Author's Note: Greetings! After a long hiatus away from writing, I have returned to my Rosario + Vampire fanfic. My apologies on taking so long, but there has been enough changes and drama in my life to fill a book of its own.

Disclaimer: I do not own Rosario + Vampire or any of the characters that are native to that wonderful universe. Someone far wiser than me came up with it. :) I only own my own characters that I created specifically for this fanfic, or the ones that I imported in from my professional writing. There are a couple of others whom I 'borrowed' from other series that I thought might work in this one.

Rosario + Vampire: Concerto of Shadows

Chapter 24-Demons From the Shadows

Yokai Academy. Monster World. One Month Before.

"Really, this isn't necessary! I am more than capable of getting myself to the gym!" Tsukune grumbled lightly. "I don't have the need for an escort of this size!"

Diademonica and Haruna quickly stopped ahead of Tsukune and his friends. Haruna turned slightly and glanced at Tsukune. "Tsukune," She began patiently. "We are not taking any chances. There are powerful protection spells that are already active around Yokai Academy, but that doesn't mean that they are undefeatable! Remember, these are very evil creatures that are at the beck and call of an even greater and much more powerful evil. Your safety is paramount to us!"

Dia folded her arms and turned toward Tsukune. She gave Tsukune a feral grin, which effortlessly slid into a grimace. "Besides, your wonderful great-great-grandfather and great-great-grandmother would kick our asses from here to the human world if anything happened to you!"

Haruna sighed and gave Dia an annoyed look. "You know, I was going to leave that part out. That was told to you in private, Dia!"

The Cambion shrugged nonchalantly. "Better to ask one for forgiveness then for permission." She grinned at the vampire. "Besides, what is the big deal? Tsukune is a big boy now! We don't have to baby talk him or treat him like he is five! He has as much right to know our asses are on the line same as his!"

Lady Haruna glared at Dia for a moment longer before she released an exasperated sigh. "You can be such a pain in the ass, Dia!"

Diademonica rolled her eyes and made a face. "Whatever. Come on, the gym isn't getting any closer to us while we stand here and bitch."

Lady Haruna's eyebrow twitched with her annoyance. She exhaled loudly and headed back toward the gym. After a few steps, she turned her head. "Well?" She said loudly. "Are we going, or not?"

Tsukune hung his head and sighed. "Why go through all this trouble? I am not worth all this fuss and bother!"

"Bullshit!" Dia exclaimed loudly while Moka pulled him toward her. Moka gently pulled Tsukune's head up until his brown eyes gazed into Moka's soft jade orbs. "You are worth it, Tsukune! You are the most important person to me! If something happened to you, I would die!"

"Yeah, Tsukune!" Kurumu started behind him. "We all love you and want to see you safe! You are my Destined One, remember?"

"Kurumu! Not now!" Moka began sternly. Her attention entirely focused on Tsukune, Moka gently cradled Tsukune's face with her soft hands. "I love you, Tsukune! You mean the world to me! You are worth this 'trouble' as you put it."

"Um, guys?" Dia started impatiently as she rocked back and forth on her heels. "Not to completely destroy this absolutely wonderful moment for the two of you, but do you think we could keep going? I am beginning to feel I am on one of the cheesy teen dramas from the 80's, here."

Lady Haruna facepalmed and groaned lightly. "Wow, Dia that was incredibly sensitive of you! That moment was utterly wrecked. Know any other tricks?"

The Cambion snorted. "Yeah, I am great at parties. Come on, we need to move it. I hate being in a long hallway. There are way too many openings for an attack!"

XXX

Gymnasium. Yokai Academy

Faust sighed contently as he comfortably leaned back against the gym wall. Despite him being late to the proceedings, they welcomed him in into the gym without any questions even asked. He immediately and effortlessly made his way up toward the highest point on the back row of the bleachers. It was the best place for him to wait for his prey, and allowed him to study everyone gathered without suspicion. Without any effort he felt their monster auras. It was indeed true that many of them were indeed very powerful. Given some time and effort, he figured they could be culled and brought to Lord William's way of thinking. After all, humans were almost universally despised by most of the monsters here.

The shape shifter's head slowly and lazily turned toward the gym doors as they opened again. He felt his blood turn into ice within his veins and his eyes widened in shock. Tsukune had indeed shown up, but that damned Cambion and Lady Haruna led him into the vast room. He gulped when he saw the rest of his entourage pour in. The kids he could care less, but the sight of Lord Stone and Lady Sidhe stomping and gliding gracefully into the gym just about stopped his heart. All were extremely powerful, and that damned Cambion hunted down creatures like himself in her spare time! If he didn't suppress his abilities quickly, they would be onto him!

XXX

As Lady Sidhe quietly closed the gym door behind Tsukune's group, Diademonica's head and body rapidly spun turned toward the back of the gym. Her violet eyes darted among the faces, moving rapidly from one student to the next as she studied them intently. Lady Haruna laid a hand on Dia's arm. "What is it, Dia?" She asked with alarm.

The Cambion's eyes narrowed for a moment, and then she sighed and shook her head. "It is nothing important, Haruna. Just the nerves going I guess."

Tsukune cocked his head. "Are you okay, Dia? What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Tsukune. Go take a seat with the others. We will need to take our seats with the other teachers and staff."

XXX

Faust closed his eyes and sighed quietly with great relief. That was way too close! Now I can see why Lord William sent me here. Son of a Bitch! If they have that damned Cambion with them, it will make my job here that much harder to complete! I just hope that Lilith and those demons can keep them occupied long enough! Damnation! If I fail in my mission here, Lord William will see to it that nobody can identify my body!

The shape shifter slowly opened his eyes. Yes, the teachers there looked to indeed be very nervous. He could tell quite easily by how disturbed their auras were compared to the students. Well, perhaps he need not worry after all. All he needed to do was stay as small and as unimportant as possible, and he would be fine. If it went as he figured, they would be kept here, and then the most powerful among them would go blow to blow against the Sentinels. Would be a useless gesture, but he appreciated the thought of them out of there. Maybe he would be able to eavesdrop on just the right conversation. After all, he was just some nobody teenager here at Yokai, right?

XXX

Tsukune sat uncomfortably upon the hard floor. Since he and his friends were so late to the gym, there weren't any available bleacher spaces available for them to sit. Of course, Kurumu nearly started a riot by offering to have Tsukune sit in her lap. Every male in the gym gave Tsukune a look of such intense jealousy that he felt himself blush as he politely refused her most kind offer. The looks that Moka and Kurumu traded back and forth told him that it was obviously not over. He sighed lightly and hung his head in quiet resignation. Why was his life so difficult?

Tsukune's head came up when Ms. Nekonome came forward and lightly tapped upon the microphone. "Thank you for coming to the gymnasium on such short notice. There is a little bit of trouble right now, and the safest place for everyone to be is right here, okay? Let's try to make the best of it!"

Tsukune sighed again and shook his head. So, they weren't going to tell the student body the truth? Why is it he wasn't surprised. If he hadn't seen those cursed things and fought them he wouldn't have believed they were real. He just hoped that whatever plans the Director and the Raven Lords came up with was enough. He didn't want to see anyone hurt just because Lord Burnhart wanted him dead.

"Ar. Aono?"

Tsukune looked up in surprise as Ms. Nekonome now stood before him. Her tail had emerged and was gently swaying back and forth. She squatted down and removed a note from her pocket. "This was given to me by Lord Rylan for you. Read it, and then I will need you and your escorts to quietly leave."

Tsukune blinked and glanced down at the note in his hands. He gently unfolded it, and felt Moka as she gently leaned her head upon his shoulder so she could read it too.

Tsukune,

As far as we could tell, every student and teacher should now be there in the gymnasium with you. We are going to need your help along with your friends to try and drive these abominations away from here. I am not certain, but we feel there could well be a spy hidden among the student or teacher population. We both know that Lord William is extremely crafty. The fact that he launched a strike in broad daylight in front of everyone says that he no longer feels he must hide within the shadows. This is more dangerous, and we can't risk any injuries or deaths to any of the students. We have gathered whom we could, but it will still be very lopsided odds. Please, hurry back to the Security Office. We can talk more there if you need to.

Rylan

Tsukune nodded and quietly pocketed the note. He quickly stood up, as did Moka and his other friends. He was surprised to see that the gym doors were already open and his adult escorts were already out there waiting for him. He gave Ms. Nekonome a smile and quietly left the gym. Once everyone was out of the gym, Lady Haruna closed the doors with a harsh click.

"Why didn't they tell them that those are Oni Sentinels out there? Wouldn't it be better to know exactly what was going on?" Tsukune asked with a slight edge to his tone.

Lady Sidhe gave Tsukune a patient smile as she placed a pale hand gently upon his shoulder. "No, Tsukune. It would not help anything for them to know the whole truth. All it would do is calm your conscious, and cause the school to positively panic. Right now, everything must be kept very quiet and be handled discreetly out of the range of eyes and ears. If there is indeed a spy here at Yokai Academy, then we already know that everything that we say and do will be reported back to Lord William."

Tsukune looked at the floor. "Yeah, I guess your right. I just hate all the sneaking around that we have to do. It just doesn't feel right."

"Don't worry, Tsukune." Lord Stone's gravely voice rumbled behind him. "Odds are this is some kind of feint or test that Lord William is undertaking to see how prepared we are for him. It is very likely that when we engage them, they will vanish back into the shadows that spawned them."

Tsukune nodded and smiled at both Lady Sidhe and Lord Stone. "Thank you, both."

Diademonica grinned. "Come on kids, we have some Oni asses to kick!"

XXX

Faust nearly screamed in frustration. He had been in the perfect spot to keep an eye on everything, including Tsukune and his group once they arrived. Now, they were gone and he couldn't do shit about it. He mentally cursed himself for now sitting so high up in the bleachers. Unless a suitable distraction could be thought up, he was truly stuck. He ground his teeth in irritation as he thought quickly. He glanced down behind him and saw that there was a small three-inch gap between the bleachers and the wall. His mind churned over and over in thought. Would it be worth the risk to try to change into a mouse or rat? I might be able to squeeze out of here if I can do it. He looked around and chewed his lip. There is no way I can change out here in the open; everyone would see my transformation and an alarm would be raised!

Faust was surprised when a couple of students that sat upon the front row of bleachers fell forward. They landed upon their classmates, whom cried loudly in alarm. When they shoved them off and onto the floor, they began to strongly convulse. Faust blinked as he saw the student body as a whole as they leaned forward and started toward them. He grinned darkly. Well, this will indeed work. Perhaps Lord Abel is looking out for me, after all!

With everyone's attention focused elsewhere, Faust quickly changed himself into a small brown-colored rat and vanished into the gap behind the bleachers. Thanks to his new disguise, he rapidly made his way down the metal bars that made up the back of the bleachers until he got to the floor. The shape shifter made his way toward the door that led outside. He glanced back and forth, and there didn't seem to be anyone watching. He transformed back into his teenager disguise, and quietly slipped out through the unwatched door. Faust shut the door without a sound and grinned broadly. Now, if he could just sneak back into the school another way and find Aono and his brat pack, he would be good as gold.

XXX

Security Office. Yokai Academy

"Thank you for getting back here quickly, Tsukune. I know it is a bit of a pain, but as you can probably guess time is a bit of a commodity right now."

Tsukune nodded. "I understand, Lord Rylan." He glanced around the office and sighed. "I take it that you couldn't get too many people to join us?"

Lord Rylan chewed his tongue and he grimaced. "No," He answered stonily. "Too many are worried for their own skins. I can't say as though I blame them. Several thought we had lost our minds when we told them the truth. Some wanted nothing more than to open the doors and let them take whomever they wanted. Fat lot of help they would have been. Might as well roll out the white flags and roll over with that kind of thinking."

"Well, Lord Rylan, at least you won't have to worry about us doing something so stupid." An unfamiliar, yet somehow oddly familiar feminine voice spoke up.

Lord Rylan grinned broadly while Tsukune and Moka turned quickly toward the unfamiliar woman in the room. Tsukune blinked in puzzlement. He swore that he had seen her before, but he wasn't quite sure where. She smiled at him as she tossed her blond hair. "Why hello, Tsukune Aono! Long time no see, kiddo! My, but you have really grown up and filled out nicely!"

Tsukune gave her a puzzled smile as Moka's eyes narrowed slightly. "Um, hello there to you, too. I apologize, but I can't say as though I know you. How do you know me?" Tsukune asked.

The blond woman gave an exaggerated gasp and clutched her rather large chest. "Tsukune can't remember me! Oh the horrors of time! How could this lad not remember the woman that looked after him when he started school? Who was it that watched you in the park when your mother and father were so busy with work?"

The light of recognition dawned in Tsukune's eyes. "You?" He whispered fondly. "Ms. Tsukiumi? Is that you?"

The blond woman clapped once and grinned broadly. "Well, Tsukune, you didn't forget me after all! Yes, it is indeed 'Ms.' Tsukiumi as you called me so long ago! Although, you can get away with just calling me Tsukiumi now. After all, you are an adult!"

"What are you doing here?" He asked in wonder.

Tsukiumi grinned mischievously. "Why, I thought it was quite obvious, Tsukune! I am here to assist thee with getting rid of those pesky Sentinels outside our walls!"

Tsukune looked dumbfounded at Lord Rylan as the Raven Lord pushed his chair away from his desk and stood up. He grinned at Tsukune. "She has been an old friend of the family for some time, Tsukune. Tsukiumi has also taught here at Yokai Academy for quite a long time." His eyebrow rose. "How long have you been here now?"

Tsukiumi grinned and shook her head. "Now now, Lord Rylan! You know thee should never ask a woman her years! Tis a pox on conversations!"

Lord Rylan nodded. "True." He gestured toward her. "Tsukiumi here teaches Middle English studies, which unfortunately includes grammar and language along with the history. So please forgive her if you can't understand her very easily. She does have a tendency to talk oddly though from time to time."

Tsukiumi's eyes narrowed. "To whom doeth thou refer to with 'talk oddly'?"

Lord Rylan bowed and gestured toward the blond woman. "She maketh my point for me."

Lady Sakura snickered loudly in the corner. "Come now, Rylan! Why tease our dear Tsukiumi so much when you enjoyed that time period so much! I do recall on more than one occasion you talking that way when-"

Lord Rylan loudly cleared his throat. "Ahem. Anyways, back to the business at hand. Yes Tsukune, she will be with us. She is quite powerful, and her command of the water elements will be most helpful with the battle ahead of us." He turned toward the other arrival that waited impatiently for his introduction. "This interesting fellow in the corner is one that has a specialization with the ability to command the element of air. I would like you to meet Kazuma, one of the fine people that work with Lord Stone in the gym class. He also does self defense-"

"Come on, old one, save it! I can speak for myself!" The rather arrogant young man strode forward and stood before Tsukune and gave him a once over. "Meh, he doesn't seem to be too bad. Compared to some of the demons and other things I have dealt with, he seems as ready as can be for this."

Tsukune blinked at the slightly taller man. "So, how did you happen to get him on board this rather difficult mission?"

The man called Kazuma grinned. "All it took was lots of cash, kid. I don't come cheap, but he obviously wanted the best."

"Now that all introductions have been made," Lord Rylan started. "We need to get down to business." He moved the shade on his drawn window a bit and glanced outside. "They still haven't moved so much as an inch, yet. It is apparent that they are waiting for us to appear. We all know how much of a bitch they can be to fight." He glanced up at Lord Stone. "Archimedes? What are your thoughts? You have been in this game almost as long as I have."

The greatest Gargoyle, Lord Stone, tapped his stony chin in thought. "That is a good question, Rylan. We know already that these things are impossible to kill. They are very resilient to everything but the strongest magic in battle. Those things are also likely here to capture young Tsukune and take him back to Lord Burnhart. Did I cover about everything?"

Lord Rylan nodded his head. "Yup, old friend, as usual you broke things down rather succinctly." He began to pace behind his desk. "Do we meet them head on as one big group? Or do we split up and form teams?"

Kazuma snorted loudly. "Pah! I say everyone hit them at once! Have all of our combined abilities used in one big blow!"

Tsukiumi and Diademonica rolled their eyes and shook their heads. "Ah, youth!" Dia began. "Arrogance and ignorance at full steam, I see." She turned toward Kazuma and crossed her arms. "Did it ever occur to you that if they were that easy to kill, they wouldn't even be used? These are nothing more then powerful arcane weapons that are pointed toward whatever the user wants dead. You don't play around with these creatures, kid! You don't take them seriously and you will only end up as a useless corpse! What good would that wad of cash do you if you are incinerated?"

"Besides," Tsukiumi started with a wave or her hand. "To plunge into the battle with everyone hitting them with their most powerful abilities at once is supreme folly! Several of the abilities of our team mates might cancel themselves out! Then there would be many corpses, not just a few!"

Kazuma snorted again. "Whatever. Look, we decide something soon or else nothing is going to be done! So, what are we going to do?"

Tsukune stepped up toward Lord Rylan's desk. "Lord Rylan?" Tsukune asked quietly. "I have an idea that we could try."

Lord Rylan gazed down at Tsukune as he chewed his lip. "I am not going to like this suggestion of yours, am I, Tsukune?"

The hybrid vampire smiled faintly. "No, I dare say probably not." He reached over and took Moka's hand and lightly squeezed it. "Why don't I go out toward them and make them think I am giving myself up? They are bound to believe I would do something like that, right?"

Lady Sakura sighed loudly. "Yes, Tsukune, they would probably believe that you would do such a thing. However, they know that Rylan and I wouldn't allow it to be done. They would more likely suspect a trap, which is what I am sure the second part of your plan was going to be."

Lord Rylan shook his head. "No, not an option, Tsukune. You saw how quickly those abominations moved. The more likely scenario would be you being grabbed before we could do anything about it. There has to be another angle to this that we are just not seeing!"

Kurumu sighed in exasperation. "Look, why not get some of those Mobius box thingies, and have those of us that fly just go over their heads and drop those boxes on them like bombs. They wouldn't expect something like that!"

Kazuma growled loudly. "You can't be seriously considering-"

Lord Rylan waved his hand to silence him. A grin grew upon the Raven Lord's lips. "You know," He started. "That is just crazy enough to actually work!"

Kurumu snorted and rolled her eyes. "Oh, come on! I was just kidding! I wasn't being serious, Lord Rylan!"

Diademonica had a wicked grin upon her face. "You know, she might just have something there! I like it!" She glanced toward Lord Rylan. "You don't suppose they might still have some of those Mobius Boxes around here, do you?"

Lord Rylan's grin broadened. "You know, I do believe that they do. The Director had confiscated some that some kids had snuck in, and I know that they created more in the Magical Arts department. The teacher owes me, so I dare say he will get us what we need."

Yukari nudged Ruby. "What do you know? Kurumu isn't just a huge rack and a pretty face after all! There apparently are some brains in that head of hers!"

Kurumu glared at the pair of witches. "Shut up, Yukari!"