff and launching himself straight into a dive. The wind raced past him as he formed his Keyblade in hand - and he braced it at his side in time to see Kairi break the surface, Niju with a webbed, clawed hand around her neck.

"Hands..."

Niju raised her gaze in horror to see Sora arcing his Keyblade to swing.

"OFF!"

He lashed out, striking Niju in the helm with enough force to send her flying, and she released Kairi, causing the human girl to drop briefly.

Then Sora hit the water.

A sound like an electric bomb ripped through the air, and Sora gave a shout of pain that echoed through the water dreadfully. Sea creatures in all directions scattered like falling pebbles, and the force of the cry was enough to spur the weakened Kairi into action. She began to pull herself through the water, scrambling towards Sora, and when she was near enough to touch him she reached for his rosario.

Sora grabbing her arm stopped her, and to Kairi's shock he pulled the human girl towards him and put his arms around her.

And Kairi felt his fangs break her skin.

Niju was racing back towards them, not letting her prey escape before she finished her fight. A flare of energy caused her to skid to a stop in horror, raising her hands before her, and she was shocked to see the water parting like it had descended on something. Two figures were silhouetted against the flare, and when it parted Niju was shocked to see a blur shoot out of the water and land on the side of the cliff.

It was Kairi Chikai.

Under her left arm was Sora Kingdom.

Upon her right hand were claws like pin tumbler keys.

Flowing from her helm was hair like obsidian.

She opened her eyes - and those eyes were seas of blood.

Niju gave a horrified scream as Kairi gave her not a moment's glare before scrambling up the cliffside with one hand. The sea-warrior mermaid shook her head to clear it and shot out of the water, digging her own claws into the cliff and dragging herself up the side as she chased after Kairi. She lashed out with her claws, but Kairi only swept her feet out of the way.

Do you see now, you fool?

Water began to drip from Niju's cracked face as she lashed out with a shot of compressed water; but Kairi only flared to the side, causing it to hit and shatter the cliff face.

You're not a monster - you're still just a weakling!

Niju forced the stone out of her face and went into rapid-fire mode, launching three shots a second as Kairi climbed.

A shot of vampire blood will give you the power of the vampire - for a while!

The mermaid's opponent kept racing skyward, dodging blow after blow until she grabbed the cliff's edge and pulled herself into a whirling flip.

You're fighting on borrowed strength...

Niju grabbed the edge and pulled herself over, already preparing to launch another shot.

...and it'll only last you a few minutes if you're lucky!

A foot promptly connected with the mermaid's forehead.

And when that's over, you're just a snack again!

Kairi then proceeded to arc her other leg forward as she pulled herself into a whirling flip and slammed it into Niju's face, sending the mermaid flying. The warrior girl flew a good seventeen metres before she hit the water, disappearing below the surface as Kairi stepped away, feeling the power start to fade from her body.

You didn't think the strength of the Nosferatu came that easy, did you?

For a brief moment, she could see the clawslinger's face, a dark smirk locked on her face.

Now do both of us a favour, Kairi - and keep playing the pacifist.

+x+x+x+

The first thing Kairi thought as she drifted back towards consciousness; Why do I always wake up feeling sore? The second; For the love of blood, clawslinger Sora's right calling me a weakling

"Okay, even vampires don't say 'for the love of blood', so I don't know where you got that from."

Kairi opened her eyes to see Sora kneeling at her side with a confused look on his face. They were on a small hill near the Monster Tree, and as Kairi rose she could it was starting to get dark out.

"How long have I been out?" she demanded.

"A couple hours," Sora replied, tumbling into a sitting position for himself - although keeping his distance. "Don't worry. You're not gonna hit a coma every time..." He trailed off and sighed, glancing away.

Kairi just looked towards the school, thoughts coursing through her head. I remember... This time, I remember everything. The clawslinger... he explained everything. I remember it all so vividly.

She groaned and gripped her forehead. "Since when are mermaids so... dark?"

Sora turned. "You don't forget this time?" he asked.

"No," she replied, turning towards him. "You... you dove headfirst into the water... to protect me."

The vampire bit his lip. "Yeah..."

Kairi sighed. "You're a bit of a fool, you know that?"

"Yeah, I kinda got the riot shout on the way down," Sora admitted. "Sorry..."

The two were quiet for a moment. "Do you feel weak?" Kairi asked finally.

Sora raised her gaze. "Why...?"

"Well, it made you weak before," Kairi replied.

"And it only stopped when you made me drink your blood," Sora reminded her.

Kairi sighed. "Well, I'm not going to make you this time."

Sora blinked four times in rapid succession. "Wait, what?"

"I'm sorry, I kinda... I was really rude to you earlier," Kairi admitted. "And that makes two shots you've given me. So..." She sighed, pulling on the collar of her shirt to better expose her neck. "Here."

The vampire hesitated, but after only a moment he pulled himself forward. His teeth sharpened themselves into fangs as he sank them into Kairi's neck, and Kairi winced slightly as the familiar drawing sensation coursed through her; but she didn't try to pull away.

A loud crashing sound caused Kairi and Sora to both spin, tearing Sora's fangs out in the most unpleasant and slightly painful manner possible. It was not without merit, however, for sitting there, struggling to get to his feet was a familiar sophomore.

"Riku?!"

The werewolf raised his gaze. "Oh, Mulch."


Draco: Italics overdose? YES. Sorry. Angry argument on behalf of the recipient of the vampire blood? YES. That's to be read in rapid fire. Someone being pissed off when the vampire drinks the human's blood? YES. Although that one is not as similar to the manga as the others. Hope you all enjoy!

Responses to my reviewers who do not have accounts:

-SorasPrincesss/SP: Your continued admiration of my fanfic is appreciated. 'Nuf said.
-Jaxine-Gia: You are clearly liking Kairi with power and I do not blame you. No, she will not become a regular fighter purely because of Sora's vampire blood. Yes, she will become a regular fighter by other means.
-Mya: Hope you're still constantly checking, because I much appreciate your reviews. I can tell you're gonna love what I have in mind - and I actually hadn't considered that necklace! Thanks for bringing that up!