Disclaimer: I don't own Rosario+Vampire, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story. Simple enough, ne? Just don't copy from this story and we're all good!

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V^^ A Witch By Any Other Name ^^V

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When some people are given a shock, it's merely their minds that seize up. Others might find their bodies doing the same. Together, they had been termed colloquially as 'fainting.' There were times—not many, but times—that Evangeline Valentine wished she had a constitution weak enough to allow that. While she always enjoyed watching fainting spells, the fact remained it did tend to render at least one benefit in the long run—that is, hazing their memory of the event. Six hundred years of life and force of habit had dulled the woman's reactions to the unexpected, but that didn't mean she wasn't affected. If only.

As she stared into the bottom of her empty shot glass, she wondered if she was drunk enough to change that yet. Upon deciding that no, she certainly wasn't, she poured herself another and slammed it back in almost the same motion. For a moment, she was vaguely amused by thinking that if she had done that at a bar, she would have been getting applause. The stuff she was drinking would have knocked a grown man on his ass; at that proof it was more suited to running engines than being ingested by anything with a functioning liver, and she had been doing the same thing for going on a half-hour now. She was developing a fine buzz, but it would take longer for her to get the kind of drunk she wanted.

Contrary to popular belief, vampires could get drunk. Were they actually undead then it would be different, but the hearts in their chests still beat, their blood still flowed, and thus alcohol and other mind-altering substances could still affect them. Their natural healing could make it take longer depending on the strength of the vampire in question, but if they refrained from drinking blood to cancel out the effects than it was just as possible for them to get drunk. Truthfully, they were probably worse than humans when it came to getting drunk; since a vampire's power came from their blood, having alcohol dilute that source made for some pretty spectacular results that Eva had many a fond memory of. But she wasn't drinking to have fun tonight.

Somewhere, a door closed, and she looked up with only a slight squint to see her husband. "Now this is something I haven't seen in a while," Vincent said, with a smirk that simultaneously annoyed and aroused her. "What's the occasion?"

She forsook answering him for another shot, and glared when he took the bottle to sniff the contents. "Good god, Eevee, where did you even find this?! If you wanted to get drunk, you could at least enjoy what you're drinking!"

"It doesn't matter what it tastes like as long as it does the job, and this'll do it fast," she retorted without preamble as she snatched the bottle back. True, she was more of a social drinker and had quite a few cocktails she enjoyed, but they weren't generally what came to mind when drinking alone anyway.

A pair of hands enclosed her shoulders gently, thumbs pressing insistently into her back, and a moan broke past her lips. She must have been farther along than she thought, for her to not notice him getting behind her chair.

"Tell you what: if you really want to get hammered, how about this? We change, summon a driver, and have a night out; drinking and dancing. When's the last time we did that?"

Too long, she knew right away. Oh, they had plenty of fun together, but they hadn't had a date night in a couple of months. Even their nearly week-long celebration after their blood-bonding couldn't really be counted as a date, since they spent most of it in a hotel with good room service. Again, fun, but not a date.

His thumbs shifted, and her next moan was nearly whimpered. He was entirely too good at making her forget what…she was trying to forget anyway, so she supposed she could forgive him in this instance. That didn't stop her from putting back one for the road.

"Fine, you silver-tongued devil, we'll do this your way."

V^^^V

His way turned out to be visiting every one of their favorite clubs in no particular order, drinking drinks more expensive than they had any right to be, and pushing the very farthest edge of propriety on the dance floor until nearly dawn. It made her feel hundreds of years younger and for a time, her troubles were well and truly forgotten.

Even waking up and having her tongue taste like week-old dirty socks sautéed in cat piss was worth it.

When her hangover had been cured through feeding from one of their blood-bags, Evangeline Valentine looked the very picture of contentment as she nursed her tea in only the shirt Vincent had worn the night before. Of course, she had made sure he had gotten very lucky, but she was older, stronger, and simply more experienced than him in recovering from such events. She might not have allowed herself to get anything but pleasantly buzzed when around other people, but more than a few nights during her first hundred years had been spent drinking through her sire's collection. She was still getting used to having someone she could honestly and truly let herself go around. Even so many weeks later, it still felt kind of weird. It was a good feeling though.

Speaking of, she grinned into her cup when she saw her blood-mate enter their dining room in nothing but a pair of sweatpants, midnight hair damp and lank from his morning rituals. He all but poured himself into a chair with a low groan that told her whatever feeding he had done hadn't completely eliminated his hangover yet. It was to be expected; he was significantly younger than her, even if his power was nothing to laugh at. Privately, she thought he looked adorable, and didn't bother hiding that amusement on her face, because one of his burnt-orange eyes glared half-heartedly at her.

"I'll remind you it was your idea, honey. I was perfectly fine drinking myself into a stupor by myself," she sniped as she took another sip.

He waved her off, limply lying in his chair with his head lolled in her direction. "Drinking alone is unhealthy anyway. Besides, I know you had fun yesterday."

She hummed low in her throat, eyes dark with remembered pleasure that had a visible effect on him.

He adjusted himself accordingly, coughing in embarrassment. "Do I get to find out why you were trying to drink yourself into a coma now?"

With a quiet murmur he couldn't quite make out and an odd hand motion, he felt something almost like static electricity crawl over his skin momentarily. Then she sighed. Deeply. "…I…suppose my ego got the better of me. I was honestly surprised it took a month for the brats to contact me; when they asked me to be their advisor I thought they would take advantage of it immediately."

"If I had you at my beck and call I certainly would," Vincent quipped with a boyish smirk that made her laugh reluctantly.

"Charmer."

"For you? Always." Then he shifted so he could seriously regard her. "Did something happen over the past week? You've been there every day after their school day ends since they called you."

"And I'll probably be there again later today, weekend or not. Their work ethic is, frankly, psychotic, but it's hard not to be drawn into it when you see how hard they're working. Then again, I've never had anything like what they have hanging over their heads. Their situation could change any day, but they know as well as we do that the school festival will be too good of an opportunity for Shuzen to miss. Not even graduation has that many entrants and exits over the course of a day, so it would be perfect to get in their own people." Yet even as she said that, she closed her eyes, features grim. "I can't bring myself to tell this to them, but the truly awful thing about this whole mess is that there's always the chance he could wait. Right now they're in the heart of Mikogami's seat of power, but what about after they graduate? They already paid their way for the rest of the year, so it's no skin off his back to have them there. Then they're on their own. We can try to protect them as best we can, but…"

"I see your point," her husband answered, "and while I agree with the logic, something tells me his pride won't. They're what? Eighteen? The oldest of them is barely into her twenties, and she's a witch. Shuzen was expecting this to be a simple matter, though this has all the markings of Akuha than Issa. Mikogami was curtailed before he even knew anything was going on, their resources were cut, and they were told to come home. Everything was set up perfectly to crush their spirits and instead they spat in his face. No, he'll be seething. The sooner he can bring them to heel, the better, I would imagine. Just look at you; you were with them for all of a week and they got the better of you, from what you said."

Evangeline's face twisted, and she took a long draw of her tea before setting it down slowly, just as carefully managing her outbreath as she did. "Right. Logic in the face of pride isn't the easiest thing, is it?"

"So what got under your skin?"

"It isn't even any one thing!" she exploded. "It's just…her! Them! Sendou and Toujou needed help with one of their projects and they asked me for help. You know what that project was? Teleportation charms! It took me two days just to read through all the notes they had on the design!" She clutched her face, torn between frustration and amazement. "These kids, that Clan is just…impossible! When I finally got over my shock, I did what I could, and guess what? Yesterday, Sendou finalized the first paired prototype. With a week of help she did what took me months, and hers is two-way, not just summon and dismiss."

Vincent considered that. "So not just bringing something to her, but having someone be able to bring themselves to her as well, and vice-versa. That's an…awesome concept."

Eva nodded seriously, glad he was acknowledging it for what it was. "I've had similar thoughts in the past, but my focus was always on spell-crafting. All I've made, all I've done, very little can be used by anyone other than witches and wizards—and even there, there's often power restrictions. She makes things on whims that…the logistics of some of them! They're ridiculous! Vin, Yukari Sendou is an artificer the likes of which hasn't been seen in…generations…and she's thirteen years old!"

It spoke of how shaken his wife was that she was so expressive. Normally she alternated between sardonically amused and lustfully playful; it took a lot for her to show concern. More worrying was he couldn't tell if she was annoyed or angry. "Sounds like someone good to know," he said carefully.

Murky green eyes blazed.

Annoyed and angry then.

"I can only blame myself. I haven't been keeping up with the emerging talent among the magicians for the last few years. And I knew about Fujiko Sendou! If I had had even the slightest inkling that someone like her was associated with Moka and Kokoa Shu—Akashiya—I would have staked the boya to the wall for thinking about going after them, and love of my life or not, I would have staked you right next to him when he asked you for help!"

He grimaced. He knew his wife didn't make idle threats. "That bad?"

"Let me put it to you this way," she began grimly, "your clan covets their peerless blades because they were made by a master from priceless materials, but the reason their fire-based powers are varied over their users is because you make those demon pieces your familiars. Yukari Sendou would have made sure every one of those weapons had a standard set of abilities besides what the familiar bond would reignite, then she would have used any chips from the forging process to make something else, and anything too small for that she would have ground into powder and used to improve something existing. For God's sake she and Toujou—who is terrifying enough on her own I might add—alchemized a magically-conducive metal they're calling mithril out of what amounts to bargain bin specials! And the only truly ridiculous elements are what they used as alchemic stabilizers!"

Realizing she was getting worked up again, she calmed herself, mourning that the isolation ward she had set up ensured that no servant would be there to refill her tea. "Sorry."

Vincent seemed entirely too amused. "So you're saying they could have built it in a cave? With a box of scraps?"

Her unimpressed look only made that amusement grow.

"Aha. Aha. It is to laugh. As I was saying: nod to Tolkien aside, it's not entirely undeserving of its name. If what their notes say is true, and at this point I'm inclined to believe it is, if they can find a way to substitute those precious few components and keep even half of its effectiveness, they've just thrown wand-crafting on its head. Think about that for a second. Think about what they did with only a little of Mikogami's help. What could they do with active, readily-available backing?"

"Like an alliance with a wealthy vampire clan," Vincent muttered as realization dawned.

She nodded, sashaying over to him to straddle his lap as she held his face to hers. He could feel the tension in her fingers, as if she was struggling not to dig in her nails and shake him out of pure frustration. "Do you know how hard it's been for me to keep my calm when I'm reminded every day that I might just be witnessing history in the making? That even now, after hiding what I am for so long, I would be proud to take on one or even both as an apprentice?

"They've already saved the world, next they're going to change it. I'm going to do everything in my power to ensure that they see the value in keeping us near while they do."

Now he definitely understood. While he was nowhere near the point himself, he understood one of the driving desires of vampires past a certain age was novelty—anything new in a world they began to see as nothing but recurring cycles. It was why he had caught her eye in the first place. And because of him and his brother, they were in an uneasy truce rather than a mutually-beneficial alliance. He could see why she might be annoyed at him right now.

"Do you think I should come with you next time, then?" he asked curiously. "It would be a good idea to get Tsukune used to fighting against an experienced weapon-user, and it would be a way for him to see more of us putting an effort in to help them. Unless Akashiya the younger has taken to training him in that already, which I suppose is a good possibility."

She shrugged as she relaxed her grip, moving her hands instead to play with his long hair. "Honestly, I don't know. I've been working fairly exclusively with Sendou the past week. Toujou would make an appearance every now and then, but apparently she and that Rei girl have been working on something else. They won't tell me what they're occupied with, but whatever it is was important enough for them to put off calling me when they hit that snag with the teleportation design. With me there to help they split up the responsibilities, but I haven't seen hide nor hair of the others, and they still haven't given me anything to call the fire-breather other than 'Rei.'" She paused. "That reminds me, have we made any progress on her?"

"What progress is there to make?" he laughed. "She's a blank, literally. The only reason we even know she's real is because we've seen her with our own eyes. Somehow she was able to foot the bill for Moka and Kokoa, but the only thing we got out of that copy of the contract our man managed to send us was her name and that an exchange took place. Mikogami crammed that document so full of legalese my brain hurt just reading the first paragraph. I can only imagine the look on Shuzen's face when he saw what Mikogami sent him."

Something about that didn't sit remotely right with her. "So she's not even a student?"

"Hmm? She's registered, but she might as well be a ghost for how much information is in her transcript. I'd say an orphan the Academy cared for would have a longer record, but if Mikogami is purposely being obtuse about her it would make sense. That means Shuzen's got the name of someone that exists but has no connections, the confirmation of a blood-mate but no name, and two daughters laughing merrily out of his hold. Oh yes, he will most definitely be seething."

She had to admit, that did warm her heart. "And have we gotten anywhere on the other front?"

He made a rude sound in the back of his throat. "You know how careful we've had to be. At least no news is better than bad news. I'd gather you have your own investigation ongoing?" She smirked at him, and he kissed her forehead. "May your people have more luck than ours have had, Eevee. This whole mess is a goddamned nightmare."

And wasn't that the truth?

Eva shifted easily, moving to sit side-saddle as she rested against him, and he grunted in amusement while unashamedly running his hand up her bare thigh. Another murmur and gesture released the ward from around them, and the ambient noise of the surroundings rushed back in its absence.

"I'll ask if you can come next time when I'm there," she promised.

Vincent took that for what it was, and they lapsed into a comfortable, easy silence established through years of effort.

The servants had seen such a thing often enough that it didn't even garner a glance as they set about serving breakfast.

V^^^V

It was well into midday when Evangeline found herself knocking once again on Ruby Toujou's door. She had become well acquainted with the borderline apartment in the highest level of the women's dorms, and she had to admit the young woman had done well for herself. From a no-name orphan to the secretary of a Dark Lord? She was making great inroads for half-bloods everywhere.

The door opened, and Eva's perpetually-snarky grin froze in place. A dark-skinned teen looked her up and down with eyes of impossibly polished steel, then she huffed and pushed the door open as she retreated back inside. Eva followed numbly, slowly taking in the girl's features. She was tall, for one; almost as tall as Ruby despite her age, and her smooth legs were only minimally covered by an asymmetric hip scarf she remembered being much larger—on a much smaller girl. A bright yellow tube top contained her chest, but the only other article of clothing on her was a sleeveless white button-up, so small it had been fashioned into a vest held closed only by the simple expedient of being tied under her breasts.

When she had shut the door behind her, Eva turned and fixed them with the driest expression she could. "Okay, first thing: what the hell? Second thing: what the hell? Third thing: what…the hell?"

Yukari snickered and Ruby chuckled behind a hand, while the teen who could only be Rei smiled irreverently. "Ah, I forgot. I would have appeared younger when last we spoke."

The blonde vampiress fixed her with a look, only stopping from pinching the bride of her nose through great experience. "Yes," she stated with a calm certainty she didn't feel. "A month ago."

The girl had the audacity to widen her smile. "Precisely." And just like that, she apparently considered the matter closed. She didn't even look back as she returned to where Yukari and Ruby had been slaving over something on the large table the older witch used as a workbench.

Eva could already feel the beginnings of a headache coming on. For all her knowledge, she had no idea what to make of the girl. Rei looked like a Mediterranean, if not African belly-dancer, but she was clearly comfortable with the language of the land, even if it was unusually formal. Not like nationality would really narrow down her options. It almost looked like Rei had grabbed the most attractive aspects of every race and meshed them into an idealized human form. Her transformation marked her clearly as some kind of reptilian youkai, but the lizardman's gender equivalent was very much like their masculine counterpart. Fire was no part of them other than their love of heat, and wings didn't factor in anywhere. The fact that she still looked mostly human in it spoke of only a partial transformation as well, and her connection to nature was baffling.

But nothing, no thing and no one she had ever encountered or heard of, aged over a year in a matter of weeks.

For the first time in decades her curiosity was eating at her, and she reveled in it. Determinedly pushing it to the back of her mind, Eva walked over to the threesome at the table. They were…wrapping something? "And what do you have in mind for today? Testing the prototype, of course, but I fail to see the need for all three of you to be here to do that."

Ruby just shrugged as she said, "Rei and I are here because we finally finished her oh-so-secret project, so now we can afford to concentrate on one thing. I'm quite good at making my own clothes, but Master had to help us learn to work with the material. Plus he actually knew how to make shoes too, which we were stuck on. Is there a word for that?"

"Cobbler," Yukari replied instantly. "Or cordwainer, for leather. But shoemaker works just as well."

The blonde just goggled. There was only one man she knew of that Ruby Toujou considered 'Master.'

"…You had Tenmei Mikogami helping you make…clothes?"

Even as she said them out loud, the words sounded no less ridiculous than they had in her head, Eva noticed.

"Far more than mere 'clothes,' secret-keeper," Rei corrected derisively, and Eva narrowed her eyes at her even as Yukari hastily chastised her white-haired friend. For how tall the mysterious teen had become, she still didn't match up to Eva's towering physique. Though it had more to do with her foreign origin much like her in-laws, she and her husband were around the same height, and Vincent was taller than Tsukune.

"Do we have a problem, little girl?" she purred, green eyes hooded. The child was beautiful, almost impossibly so, she wouldn't do her the disservice of thinking otherwise, but if she thought a vampiress of Eva's standing was going to let herself be insulted she needed to be taken down a peg or ten.

The way the girl puffed up was nostalgic in so many ways. Even as Yukari sputtered a denial, Rei went straight-backed and stone-faced with an overriding confirmation. So full of pride for one so young. It's amazing, really, the blonde thought. "Would you care to share with the class, then?"

She was either fearless or supremely confident in her own power, Evangeline noted as she was approached head-on. It wasn't the first time something like this had happened to her by any means, in fact she enjoyed being underestimated, but Rei's eyes weren't filled with anger or superiority. Instead, they were filled with accusation.

"If you purport to be a teacher of witch-kin, of my treasures and those beloved of my Mother, why do you so shamefully quiet your song even from the ears of the worthy? Have you so long ignored the chorus you have deafened yourself to its splendour? My treasures hold you in great esteem for so easily conquering their plight, yet these questions I would ask of you if you wish to remain in their presence."

Despite herself, Eva found one of her eyebrows rising speculatively. That was what bothered Rei? With a flourish and an indulgent smile, a few whispered words brought out what the girl had been seeking.

The change Rei underwent was startling. Her fierce expression relaxed into almost peaceful contentment as her eyes fluttered closed, and her blissful sigh took all the tension out of her body. "Yes, even tinged by Blood and Darkness, your blessing remains," the dragoness stated softly. "It pleases me greatly to know 'twas not done of malice, but custom. Their faith in you was well-placed, it seems."

A curious glance at Yukari turned the girl red, but she explained, "Rei didn't think we owed you anything, but without you we might have never figured out the problem we were having with our talisman's design. We talked her into making you something, but…um…"

"Our overprotective friend here was particularly offended when she learned you weren't being the witch you are when you're with us," Ruby finished, tone and eyes bright with mirth. "We tried to tell her, but she wasn't having it."

Rei scowled. "If she wished to continue feigning ignorance she should not have revealed herself to us at all. I will not be associated with one ashamed of their noble birthright."

Eva couldn't help but laugh quietly. "So young. So very, very young. You'll learn, girly, there's a difference between shame and caution, just as there is between the prideful and the truly powerful. Ask questions all you want, but if I'm going to be your advisor, a teacher, there has to be a measure of respect there too. You can ask, but never demand."

Eventually, Rei's diamond-clear irises lowered and she somberly nodded. "I…understand."

"Alright then!" Evangeline exclaimed with a clap. "Back to the beginning: the plan for today?"

"There is plenty we have to do," Ruby answered, covering a smile with her hand as she watched Yukari try to comfort a pouting Rei. "And you'll have to forgive Rei her excesses too. Her hormones have been all over the place lately. Trying to balance her regular mindset and teenage rebellion hasn't been the easiest."

"Turbo puberty ~desu!" Yukari agreed, and laughed as she jumped out of the way of a mortified Rei trying to silence her.

As that devolved into wrestling and tickling behind her, Ruby shook her head. "Honestly."

Intrigued, Eva now looked at the girl with new eyes. "Turbo puberty?" she repeated sceptically.

"Oh yes," Ruby tittered. "Poor Rei has had her human form messing with her for weeks. Without me or Yukari to keep her busy, she gets really antsy. Even though she knows she won't reach sexual maturation for another few months, that body tells her otherwise, and it makes her incredibly frustrated. Thank goodness for Tsukune and Kurumu's projections."

The vampiress couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Won't reach…? But how old…? What is she?"

"Young," the other witch replied. "So very young, just like you said. If her predications are true, and they have been so far, over the next three weeks she will gain another year, and likely every month after that for the next six months. Only after her first year will her growth slow down."

Eva had to sit down. She may have kept her face mostly neutral, but her mind was whirling. The implications of that… "Do you mean to tell me she's not even half a year old?"

That was impossible. Impossible…but it explained her transcript, or rather the lack thereof. What they had interpreted as Mikogami consciously censoring for safety was more because there had been nothing to censor—but no one else would know that. It was a brilliant play. It also explained why there wasn't even a picture. If she was going to continue aging so rapidly, a picture wouldn't make sense on a high school transcript until she matched the age requirement. One answer had been provided, but it just added so many more questions.

Ruby merely hummed an affirmative before moving to separate the two giggling girls. As they straightened themselves out, Eva knew she wasn't imagining the looks they were sending at each other. She shook her head ruefully. Hormones were bad enough during puberty as it was, now they had one swimming in them and another drowning in them, and she knew they had already been close beforehand.

"Cool your jets, brats. There's a time and place for everything," she said with a sigh. She was suddenly reminded why she and Vincent hadn't tried for kids yet.

Even as they panted for breath, Rei's skin darkened.

"A-Ah," the taller of the two stuttered as she collected herself. "M-My apologies. I am…unaccustomed to the ferocity of sensation in this form."

Her accomplice laughed. "Eh, clothes all stayed on and if you wanted to argue technicalities, we didn't even get to first base," Yukari stated with a shrug. "If you think that was good, you just wait 'til you get the real deal ~desu!"

When even Ruby chuckled in response, Eva remembered just who she was dealing with. Yukari Sendou might be an artificer unparalleled by anything in her memory, but she was also quite the little deviant too. It wasn't that Eva had a problem with that—there wasn't much she hadn't tried at least once over her six hundred years—but with her age also came wisdom and discretion. Unless the point was to ignore those things, of course.

"And I'd imagine that's going to be well into the future, Sendou. Let's focus on the here and now, shall we?" Eva said dryly, and Yukari made a face at her.

"Oooh fine, if we have to," she drawled dramatically as she pushed herself to her feet and helped Rei up. She then grabbed the wrapped box on the table and what Eva knew to be one of the teleportation charms—in the form of a plain rod for simplicity's sake. "Gather 'round, now. Make sure you're all touching."

The vampire looked at her wryly. "Live testing already? Confident, aren't you?"

The youngest witch present grinned. "Nah, we already did some dry fires earlier. That's why the others have this guy's twin. It'll be interesting to see if it takes more power to cross dimensions, or if since teleportation deals with dimensional shifts anyway then maybe there won't be any difference."

Eva startled. "Wait, cross what—?"

"Too late!" Yukari interrupted smugly. "Activate: Hikkoshimasu-kun!"

A magic circle sprung to life beneath them, and a second later the room was empty.

V^^^V

The light of a second magic circle heralded their arrival in another plane, and Eva looked around in interest. There were a few places in the world that qualified as secondary dimensions tied to the earthly realm, but none that she knew of so close to Youkai Academy, which was already a dimensional anomaly unto itself.

More questions, she thought ruefully. Though…at least this one I'll get a quick answer to.

It wasn't like they could hide it, seeing as they had just taken her there after all. Wherever it was, it looked like they were in a cave. Not a natural cave, however. The walls were too smooth, same with the floor, like they had been partially melted and structured that way. It was also enormous. Light fell in through the huge opening off in the distance—where even from where they were she could hear the wind howling outside—and makeshift candle sconces lined the walls as it went deeper. There was a large depression in the stone floor near one of the far walls, and to the side, a respectably-sized pool had been made, though it too looked like it had somehow naturally been formed into the sheer rock-face. The only thing really out of place was the piles of junk steel and the like, well out of the way of anything else.

"Well, you definitely have the 'secret cave' ambiance down, though this place looks like it should be filled with gold and jewels rather than old building materials," Eva said shrewdly, and Rei laughed.

"One day it very well may be," she responded wistfully. "For now, my treasures are not so literal."

For some reason those words, coming from that person, sent a chill down Eva's spine. "Then what's with the junk pile over there?"

"Right now the school is tearing down the old structures littering the grounds and turning that into a job-experience course," Ruby answered. "Since they were just going to haul away the remains after anyway, Rei and Yukari thought it would be a good idea to ask if they could take what they could. They probably didn't expect us to be able to take so much though!" she laughed. "Now we've got a lot of base metals we can alchemize into their component elements we wouldn't have otherwise, and besides that, Rei can use them to make more fittings for her cave here."

"'Tis rather lacking for guests, as you can see," the silver-eyed girl said with a smirk.

A cave and a bunch of scraps. Vin must never know of this. Eva chuckled. As it was, the entire cave was practically empty. "You have a thing for understatement, don't you?"

"She gets that from Tsukune," Ruby joked, and Eva noted how Rei looked torn between pride and embarrassment at the comparison. "Speaking of: would you mind calling him? Sounds like he's playing tag with the kamaitachi again, and you know how that gets."

Rei nodded, and as if in agreement, the howling from the entrance increased. "Indeed I do. 'Tis likely why my cave lies empty. They dare not challenge the winds," she said to the unasked question, then simply looked to the mouth of her cave and spread her arms.

The elder vampire merely turned to Ruby, eyebrow raised, and the witch shrugged apologetically. "The only reason we brought you here is because you've sworn to protect our secrets," she explained. "We're in what Master calls a 'monster's paradise,' or just Paradise, as we've taken to calling it. It's a protected, completely insulated dimension that holds what's left of the beast-youkai thought extinct. The sickle weasels are just one of those that call this place home."

As Eva silently absorbed that bombshell, the wind outside slowly quieted—then it blasted in like a wave of force, and the reason for Rei's outstretched arms became apparent when she disappeared into the gale with a joyous laugh. As the tempest died into a minor twister, the familiar was found in the hold of her partner as they spun to a stop, smiling brightly. His smile dimmed when he saw who had accompanied them, but he greeted Yukari and Ruby warmly all the same.

"What's the score at now, Tsukune?" Yukari chirped, and his expression darkened.

"Those cheaters still find ways of outmaneuvering me even now when I can actually chase them, but I got a couple solid points this round!" he crowed.

She smirked as she looked over the numerous strips that had been cut into his preferred training clothes. "And how far are you trailing?"

His mutinous grumble was all the answer the others needed.

Eva let him ignore her for the time being. She was well aware of the circumstances of their last meeting, and he had made his opinion of them perfectly clear. It also allowed her to get a better look at him. Unlike their first encounter, he was well-rested and well-fed, but even that didn't seem like enough to explain the sheer presence she felt tugging at her every faculty. Her memory wasn't perfect, but even his physical features seemed to have gained some kind of almost preternatural definition that all but shouted sexuality. The ease of his stance said he was completely aware of the phenomenon, and her mouth went dry when her mind supplied the likeliest way such a thing had come about. There was a reason the most powerful among succubus and incubus were also the most beautiful, and now that the thought was there, she remembered that Ruby had specifically mentioned 'projections' made by both Kurumu and him. She needed more information, but if what she was thinking was true…

She consciously fought down the bumps that wanted to rise on her arms. Moka was already ridiculously, impossibly overpowered for what an eighteen-year-old vampire should be; if her mate, someone turned by her blood, had access to the higher levels of an incubus' abilities…Eva had no idea how that seal had held out for so long, no matter what it was. It definitely warranted looking into.

Eventually she got tired of being forgotten, so she cleared her throat and smirked when they jumped. "Hello again," she said to Tsukune, "you're looking much better than the last time I saw you."

He flushed an endearing pink, and Eva's smirk widened. I've still got it, she thought smugly.

"Heh, I forgot I wasn't at my best there, was I?" he retorted with a sheepish grin as he scratched the back of his neck.

She studied him seriously, and ever so slowly his grin disappeared under her scrutiny. "True, you may not have looked your best, but under the circumstances I think you did very well," she told him. "You thought of your clan first; I can appreciate that." His grin returned, more genuine than it had been. "So I'll leave teaching you what you should have done to when you'll be able to devote some time to it. Luckily, you shouldn't have to deal with the whole court for a while yet, and your wife can deal with that if you do."

It was startling for Tsukune to recall that for all the pleasure he took in hearing Moka call him her blood-mate, what she was actually referring to him as was her husband. It was the first time another person, another vampire, had actually said the word aloud. It was enough to make his chest burn with pride and joy, and when he felt Moka reacting to it from the other end of their bond, he simply sent it all the more. She may not have known the reason for it, but nevertheless she appreciated it.

Obviously some of the dopey happiness he felt was mirrored on his face, because Evangeline chuckled throatily. "The terminology is another thing you'll have to learn about when dealing with the other clans—as with most youkai, some words mean different things or hold different implications. For example: right there, calling her your wife would be no different than calling her your mate, but if you called her your blood-mate first to set the tone, other vampires would know how serious you took the word. Just think the difference between a succubus using 'lover' and 'destined one.' Are you familiar with that one?"

The girls just snickered as Tsukune's lips twitched knowingly. "I've heard it before, yes," he replied, straight-faced, to the continued amusement of his friends. "Speaking of succubae, you probably want me to get Kurumu and the others, right? Or did you just call me so me and the kamaitachi would let you get out?"

"A little of both, actually," Ruby quipped. "We really only need Mizore, but having everyone here wouldn't be bad either. How long have Noriko and Isao been working by now?"

He shrugged. "I think they're closing in on three hours by now, so it's about time we called it. I was actually with Isao for the first bit today, but then Kurumu wanted to work with him and Riko so I started a game of tag."

"Huh, then what's Mizore doing?" Yukari asked curiously.

Tsukune's expression tightened. "Using ice clones with Kurumu. You know they've been trying to get those two to fight better together, and Kurumu and Mizore's duet has a lot more actual training behind it than the variant Rei and I cobbled together. I'd work with Moka, but…" He sighed. "I don't want to push either of them in regards to Riko, and you know how she is about training people."

Judging from the nods he received, Eva guessed that whoever this 'Riko' was, Moka Akashiya didn't exactly think the highest of her.

"It's nice to see you two here though," he continued as he smiled at Rei and Yukari. "I swear, you've been spending more time with my familiar than I have this past month, Yukari." The two smiled back at him unrepentantly, and he sighed again. "You know, every time you do that it scares me just a bit more."

"It should," Yukari stated smugly as she wrapped an arm around the taller girl's waist and Rei put hers over the witch's shoulders. She passed the box she was holding in her other arm over to Rei then held out the dowel to Tsukune. "And here, use this for the trips back. The start-up phrase is 'activate,' then its name, Hikkoshimasu-kun."

He nodded as he took it, and a great wind rushed in through the mouth of the cave. When it was gone, so was he.

Evangeline shook her head at the casual display of power. "I imagine he took that wind-riding ability from the kamaitachi? It would be faster than flying, but not exactly the most precise either if he has to rely on aiming the currents. It's interesting however, since sickle weasels were always said to have traveled in threes, and two attacked while the third healed the majority and kept the rest from bleeding. When he stabbed Mom those wounds were certainly serious and definitely painful, so would he need a second weasel with him to complete it or can he choose to use both and simply didn't at the time? It would have saved him the hassle of how he did heal her."

"In truth, the question never occurred." Rei paused thoughtfully. "Though I required Tsukki exercise each ability found he felt worthwhile, at most he gains a rudimentary understanding through the blood taken. Even he tends to forget the true scope of his abilities, and often finds himself caught unawares by aspects of his pilfered blood hitherto overlooked or unidentified."

"Yeah, like when he accidentally fell into my dreams because he didn't know he could dreamwalk," Yukari giggled.

"…What." Eva was proud of how dry she kept her voice.

"Oh yeah, we've been using it to study and unwind ~desu! Do you know how effective meditation is when you're already in the heart of your subconscious? That's one of the things I've been working on in my spare time—designing a ritual circle that'll let Kurumu or Tsukune direct a dream all of us can join. Right now they have to take turns between everyone."

"What spare time?"

Yukari looked at her blankly. "You don't think I spent the month you weren't here doing just one thing, did you? Do you know how much time we can spend in an incubus-controlled lucid dream? Dreams happen at the speed of thought ~desu! The only downside is I have to recreate the design in the real world afterwards to show Ruby and test it. You've been asking what we'd like to do; after we show off Rei's project that ritual schema is our next priority, if that's all right. If we can get it working, you'll have a lot more time to teach us anything you think we should know."

The blonde vampiress almost had to bite her tongue to keep back her knee-jerk response to that. When she did start to reply, it was interrupted by the magic circle that sprouted to life from the stick still in their midst. Even though Eva knew they had taken collision detection into account when they made the pair, it didn't stop them from springing out of the radius. Five people appeared, then with a jaunty wave and another breeze Tsukune was gone again.

"Somehow I expected…more," the boy with dual-toned hair said lamely, and the petite girl with distinctly vulpine features shrugged beside him.

"I'm more surprised you don't instantly want one so you don't have to walk back to your room every day," she countered.

He chuckled quietly. "Why say what you already know?"

The girl harrumphed, annoyed that she could see his logic.

Ruby took it upon herself to introduce the new arrivals. "Sensei, these are the first year captains of the Public Safety Commission, Noriko Myobu and Isao Nura. Since Tsukune and Moka are the third year captains, they decided it would be best to make sure they were up to the task. Noriko, Isao, this is Evangeline Valentine. You can think of her to us what we are to you."

The girl's wide eyes made Eva laugh, even as she carefully considered the boy. "Nura, you say? How…interesting," she murmured. To her experienced eye, she could tell he was trying to hide the tension in his muscles, but he had a long way to go until he could fool someone like her. She smirked at him and he relaxed sheepishly, even if not totally. "And a Myobu too. Mikogami sure knows how to pick 'em." She shook her head ruefully. "Always nice to meet the next generation."

They just finished responding when the circle lit again, and moments later everyone was back together.

"Hmm, maybe I could have thought this through better," Tsukune admitted when he looked around. "Riko, Isao, we're done for the day. I know you're tired. I should have just dropped you off at the door."

Battle-scuffed and worn, both students indeed looked like they had been put through the wringer yet again, but their smiles were genuine. So was their relief, when he extended his hand to each in turn. They took it gratefully, and Eva was once more witness to the strange healing that left them good as new and Tsukune bearing their former scuffs. On him they disappeared rapidly, but the slump in his energy was obvious.

"They don't need to leave quite yet. We'd like to get their opinion on something," Ruby demurred. "Rei?"

The dragoness stepped to Mizore, box outstretched. "While I could not anticipate recent…circumstances…'tis only of greater—nay, of greatest import at present. If I cannot hide away my treasures, I will ensure they are protected."

Mizore quirked a brow and took the offering, bending only slightly at the unexpected weight. The others were more than curious as she opened the package, and her expression furrowed when she failed to comprehend just what she was seeing. The first thing she pulled out looked more like a neck-warmer than anything else, but it was silvery white and much too thin to be winter-wear—not like a snow woman would even need winter-wear.

"Come. Allow me to assist," Rei insisted, hooking her arm in Mizore's as she hefted the box and moved them away from the group. Shortly thereafter a wall of opaque ice blocked their view, which they took to mean there was more clothing inside.

Tsukune looked to Yukari inquisitively and she just smirked at him, radiating smugness at the confusion all around her.

When the two reappeared, his wasn't the only jaw dropped.

Kurumu squealed and clapped her hands, excitedly flying over to circle her duet partner from all angles. "That…is so unbearably cool!" the succubus cried.

Now covered entirely in the silvery clothing, a fitted coat complete with hood only allowed the bottom of Mizore's face to be seen. Or it would have, if the half-mask seen earlier didn't cover it. The coat's torso clearly had corset inspirations leading to her chest, but the sleeves were long and flowing in the same style as her old sweater—not only hiding her hands, but allowing space for their transformation if she took on her true form. The trousers were just as sleek, drawing the eyes to the knee-high boots made from the same material.

"No kidding," Noriko breathed. "It's like Assassin's Creed meets Elder Scrolls with a bit of Star Wars thrown in." She blushed furiously at the looks thrown her way. "Oh come on! Don't any of you play video games?!"

The spirit fox slapped her face when the only people who raised their hands were Isao and the blonde they had just been introduced to. "That explains so much," she mumbled.

"I do feel a bit like I'm cosplaying," Mizore admitted. "What's this made of anyway? It's like leather but cool to the touch."

"Ah, to explain that I must request you simply hold still. And trust me," Rei replied.

When Mizore nodded, she took a deep breath in and without so much as a warning, proceeded to douse the snow woman's lower half in dragonfire.

Tsukune wasn't the only one to shout in alarm, but when Mizore stumbled out of the flame patting wildly at her legs with icy talons, she was utterly unscathed.

Rei's smile was wicked. "Flame may be your enemy, but to me 'tis my closest friend. Noriko, if you would?"

The youko's hands shook when she realized what Rei was asking, but aimed and fired at her mentor anyway. Mizore curled into herself and fought the instinctive urge to smother the bolt with her ice, but the foxfire washed over her back and dissipated like so much smoke.

"I would never endanger you," Rei continued. "What you wear is fashioned from my shed scales. Fear not fire nor claw, for tempered as they are 'tis much the same as armor. Of the lighter variety, for certain, but armor nonetheless."

"And now that we've got the teleporters working, once we iron out the specifics, you could be in them in seconds ~desu!" Yukari exclaimed happily.

"What, like 'Pretty Soldier Mizore Shirayuki'?" Kurumu quipped. She laughed. "I can totally see it! Ooh, ooh! Can she have an activation phrase and transformation sequence?"

"Laugh it up, Boobzilla," the ice maiden shot back. "How much you wanna bet they've got something planned for you too?"

The succubus froze, and not because of her partner's ice.

"Naturally," Rei confirmed offhandedly. "Yukari and Ruby have been gifted my Tears, Tsukki and Moka receive my blood; I refuse to allow dangers I can prevent to threaten my treasures. As his vision so gruesomely taught me: you are not as fireproof as I. 'Twas only made urgent in light of…" Her eyes flicked to the First Years in their midst. "…circumstances."

Mizore's arms twitched towards her midsection reflexively, and the specks of blue they could see in the shadow of her hood glistened as she thanked her.

"That's made out of your scales? Holy crap, that is like something out of Elder Scrolls," Noriko said as her eyes raked over the outfit. "I mean, I'm literally a flaming kitsune immune to fire too and that still looks wicked cool! Almost like a white Nightingale!"

Blank stares met her enthusiasm, and in the silence that followed, Rei had to point out, "…I admit, I fail to see the resemblance to the songbird, though I have no doubt as to her vocal acuity."

Both Kurumu and Tsukune went into coughing fits, and studiously avoided the glare being sent from under the hood as they tried to hide their shaking shoulders.

Noriko groaned, "Right. Heathens."

Evangeline chuckled softly as she patted her fellow blonde on the arm. "I see it too, don't worry," she agreed, and glanced at Tsukune. "I have to admit, I'm surprised at you, Aono. A boy your age and no video games?"

Red started crawling up his neck again. "A few, I guess. Mostly just arcade games. That was…uh, more my cousin Kyou-chan's territory. Enough to know who your husband's named after." He frowned. "Uh, I guess that would be more like who was named after your husband, huh? Since high school I've been…" His eyes darted between his companions, and he cleared his throat uncomfortably. "…Um, busy."

Eva grinned at him, distinctly shark-like, and he waved his hands frantically.

"No, really! First it was Anti-Thesis in first year, then dealing with Fairy Tale and the Wongs in second year! For crying out loud we were doing homework minutes before raiding corporate offices manned by hundreds of monsters! And that was between dealing with Ling-Ling, Fang-Fang and their attempts to keep us with them!" He tiredly rubbed his face. "I wish we'd had time for video games."

Noriko fell gracelessly to her butt when her knees decided to unceremoniously give out on her. "You…you dealt with Fairy Tale?" she whispered.

"It'd be better to say we were kind-of-not-really conned into dealing with Fairy Tale," Moka answered as she moved a hand into Tsukune's.

"Yeah. Anti-Thesis' whole plot revolved around neutralizing the school's Grand Barrier to expose the youkai world, but it turned out they were just a branch of Fairy Tale. Now those monsters may not have been vampires, but together they had oodles of money and huge chips on their shoulders," Ruby elaborated. "They had been gathering like-minded youkai for years, spreading them through their corporations and the youkai settlements in what really amounted to a take-over-the-world plot. They wanted to expose one or as many of the dimensional bubbles as they could, and while the rest of the world was panicking or hunting down those exposed, they'd use the chaos to expand and kill off the human competition until they didn't even realize who was calling the shots anymore. Some of those corporations had military contracts, but what they lacked was a way to truly counter the weapons of mass destruction the humans have.

"We think they were looking for something that might let them turn the tables in an all-out confrontation, but they couldn't find it. They tried enlisting vampires, but most of them are fine with the status quo—why would they care when they're top of the food chain already? The closest Fairy Tale got was hiring a few as mercenaries. Fairy Tale was playing a long game, but when we kept stopping their way to get the heat off themselves for their plans to work, then attacked them ourselves, they fell apart."

"And you would not believe how many companies were involved in this. They'd been planning for a long time," Tsukune went on. "But 'best laid plans,' and all that though, right? We couldn't just let all these companies, many of them longstanding, just collapse overnight. There'd be too many questions, too many repercussions. So we left that aspect of it to the Wongs. Touhou Fuhai and the Exorcist had already been gathering information about it, and they used fixing Moka's seal as an excuse for us to help them out." He rubbed his forehead. "That year really sucked."

"And that explains why China has been so quiet lately. The Wong family is still getting everything in order," Isao muttered, too quiet for all but the closest to hear. Evangeline shot him a look that he weathered silently, but she agreed with him.

Not for the first time Touhou Fuhai, the Undefeated of the East, had truly earned his title. Who knew how many assets his family controlled now?

"And there was some reason you didn't ask for anything after it was all said and done, wasn't there?" Eva stated rhetorically.

Moka opened her mouth to respond, but Tsukune stopped her. "Like hell we didn't. I asked for one very simple thing: to leave us be. Companies, corporations; I don't care about any of that. Touhou Fuhai saved Moka's life and for that I'd let him have all that and more, but I didn't want any of us to be a part of that world. I can deal with manipulative headmasters, sadistic math teachers, scumbag gym teachers, schoolwide riots, asshole priestesses and even plans to take over the freaking world—but the Triad? Yakuza?" He shook his head somberly. "Not happening. If the Exorcist didn't send us there in the first place, I'd never have gone."

"We didn't burn our bridges with them, but we let Ling-Ling and Fang-Fang know that if we did deal with them again, we wanted it to be as friends," Moka clarified. "We were already tangled about enough with one Dark Lord, we couldn't afford to let it happen again. Luckily the only thing we heard of the third in that whole debacle was that he allowed Fairly Tale to hire his other daughters. Even luckier, we only ever met Kahlua. We stayed well away from wherever my oldest sister was reported to be. We think when my fa…sire saw the way the wind was blowing, he had her cut their losses as it is."

"That does sound like Shuzen," Eva granted, trying and mostly failing to wrap her head around just how much this small, barely-established clan had done in a short three years. Clearly the two firsties were trying to do the same, if their expressions were any indication.

"This all stays between us, right you two?" Tsukune said sharply, and Isao and Noriko flew into a salute so fast they almost brained themselves. "Good. Can we please talk about something else now?"

"Aww, but you're so cute when you get all worked up and…and…Mizore, help me out here!" Kurumu cooed.

The snow woman thought about it as she pulled back her hood and tugged down the mask. "Authoritative? Commanding?"

To the side, Ruby shuddered.

"That works!" the succubus cheered.

Tsukune gave a heartfelt groan hid his face in Moka's collarbone, and the others snickered or rolled their eyes when the pink-haired vampiress patted him patronizingly on the back.

"You're all heart, dear," he deadpanned into her shoulder, and Moka flushed even though her grin was full of fang as she eyed the flesh so close.

"Don't mention it, darling. And thanks for the meal."

The sound he made when her pointed canines met his neck turned Noriko and Isao red, and Tsukune was glad his face was hidden when Moka finished with a happy sigh. When he composed himself he left a parting kiss to the cross around her neck as he moved, and smirked when he felt the restrained impression of embarrassment and lust from one part of his blood-bond. He wobbled as he straightened, weakened from her feeding, then Rei's wrist was in front of him, freshly wounded.

Eva watched closely as the young vampire fed, but perhaps the most surprising aspect of it to her was how the solo in nature's choir she had come to associate with the boy swelled immediately following, deepening and increasing in complexity. She had never seen anything like it. She noticed Rei was watching him just as intently, yet even as he frowned, obviously in deep concentration, nothing else was forthcoming.

He then sighed heavily. "I'm sorry, Rei. I can feel it, but it's just not like Mizore's or Kurumu's. Theirs are—damn it!" Because even as he said that, his hands had transformed into the glittering diamond of a snow person, and he had to consciously calm himself before they changed back. "Uppity, as you can see."

"Yet some effect remains. Most perplexing," the teen stated with a frown much like his. To prove her point she spat a pellet of flame at his forearm, and though he yelped and smacked at it, the sore quickly healing over was barely first-degree.

Eva's eyebrows rose. Vincent had mentioned spearing him through with his Cerberus and the resulting wound, and she now had confirmation of how that had been possible. It made sense, if the scales the girl shed were impervious to even a youko's flame.

A rather chilling thought occurred to her then. If he was so deeply immersed in the snow woman's heritage that it came at the slightest inclination of its need, had he gained a resistance—or god forbid: an immunity—to water at the same time?

She needed a drink.

"I wonder if it would work any faster if he had some of Riko's blood," Isao pondered aloud, and Eva amended her earlier thought.

She really needed a drink.

"That…doesn't sound too unreasonable," Tsukune deliberated uneasily.

Noriko knew the blush was up her neck even as she said, "You could, if you wanted. You've done so much for us, it only seems fair."

"Uh…I guess if you're okay with it…"

When he walked to her, Noriko tried not to notice how he compared to her compact and streamlined form.

"Don't worry. Unlike a dentist, when I say you'll only feel a bit of pressure, I mean it," he joked, yet his fangs intimidated her regardless. Therefore, to her pleasant astonishment she only felt a mild tingle as he bit down, but the uniqueness of the sensation sent gooseflesh crawling over every inch of her skin.

Okay, she thought as he pulled away, that's going in the 'private instruction' folder.

Tsukune started coughing hoarsely, rubbing at his nose as his face went through a variety of expressions most would compare to getting pepper up the nose. "Ack! Spicy! Definitely—whoo! Wow! Hot-hot-hot!" He danced around, noticeably away from everyone just in case, as he tried to put out a fire burning in his very blood. "Damn, I'm gonna…gonna…! No…? No. Whew. Okay," he sighed finally, full of relief. "False alarm."

Then he sneezed—and promptly exploded.

Those that turned away at the bright flash of light were still blinking spots out of their vision when a splash in the pool to the side gained their attention. The specially-treated water was sizzling around him, but it was clearly the upper half of Tsukune's face poking out over the edge.

"What are you doing over there, moron?" Kokoa groused irritably as she rubbed at her eyes.

His face was redder than ever as he sneezed again, just lightly, and they got a good laugh when his hair lit on fire for a second.

"That's why!" he shouted back.

They turned to Noriko for an explanation, and the girl was almost as red as Tsukune. "Um…w-when I transform…um…I'm…uh…on fire, yeah? Clothes don't usually survive it, right?"

Their heads slowly spun back to the pool.

"Are you naked in there!?" Kokoa screeched.

"Hey! I'm just as upset about this as—" He sneezed again, and lit up again. "—you are! Those were my favorite—training clothes! Do you know how—much they survived!? Only for a sneeze to take them out!?"

Yukari looked torn, but finally with a mutter and a wave of her wand, she had conjured up and identical pair of cut-off cargo shorts and a sleeveless t-shirt. "You owe me big for this ~desu!" she exclaimed as she sent them flying to him.

"Yukari, I could kiss you right now!"

She brightened. "Really?!"

Moka put her hand on the young witch's shoulder. "No, not really," the vampiress countered, which saved her mate from responding.

Yukari pouted.

"It does seem strange that he has so little control over it though. I've seen you use your foxfire in human form without damaging your clothes," Isao noted clinically to his fellow leader.

Noriko shrugged. "It takes practice, but we get most of that as we're learning to take on our human disguises. I'd say he has the opposite problem. No matter what he's shown us he can do, I've never seen him change into anything not humanoid. Even when he's channeling the kamaitachi he's only taking on elements of their appearance rather than actually changing into one of them like a doppelganger. The closest he's gotten is with Mizore and Kurumu's blood, and snow women and succubae only look a little different from humans as it is. I'd say he wants to be on fire like a youko should be, but since he doesn't want to change it's expressing itself when it can."

It was a very good point, and one none of them had considered before. Evangeline in particular thought it strange. When Vincent recounted his meeting with the boy, everything he displayed could be attributed to what youkai his friends were. But he wasn't a vampire originally. She knew from experience that she had kept her witch heritage despite being turned, so unless he was among the ranks of his clan's varied members beforehand, why did he only use their powers?

"Your battle form is humanoid. Think he could pull that off?"

Noriko stared at her lazy co-leader in something akin to horror. She knew Tsukune was sealed. She knew the power he and Moka had at their fingertips. Had seen it firsthand. A youko's battle form with a vampire's power behind it? She didn't know if she should be aroused or lose control of her bladder.

"It's…possible," she conceded. "Our battle forms are orders of magnitude above simply learning how to go human, so I'd say it's unlikely. He can't even stabilize the foxfire enough to take on our natural form."

Isao tilted his head. "Hn. Was just a thought."

"No, it was a good guess," Mizore said to them as she made her way over, Kurumu following. "You just don't have all the information. The ones Tsukune uses the most? He had teachers. Kurumu and I spent hours helping him learn how to use our abilities, Ruby and Yukari have been teaching him magic, and even if the sickle weasels can't talk, he spends so much time 'playing' with them that he's learned through familiarity. If you think it's something he's doing wrong, why don't you try to help him do it right?"

With the woman she respected most in the entire academy looking her dead in the eyes, Noriko couldn't decline the challenge. Straightening her shoulders, the demon fox gave her mentor a nod then walked off to the pool.

As Eva watched the two converse in the distance, she reflected on what she had heard. Blood Sages were a rarity amidst the already rare vampire race; if there even was one still among them they would most certainly be on the Council of Elders. Their use of borrowed blood was fabled but not well documented, and Mizore's words did expand on what Rei had said earlier. If he only gained a basic understanding of what he could do, teachers would be necessary to get the most out of his unique skillset—but vampires in the past weren't always the most patient, nor were they the most friendly, especially during the warring eras when the term had been coined. Again, Tsukune had found himself in the rather unique position to be fed the blood of monsters exclusively—while most vampires, herself included, preferred human—and also to have those same monsters train him in its use.

But transforming the likes of what they were talking about? She didn't know if even the Sages of old had done that, and Wealth of Power had been far more widespread back then.

Yet wasn't that what he was already doing? Just the changes he was already capable of was outside the range of 'normal,' even if they were aesthetically pleasing in the eyes of some. The next logical step was from humanoid to bestial.

She was old, old enough to be considered an Elder, but the 1400s was still well within the realm of human-based society. Added to that her own turned nature and her lack of any vampire peers in her development, she had never spent the time maturing that skill.

Ironic, she knew, as she thought of her husband's view on the matter, but true nonetheless.

As the time passed and Tsukune and Noriko practiced, Eva found herself drawn into the ritual circle Ruby and Yukari wanted her to look at. Kurumu and Mizore were next to her, Kurumu because as a succubus she was going to be the heart of such a ritual, while Mizore was there for lack of anything better to do. Isao had settled down for a nap on his haori—a normal occurrence, from what the others told her. Rei was studiously poring over a textbook she'd had hidden away somewhere, while Moka and Kokoa were practicing pressure-point strikes away from where they might be a distraction. Far more of a distraction were the flashes of light as Tsukune applied Riko's instructions as it was.

As Ruby and Yukari walked her through their designs thus far, with Yukari utilizing her winged tarot cards to sketch them out with chalk on the smooth floor, Eva could definitely acknowledge the time they had quite obviously bled into the idea. Even if she couldn't quite believe how. Their last schema was massive, built around the concept of spokes to represent a connection to each additional member that would be drawn into the array from a central point where the succubus, or incubus, controlled the dream.

Yet again she could hardly believe what these two witches had accomplished despite their ages. Ruby and Yukari's respective specialties complemented each other perfectly. Yukari employed the inanimate in both her conjuration and her crafting, heavily rooted in theory and rituals to best create her artifacts to compensate for her small size and youth. Ruby was almost her exact opposite, transforming herself to do battle directly, and her focus on flora and fauna ran counter to Yukari's inorganic in the same way her study of alchemy rounded out the younger's rituals. They used that to teach themselves what the other lacked, and Yukari's genius naturally improved them.

Even as Eva pointed out minor adjustments that could be made, that was all they were—minor. Yukari Sendou had a grasp of symbology and its application that wouldn't have been out of place in a witch ten times her age. Sadly, the subjective nature of rituals often required them to be carried out to see if they functioned properly.

The fact that they were making the most feared and dangerous ability a succubus had even more dangerous seemed to be lost on them. She doubted they even knew of what it had once been used for.

"Based on what you've told me and what I see here, I think that's as good as this one is going to get," Eva said as she brushed off her hands and stretched the kinks in her back. "I'd say it should work, but that remains to be seen."

Kurumu bounced up and down, clapping and squealing in excitement to her duet partner's fond exasperation.

"Should we try it out then before we get ahead of ourselves?" Mizore asked. "Or do all the spokes need to be full to work?"

Ruby tapped her chin. "We made it large enough for all of us if needed, but it would be a waste if it didn't work only partially filled. If this does work as planned we should probably get Rei to claw out a new room where we can set this into the floor rather than remake it every time. It would be a good place to put a static array for the teleportation talismans as well, then we can all get to each other and get to here quickly either separately or together. We should probably have one in my room too, just in case." She slumped. "And we've got to make the talismans now too. We're going to be spending a lot of time engraving this next week."

"I'll help when I can," Mizore offered, "but I'm sure you'd ask anyway, if you're still planning on putting them in earrings. Just like last time? I do the anchor array and you do the rest?"

"Sounds good," Ruby replied with a smile. "Thank you."

"Well if we're going to test it out, no time like the present, right?! Let's go!" Kurumu cheered.

Mizore obligingly settled into the end of a spoke on a hastily conjured mat as Ruby, Yukari, and Rei did the same. Kurumu took her place in the center and carefully charmed them to sleep, then with a deep breath she closed her eyes. The circle began emitting a gentle glow that inevitably caught the attention of the others, and soon Eva had company watching the proceedings.

She regarded Tsukune from the corner of her eyes. "Done setting yourself on fire, brat?"

"For now," he chortled. "It was a bit overpowering there for a little while, but I'm glad Riko decided to help me out. Rei would have had to take them back otherwise."

A stately eyebrow rose. "Oh?"

"When I'm focused on one ability I can't really use another, can I?" he asked rhetorically. "Honestly, it's easier to switch between them when I'm normal like this, but using two at the same time? Can't do it. Never could."

"Huh." That was an interesting tidbit. "Are you done your little session now, or just coming to see the lights?"

"Done. Next time I'll expect what's coming better, so it'll be easier for me to concentrate on it. If—!" he injected quickly, "if that's all right with you, of course, Riko."

"No problem with me," the youko answered easily. "You looked like you almost had a handle on it by the end there. Gotta say, it's interesting watching someone try to go through the whole thing in reverse. Normally we start foxy and go human, so I'm not even sure how I'm supposed to really teach it."

"You didn't do too badly; don't worry," Tsukune assured her. "At least I'm not blowing my clothes off when I sneeze anymore, so I'll count that as a plus."

Eva chuckled throatily when regret briefly flashed over the girl's expression. The boy was certainly a fine specimen of his gender, so she couldn't blame her. An older boy, attractive and kind, with power to boot? She would be more surprised if the little blonde wasn't harboring at least some kind of crush. Wisely, the fox had chosen to ignore those baser instincts. Crushes came and went, especially at that age, and she had been throwing similar looks to her co-leader. That at least had a better chance of going somewhere.

"Did it help with your familiar's blood like Nura suspected?" Eva chose to say, rather than tease her fellow blonde.

He paused musingly. "You know, I don't know. I definitely get fire better, but as for that…I'm not sure. After I check over everyone I'll ask Rei for a bit more."

"By 'check over,' do you mean that healing you do?" When he nodded, her lips twitched. "I don't think I've heard of a youkai that can do that, even in the old tales. Do you know where you got it from?"

He opened his mouth. Closed it. Frowned. "I spent a month here with Rei over summer break, living off only the blood I could hunt. Sometime over that I just started…getting this sense, you know? When I touch someone, there's…something that tells me how they're doing and I can just…use it. I never questioned it before, it was just something I could do after that."

If he truly didn't know all about what he drank when he did, Eva supposed that could be possible, but there was nothing wrong with seeing if she could find out more. "Give me some warning before you do it next time. I'd like to see if I can tell you anything new," she said, though really it was more for her own curiosity than his.

"Uh…okay? I'll see about the others when they wake up. For now, I should probably get Riko and Isao back."

After the youko had prodded the sleeping boy awake with her foot and a few choice threats, they were off. Evangeline was glad for it. She was only too conscious of the Oath they had exchanged, and while the younger clan had taken it upon themselves to improve those students, they were not part of the clan itself. Only so much could be discussed with them present; in fact she was surprised with what the clan did share with them. It just went to show what they felt was important.

She glanced at the ritual taking place right beside her. A joint dreamwalk—the realm where a succubus or incubus was more or less all-powerful. What they could do to her if she joined them…it was quite literally the stuff nightmares were made of. She knew their Oath prevented such a thing, but long experience kept her wary of any threat she couldn't immediately counteract. Not that her inability was born of ignorance. Far from it. She knew exactly what it was and what it could do; that was why she was so cautious of it.

A gust of wind heralded Tsukune's return, and as if on cue the glowing symbols slowly lost their lustre. The succubus at the center groaned her way to the land of the living as she stretched her arms up over her head, proudly jutting out her chest as her back arched sinfully. The other four were blinking their way awake more gracefully, and Tsukune was halfway to Mizore when the tone of Kurumu's groan changed.

Distinctly pained, the succubus rubbed her temples to try and fend off the throbbing of her skull. Her destined one helped her sit up, then gently but firmly began kneading the back of her neck where it met her head. Kurumu's groan of relief was nearly sexual. She knew teaching him how to massage would be a gift that kept on giving.

She squinted a look at the surroundings. "They gone?"

"Isao and Riko?" Tsukune murmured, in deference to her headache. "Yeah. Just took them back to the door a few minutes ago."

"Good."

That said, the illusionist pulled her destined one to her lips. Success was a high not even the ache at the sides of her head could dull, and she was determined to reward herself. Tsukune didn't disappoint her, eagerly reciprocating as she shuffled into his lap.

Moka and Mizore chuckled, and suddenly, the dynamic of the clan hers had aligned themselves with made so much more sense to Evangeline Valentine.

"You'd almost think she made the ritual with how happy she is," Yukari mumbled, and Rei squeezed her shoulder. "I know, I know. It was pretty fun, wasn't it?"

"Indeed," the dragoness replied. "I cannot wait to share the experience."

"I don't see why we can't right away," Moka interjected. "You were only out for…maybe ten minutes? How long was it for you?"

Rei smiled wickedly. "Quite a bit longer, I should say. 'Twas most amusing."

"What? Why? What'd you do in there?"

"I may have forced Kurumu through my memories of class and review for the past week," Yukari chirped innocently. "I thought it would be an interesting experiment to see how much sticks when shared like that. Lord knows she needs it."

Moka tried to hide her smile, but Mizore's quiet laughter ended that. "It's a lot easier to tell what you remember when you're actually in your head, isn't it?" she said neutrally.

"There is that. I'm shocked you even get around to studying with Tsukune," Mizore teased. "Or do you just take a whole lot of 'study breaks'?"

Moka flushed, then went positively scarlet as she glared at her rosary. "Ura-chan!"

Even occupied as they were, she still heard Tsukune and Kurumu chuckle. She glared at them too.

Mizore distracted her from that when she ran a hand over her pearl-laden choker. "This from the woman who practically mounted him in front of all of us when he came back from Paradise. You're never embarrassed about what you do with Tsukune—except when you compare it to what she does with Tsukune," the snow woman pondered aloud as she casually tapped the rosary. The pinkette couldn't help but notice how close she was, close enough to smell the sugar on her breath and see the sapphire tinge her candy gave her pale lips. "Makes me wonder."

Pink lashes fluttered as Moka refocused on Mizore's face with some difficulty. It was hard to forget the phantom memory of those lips on her inner self's, or the all too personal memory of the snowstorm of emotion their lover had uncovered and unwittingly then purposely shared through their blood-bond. Her own jumbled feelings were only compounded daily by those he felt.

"Wonder what?" the vampiress finally croaked.

"What she did to get that reaction back at the assembly," she answered with a grin as she popped out her candy. Moka went red again in short order, but not even her sputters stopped Mizore from continuing. "And if you two can be that different, if you can make her have the same reaction." Mizore grabbed the cross and made to pull the taller woman down to her, but both their eyes went wide when instead they heard a familiar chink.

The explosion of youki caught them all off-guard, and when it ceased, it was the inner Moka that was looking down into Mizore's uncharacteristically wide baby blues.

They stared at each other for a long moment, inscrutable red eyes shifting between the clear blue and the cross held in her hand.

The commotion had Kurumu and Tsukune rushing over, but it was Kokoa that summed up the thoughts of everyone when she blurted, "How?"

"…There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in our philosophy," Moka answered softly.

Eva laughed. "In other words: you don't know, but you have to believe what's right in front of you." Nevertheless, her eyes narrowed. "I wasn't aware anyone but Aono could remove your rosary."

"Rei can," Yukari supplied. "We could only guess why. Even the headmaster and Touhou Fuhai only dared make small changes to stabilize it."

"Why would they even do that though?" Eva asked. "Why would you want to keep a seal you can't remove yourself? If it was breaking, you had the chance to get a new one."

She knew the answer was going to be a doozy when they all exchanged looks.

Moka sighed heavily. "Because I couldn't condemn her for the actions of someone else. As much as I hated her at first, she became a sister to me. Could I kill someone who taught me how to look past my anger? Who could laugh?" She looked to Tsukune. "Love? Feel sorrow? Heartbreak? Maybe I could have, once. Before her. It would probably be best to show you. We were going to do that ritual again anyway."

The silver-haired woman took the rosary from Mizore, but before she put it back onto its chain, she considered the snow woman carefully. Then she kissed her. Gently. Quickly. But more than long enough for her to taste her. She whispered something into her ear as she pulled away, and Mizore grinned widely as she stole a glance at Ruby.

"Really?" the ice maiden laughed.

"Really."

After another kiss, this time to Tsukune, she clipped the rosary back on. With Eva pre-warned and paying attention, she could see the other vampiress' body subtly change as its skin and hair darkened, which was worrying by itself. Not only that, but in the time it took to change, the woman's intense green eyes had gone misty, and her throat bobbed as she clutched the cross she had just reconnected. Now that she had been around all of them for longer than their first disastrous meeting, she could tell that even in the small time unsealed, Moka's mannerisms had been undoubtedly different than when sealed. That could be attributed to the confidence such power gave, but somehow she didn't think so. More worrying.

Silently, Evangeline recited an aria she knew as well as her own name as she let her internal radar go. She had used a more directed version when dealing with Alexander's trouble, but her connection to blood and nature altered her supernatural perception with or without a defined target. It was a skill she had honed through ages past, allowing her to see falsehoods and threats simply by looking for telltale signs in the orchestra of life around her. It was how she had maneuvered the politics of the vampire court when she came to Japan, and how she had chosen who had eventually become her blood-mate.

Nowadays she tried to restrict its use whenever possible, since it tended to ruin any of the surprises that made life interesting.

Even then, she couldn't understand what she was seeing when she looked at Moka. No matter how she tried, what she was looking at didn't make any sense. Or rather, it did, but only in the most disturbing of ways.

It almost looks like… But that would be…

And suddenly, she had a very good idea of why what they wanted to show her could only be done mentally.

In the lull as the witches checked the circle to make sure nothing had been scuffed or damaged since their awakening, Eva noticed Tsukune following, listening closely as they explained to him what the parts of the array they were examining did. Then he touched them, one at a time, and Eva nearly recoiled when she saw what he was doing.

She counted to ten. Slowly. Then in a few different languages when that didn't work.

"Aono," she called, voice deceptively calm as she worked her jaw to resist grinding her teeth together.

"Yeah?" he replied, as if everyone else wasn't eavesdropping.

"You know that 'healing touch' of yours?"

He nodded.

"You know how you said it felt like something was telling you about their bodies? And you could use it?"

Another nod.

Her jaw twitched, chewing over her words as her tongue scraped the taste they left in her mouth. "We share a connection to blood and nature. A witch's magic, true magic, is ultimately the most diverse, but blood magic is powerful in its own right. You're a Blood Sage, Aono. You're using a tactile connection to read their blood without even drawing it, then you're using that connection to perform an actual blood magic ritual—a vitality transference ritual. If you can learn to manipulate that ritual's effectiveness…there's no telling what you could use it for."

Tsukune tilted his head. "Huh."

That time Eva counted to twenty as she skillfully resisted the almost overpowering urge to smack him silly. In the week she had been exposed to this clan in any measure, she found her patience and her incredulity pushed to their limits, and that was just with two of them. With all of them she found it wasn't something limited to just the witches among them, if anything it was even worse. They dealt with things so far out of the ordinary so often they had adapted in a way that made them exactly that to anyone dealing with them. If it wasn't so hilariously refreshing to the elder vampiress it would drive her to anxiety attacks.

That didn't mean she didn't really, really need a drink.

"You're looking at what it takes to do a ritual and you don't seem to understand—okay…okay. That's fine. It's fine," she said, mostly to herself. "When I gained access to blood magic it had a unique effect on the magic I already had access to. You had blood magic before true magic, so it's not impossible to think that may have had some effect too. You know, that does make me wonder if you'll even be able to see as deeply as I can."

Which…might not be such a bad thing, now that the thought occurred. This clan was ridiculously young but even now had power in spades, power that would only grow in time. They would need guidance, and they had turned to her to help with that, but they were only in a truce. Yes there was plenty she could teach them, but whether or not she should was the question. If she could ingratiate herself more, become more important as someone they relied on to suss out the truth of the situations they found themselves in, she might just gain an oath-bound alliance out of the deal. And having this fledgling, crazy-powerful clan allied with hers would be nothing but good, especially if she was in a position of trust.

"It'll be something to bear in mind later on," Ruby allowed, and Eva breathed a silent sigh of relief. "We won't be able to see about that in the dream, but everything looks fine for another use. After we're done this time we'll get the new cavern made and have Yukari's cards carve it out permanently."

Unasked, the younger witch conjured up mats for the other spokes, and everyone took their positions—even Eva, however grudgingly.

The last thing she saw was the succubus' incredible violet irises, then the world went out of focus.

V^^^V

The transition from reality to fantasy was surprisingly gentle. Between one blink and the next, her settings went from blurred to crystal clear, and Evangeline found herself by a charming cottage in the middle of a sea of sunflowers.

"Interesting choice of location," she mused. "Whose dream are we in, I wonder?"

The winged demoness settled down beside her in full form. Though shorter than her by a large margin, the voluptuous young woman stood straight and proud, reeking temptation to all who looked. "Ruby's. She tends to model her dreamscape after the Witch's Ranch she grew up on. Well, technically we're in one big dream, but I used hers as the template for right now. This place would be a literal nightmare if I let all our dreams mix willy-nilly."

"I can imagine. Where is everyone else?"

"Hidden until Kurumu's sense of drama is satisfied," a voice she had never heard before sighed from behind her, and Eva turned to see Moka in all her vampiric glory leaning on an equally vampiric Tsukune.

Eva grabbed a lock of her own hair, and sure enough, it too was its glittering silver rather than the silvery-blonde she traditionally kept her hair to. "Of course. Our mental projections are how we truly are, not how we hide ourselves," she said to herself.

"Got it in one," the higher, gentle soprano Eva had come to associate with Moka said from her side.

When she looked that way, her greatest fear was confirmed. A pink-haired Moka stood there, also leaning into Tsukune. It was the only thing that had made the slightest bit of sense to what she spied through her Sight, but it was still the last thing she wanted to see.

There was no way Issa Shuzen knew what he had truly done to his daughter; no way it was intentional. Even she had never successfully managed this. She wouldn't put herself on the same level as a Dark Lord, but when Tenmei Mikogami and Touhou Fuhai had only been able to make minor changes…it said a lot. They were tiptoeing through a nuclear minefield where the consequences…no person should have that on their conscience.

"Is something wrong?" the silver-haired Moka asked.

Evangeline just closed her eyes and concentrated on breathing deeply to calm the fury she was feeling inside. Despite their obvious similarities, not only was there clear differences in the bodies of the two Mokas, even their voices were different. When not supersaturated with power, the vampiric Moka had a low, sensual contralto—which should have been what she spoke with when sealed. That was most definitely not the case.

There was little doubt Shuzen would be making some kind of move come the school festival, which was in barely three weeks. That was the tightest schedule she had ever worked on for what she needed to do, but this made it only too clear that if she didn't…

No. She couldn't think like that.

She exhaled heavily. "Yes there's something wrong, but it's nothing you can help with. I won't be able to help you anymore this month, but Vincent wanted me to ask if you'd let him come instead," Eva explained.

Their expressions twisted, which she expected, but when they looked to him Tsukune's turned resigned.

"…I…might be willing to work with him," Tsukune said reluctantly. "I know he's not a bad person, I saw that, but that doesn't change what he tried to do."

"Let him come," a voice that sounded like all the fires, all the earthquakes, all the tornados, all the oceans of the world challenged into their minds as a shadow fell over them.

Eva looked at their grins and sighed. Then a bottle of ketchup dropped on her head. "Ketchup? Really? Is this your 'sense of drama' again? You didn't shock me last time, what makes you think I'll be shocked this…time…"

Her voice got very small as the first leg came into view, trailing up to the massive chest and long neck connected to a head with teeth as big as her arms. Metallic white scales glinted in the sunlight as reptilian eyes the color of broken mirrors stared into her soul.

A fire-breathing, winged, shapeshifter connected intimately to nature.

"Dia ár sábháil…" she whispered.

A dragon.

Evangeline Valentine found out that not only was it possible for her to faint, it was possible for her to faint in a dream.

.

V^^^V

.

When Vincent found his wife in their study that evening, she had disregarded the shot glass entirely and was drinking straight from the bottle. Her third bottle, he noted with a touch of unease. A nice leather jacket made of some kind of white snakeskin was draped over the back of her chair, and while he had never known her to be a stress shopper, there was a first time for everything.

"Bad day?" he asked, and winced when she glared at him. "Okay, I deserved that. What happened?"

He knew she was thinking about her answer and not too drunk to understand him, but it set him on edge nonetheless.

"I found out why Rei's transcript is so empty," she said at last, with only the slightest of slurs. "I saw her today. She looks fifteen."

"What?" Vincent breathed.

"Yu~p. Fifteen. Did I forget to mention she's not even six months old?"

Her husband stumbled into the comfortable chair next to hers and took a swig of her bottle. It burned horribly, and his eyes watered as he coughed, but he understood why she was drinking it.

"What is she?"

"A dragon," his wife answered succinctly.

He blinked at her. Shook his head. Looked at the bottle she was holding. "I don't think I heard you right."

"Did you hear me say dragon?"

"Ye…s?"

"Then you heard me right."

The draw he took that time was much longer.

"That's not all I found out," she went on, and he paled.

"There's more?"

There was more. Her rant was impassioned and lengthy, interspersed liberally with curses in too many languages for him to count—more than he knew, at any rate—detailing her many observations about The Clan That Lived To Give Her Headaches. About ketchup pranks and hormonal teenagers. About the impossibilities of Tsukune Aono, Kurumu Kurono, and the disaster that was Moka Akashiya. By the time she was done, the third bottle had been drained between the two of them, and she lapsed into silence as she stared at the fireplace.

"So…what now?" Vincent asked quietly.

"Now?" Eva repeated. "Now you're going to take your wife to bed and make sure any walking I do tomorrow will remind me of you. After that I need to leave. I have three weeks to create some kind of safety net against Issa Shuzen's stupidity and I need my workshop to do that. You have to stay here, keep up appearances. Let the kids adjust to you, teach them a couple things; get them used to the idea of having more of us around. Hell, see if you can get permission for your mom or dad to stop by. They need us, but we stand to gain far more if we can make this work. Sound like a plan?"

Vincent smirked as he scooped her up. "I hear and obey."

"I thought you might."

Three weeks. She only hoped it would be enough.

V^^^V

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Author's Notes: Thanks for reading! A lot faster this time, huh? Also, I don't know how many of you have checked out my profile recently, but if any of you are artistically inclined or know someone who is, I'd love to get a cover for this story.

If you have any questions or just want to talk, send me a line. I wouldn't object to you filling in that review box either.

'Til next time!

Sabr