"Are you sure you want to stay back Hikari? You've been missing a lot of school, your grades must be suffering." Tsuki said, as she came out of the bathroom in the school uniform. "It's okay, Hanabusa's been helping me keep on track." I said from under the covers. "And I don't really feel up to it after last night and all."
"Well, alright. I'll pick up your homework for you. See you later." she said, closing the door behind her. 'Tsuki's so nice to me. I kind of feel guilty after taking Aido's attention away.' I thought, watching her walk to the school with the rest of the Day Class girls. Today was the last day, the day. The day to make my choice.
'Happy frickin' birthday to me.' I thought gloomily. Things were getting complicated. And it felt unfair to the night class that I was keeping information from them. Rido's arrival? He's a pure blood, so how would they react? He seemed like a bad guy, because of his demeanor, and he opposes Kaname-senpai. I should at least tell Aido about these dreams, or visitations, or whatever they were. But he threatened me not to tell him.
'I should go to sleep and confront him. That would be the best option.' I thought, pushing the covers away from my head for fresh air. 'Who am I kidding? I'm way too scared of him to face him again.' I confessed to myself, staring out the window. I'm so weak. Thunderstorms, ex-boyfriends, vampires, Rido. I'm scared of all of it. Why cant I face my problems on my own? Why do I always depend on Hanabusa. It's not fair to him! I should be able to solve this on my own!
'Okay, here goes nothing.' I thought, closing my eyes and letting myself drift off.
The scene this time was different from the others. The road or path I traveled on was a simple gravel path, varying in places, where the dirt underneath shown through, and the gravel was solid, like a cement pathway in patches. It was neither, it was both. The air surrounding me was light and breezy. Darkness stood behind a cloud cover made of fog. And light was eradicated by the cover. The path ahead of me was dark, as was the path behind me as I walked along the gravel road.
The only light seen, emitted from me, surrounding my feet and giving light to the fog that surrounded me. I didn't know where I was going, but I kept walking anyway. "Happy 3rd birthday Hikari!" said a group of people from beyond the fog. I stopped and listened , peering into the thickening fog. But the voices stopped, and I continued on my way to who knows where. "Happy 9th birthday Hikari!" said another group of people. Stopped again and shouted, "Who's there?!"
Nothing but silence answered me. I turned back to my path reluctantly, casting worried glances at the fog. It was a few minutes later that the voices continued through my 15th birthday. At my 16th, only one voice was heard. "Happy 16th birthday Hikari." A voice I recognized as Yori's. Foot steps sounded on the gravel path behind, and I whipped around at the person coming down the path towards me.
"Make a wish Hikari." Yori said, smiling sadistically. I turned back around and started running, Yori laughing all the while. 'No no no, he's dead! He's dead! He cant be here!' I thought frantically, looking back at him as I ran. But he had disappeared. I slowed down and looked ahead of me, and saw a fork in the road, split by a single tree of two colors. On one side, it was the color of the freshest snow, shimmering and pure. On the other, it was the deepest of a midnight black, so dark, the leaves couldn't even be differentiated from the others. "Happy 17th birthday Hikari." said a voice from behind me. I didn't even need to turn to know who it was.
The voice that haunted my nightmares. The person that chilled me to the bone, and made me want to scream in fear. The vampire that would use me as a chess piece in his game of revenge or retrieval of his most prized possession. But I turned anyway, as he walked towards me, grinning maliciously. "It doesn't really feel like it's going to be a 'happy' birthday." I said, turning forward again to look at the trees. "Ha ha, so have you made your decision?" he said, touching my shoulder, and whispering in my ear.
I shivered and stepped away from him, shaking off his hand. "No, I'm still trying to debate what to do." I said, walking towards the tree. "Today's your last day to think it over. You only have two options." he said, slamming his hands on either side of my head against the tree, trapping me. "Option one: you say no, and I bite you. Turning you into my docile slave. Option two," he said, leaning in close to my neck, so close I could feel his fangs scraping against my skin, his breath raising the hairs on my neck in fright.
"You say yes, and I bite you, letting you live with your lover, in return of doing as I say."
"Do I really have an option? Or even an opinion?" I asked, my breath coming in short gasps. "It's only fair to hear your opinion since it's your birthday, isn't it?" he asked, backing away from my neck to look at me with a smirk. He brought one of his arms up and grabbed something from the branch above. "What is your choice?" he said, bringing into view a tear drop shaped fruit, the color of freshest blood, and the texture of the softest velvet.
"Do you partake the forbidden fruit?" he asked, holding it for me to take. I reached a hand up, and hesitated before taking the fruit. 'Partake the forbidden fruit.' I thought, holding it to my mouth, letting my lips brush against the surface, feeling the velvet skin. "It's your choice whether or not you want your humanity taken away willingly or forcefully." he said, disappearing into smoke. I let go the breath I had been holding in, and slid down the rough bark of the tree behind me until I sat on the gravel path.
I thought about it that way for what seemed like hours in this dream world. And I came to a final conclusion, to think of it a different way. The way he proposed in the first dream, when he brought up the concepts of the two fruits. To keep my humanity, I keep my family. But I lose my only love, Hanabusa. And to choose the pureblood fruit, I lost my family, and spent my vampire life with Hanabusa.
My choice. My family. My love. Hanabusa. Who my heart aches for. Who makes me smile. Who keeps me safe. Absentmindedly, I pressed the fruit harder against my lips.
Who makes me insecure. Who makes me face my fears. Who makes me strong. My mouth opened, and my lips spread over the velvety skin.
Who loves me, and cares for me, and will never let me go. My teeth grazed the skin and began to cut into it. From the first bite, the juice trapped inside rushed into my mouth, making it burn, but it tasted so sweet, so addicting. It really was a forbidden fruit. And then the shaking began.
It started at my feet, and raced up my legs. It reached my spine and it felt like an electric shock. My arms started to shake out of control, causing me to drop the fruit, letting it roll to ground. When the electricity reached my head, I felt myself black out, hearing a laughing voice above me, as I slumped on my side, and let my eyes close as the tremors continued.
When it finally stopped, I forced my eyes open and saw a small puddle of clear water sitting in the middle of one of the two roads a few feet from me. My throat felt like it was on fire at the sight of it. I lifted my arm, but it felt like it was made of lead. I looked at my hand, curled at my side, and saw my fingernails lengthen into claws. I reached out towards the water, letting my nails dig into the ground. From there I started to drag myself, towards the water that would surely quench my burning throat.
I peered into the crystal clear water and jerked away from it in shock. I inched back towards it on my stomach, and looked at the reflection within. This person was not me. Her eyes were like ruby's, cold and bright red. And when they dimmed down, they turned the color of honey. Her hair was bright and looked like the sun, but it turned paler, and looked platinum. Her teeth were hidden behind her lips, but two fangs poked out, gleaming and white, sharp and dangerous.
"Does your throat burn? Do your eyes turn red at your blood lust? Do you sense your power dwelling within you? Has your appearance changed, and made you desirable?" his voice asked, I looked up from the pool and saw Rido standing at its edge, grinning down at me. "Is your throat on fire? Does it burn? Do you feel the bloodlust within you rise up?" he asked, raising his hand to his face, and biting his finger. The sharp smell of metal, and the a sickly sweet scent invaded my nose, and made the flame in my throat burn all the brighter, as the drops of red fell from his hand, and spilled into the pool below, tainting the clear pool, and dying it a deep red. The swirls of clear water dissipated as the blood invaded each and every edge of the pool.
Hesitantly, I dipped my fingers in, and pulled them out, the sticky blood cling to them. The drops fell back into the pool, and I brought my fingers closer to my mouth. My tongue peeked out of my mouth, and gently touched the tip of my fingers. At the taste, my mouth began to water, and I knew my eyes had turned from honey gold, to ruby red. I licked the rest off my fingers and dipped my hand in to scoop out more. "Quench your throat, feed on the everlasting life blood, and lend me your power in my quest for what's mine!" he shouted to the air above, while I brought more scoops of the liquid to my mouth, the blood, slipping down my chin, and down my throat.
"And when I have what's mine. You will have what's yours." he said, kneeling down, and pinching my chin between his fingers, forcing me to look up at him. "Become my slave, so that you may live with your lover." he said, licking the trails of blood clean from my face. I stood still in a daze, my body did not move. My mind was free, and my thoughts flew by quickly, but I could not read my thoughts, voice my opinion. Only to agree with him. To serve him. To do whatever he said.
"Hikari!" a voice yelled out, almost breaking me out of my stupor. "Hikari! Wake up! We have to go!" the voice said again. "Go? Go where?" I asked in a daze, almost a whisper. "Hikari! We have to leave! Come on!" the voice said. "Tsuki." I whispered.
I opened my eyes, and saw Tsuki shaking me. "Something's attacking the school! Headmaster Cross told us to go to the school! Wake up! I'm not leaving you behind!" she yelled, looking towards the open door, where I saw girls flitting about, heading down stairs. "What's attacking?" I asked, sitting up and swinging my legs out of bed. "I don't know, but we have to go!" she said, throwing a shirt and a long skirt at me. "Put those on, they're mine but they'll fit you." she said, grabbing my crutches from their spot on the wall.
I took off my night shirt, and slid the shirt over my head, and stood up, and balanced on one leg, before putting the skirt on. It was a little long, almost to my ankles, but it would do. "Ok, come on, we have to get a move on." she said, handing me the crutches. I balanced on them, and began to move, a little slowly at first because I was still half-asleep, but I got better as I went along. Tsuki helped me down stairs so I wouldn't trip down them, and we eventually got outside.
It wasn't long before we neared the fountain of the flying bird. "Tsuki. Tsuki! Stop, I need to rest for a bit." I panted, sitting down on the fountain edge, breathing in gasps. "You can rest when we get inside, let's go." she said, pulling my arm. "No…I can't…I have to-" I gasped, remembering this meeting place, for a servant of Rido's. But I was stopped short, when a voice approached us, and my skin crawl. "Tsuki, don't worry. I'll stay here with her until she catches her breath." she said, approaching us.
"Nami? But-" Tsuki started to say, before Nami interrupted again. "Don't worry, we'll catch up to you soon." she said, putting on a smile. "Al-alright, I'll see you guys soon. Stay safe." she said, before running with the rest of the girls.
It was silent between the two of us, as the last of the Day Class students rushed by us in the direction of the school, then, the whole area was silent.
"You think your so special." she said, glaring at me. "You think your better than everyone else, just because you got the Idol of the Night Class." she said, violently ripping my crutches away from me, and throwing them far away from us. Letting them crash against the ground. One of them cracking in half. "Let me tell you something," she said, turning back to me, and roughly grabbing the front of my shirt. "There's nothing special about you. Your just a broken toy. The only interesting thing about you, is that your new, and so freaking innocent. You don't deserve him." she said.
My eyes narrowed at her words, and I swallowed the lump in my throat to speak. "And you do? He's not an object you can use just for kicks. He's not someone for you to use. And I don't deserve him?! I don't deserve half the crap life has put me through, and he's the only person, that made everything feel perfect and wonderful, despite what happened. So don't you dare tell me I don't deserve him." I said, my voice raising with each word.
Suddenly, there was a blinding pain on my cheek, as the slapped me across the face. "And you have the gall to sleep with him! You bitch! You don't deserve to have him!" she shouted at me. Then reached into her pocket and pulled out a pocket knife, switching it open, and holding it high above her head. I panicked, and stared at the silvery blade, ascending into the night air. "People like you make me sick! You should just die!" she yelled, the blade descending above me.
I closed my eyes, and waited for the blade to cut and pierce my body. But it never came. I opened my eyes, and saw Nami starring behind me, her eyes wide, the blade held in the air. I turned in her grasp and saw behind the fountain, stood a man in a top hat, and suit, watching us with a gin on his face.
"May I ask which one of you is Hikari?" he asked, walking around the perimeter of the fountain, until he was standing beside us. Nami let go of my shirt, and held the knife in both hands, aimed at the man. "Who are you?" she asked in a quivering voice. "Are you Miss Hikari?" the man asked me, ignoring Nami completely. "Ye…yes. Are…are you the one who will take me to Rido?" I asked, looking at him, searching his face.
"You bitch. You know him?" Nami asked. But I ignored her. "Yes, I am the one Rido-sama sent. Shall we bring her along? As a snack for Rido-sama?" he said, looking at Nami, with a grin on his face. "No, leave her be. Nami, go back to the school and hide with the others. And if you see Tsuki, tell her I'm sorry." I said, looking at her briefly, before standing up and balancing heavily on my foot, keeping any weight off my plaster wrapped leg. "What? Where are you going?" she asked, backing away from us, ready to run.
"I need help walking." I said to the man, looking pointedly at my cast. "Of course, please climb on." he said, bending down, allowing my to climb on his back, locking my arms around his neck, as he wrapped his hands around my legs. "Wait! Where are you-" Nami began to say, before we began to move, the world blurring by in a flash. When we finally stopped, we were inside a hallway. One I almost recognized as the Moon Dorms'. he set me down, and knocked on the door. We waited a moment, before he opened it. He stepped aside and allowed me to enter first.
Whether or not I was frightened, occurred to me at that moment. Dreams aren't real. People cant hurt you in your dreams. Scary people eventually get locked away in your subconscious. Seeing your nightmare become reality? It frightened me to the core, and locked my feet in place. "So Hikari, you actually came." he said, stepping away from a coffin on the floor. There was a boy and a girl on the bed in this room. They were both unconscious, and I recognized them from the numerous gatherings at the Moon Dorm gates. They were Rima and Shiki. I'd heard that Shiki had come back last night, along with Ichijo. But I hadn't seen them until now. Well, Shiki anyway. I didn't know where Ichijo was, and my reverie was interrupted, when I was lifted by my waist, and placed directly in front of Rido.
I looked up at him, and immediately felt small. My small frame easily dwarfed by his much larger one. "Your choice?" he asked, placing his hands on my shoulders, and leaning in towards me. His blue and red eyes glowing in the darkness of the room. I stared into his, and felt my fear melt away. Gaining the little strength of voice I had, I said my answer.
"My choice? What choice. There is no choice. It was a decision that was made from the moment I met you. My answer? I choose to partake the forbidden fruit." I said, with as much courage as I could. And instantly felt my resolve crumble, when I saw him grin, and bear his gleaming white fangs, before he brought his mouth close to my neck, and let his tongue flick out and lick my pulse. The last thing that happened before I blacked out, was the pierce of his fangs digging into my flesh, the pain he brought with it, and the fire that spread throughout my body. My last thoughts before I was sucked into a world of darkness, were of Hanabusa, and my promise to not do anything to worry him.
'I'm sorry Hanabusa.' I thought, letting my eyes slide shut, and letting the darkness take over.