Haruka burst into the classroom, late just to top it all off. The grouchy teacher glared at her, he had to go back and change the register now. "Tsuyo, take your seat and hand in your assignment." The drawl of the bored teacher droned into Haruka's eardrums.
"I'm sorry, but I didn't finish my assignment, I can hand it in first thing tomorrow I promise-"
"Remind me Tsuyo, when is the deadline?" Haruka faltered as the teacher cut through her sentence.
"Today miss." Her head was bowed as she knew this teacher would not let her off easily. "I'm so-"
"Do not attempt to apologize to me." Haruka looked up.
"Miss," A new voice cut into the conversation, every head in the class turned to who had spoken, most of them had never heard the boy speak beforehand, there were a few who shuddered just looking at one of them. "Tsuyo was unable to complete her assignment last night because she was with me." Haruka blinked at him, it was an unspoken rule that it was never mentioned when a human gave blood to a vampire.
She felt the teacher's eyes hone in on the bite marks on her neck. "Nevertheless, if she knew she was going to be busy last night she should have ensured that it was done beforehand. You will complete your assignment in detention this evening after school." Haruka scurried off to her seat before anything else happened.
Haruka set her bag on the desk beside him, watching everyone's attention being drawn back to the teacher as she started up her lecture once again. "Thanks," She whispered to him as she sat down.
"Are you feeling alright?" He asked he had felt concern all last night as she had been so pale he thought he might have made her sick. But today a fresh pink hue had returned to her skin and she seemed back to her normal self.
"Yes thanks." She offered him a bright smile which he accepted with a nod and a half-smile.
"I'm surprised you're alright sitting next to me today…" He trailed off, his fists clenching at his weakness.
Haruka tapped his hand, waiting for his fist to unclench before she spoke. "I'm not afraid of you Daigo-san, and there is nothing in this world to make me fear you."
"Then you are a fool," his voice was hiding the sorrow within well.
"Love makes fools of all of us," Haruka murmured, flicking through her textbook to find the right page to study from.
He was standing out in the sunlight, his flesh still coloured a rosy colour thanks to the blood he took from her. He couldn't understand her. She was so fragile yet so strong, he had nearly killed her last night, yet she bounced back today with more spirit than ever. He knew he should distance himself from her, yet he was drawn to her existence like a magnet, or a moth to the flame. It could not ever work between them; he was a monster and she an innocent thrown into the chaos of the world. If she flutters by him too long she would be swallowed by the beast he truly was.
Her scent wafted towards him, his attention drawn from his thoughts he looked around to see her sat mere feet from him. She had her assignment in front of her, a stone balanced on her knee as she scribbled furiously to finish her analysis. He moved towards her, unable to stay away, his silver eyes were drawn to the gemstone on her knee. "Bloodstone, why did you chose that stone in particular?" He enquired as he crouched by her side.
"I'm not sure really, I guess it was the way the red works against the green, making the stone look as if droplets of blood have actually fallen on it. It just grabbed me as an interesting stone." She didn't stop scribbling away, even though her hand moved at a rapid, her writing was still neat and completely legible.
"Have you eaten?" It was early on in the lunch-break; she could not have eaten and written this much through this time. Most humans were huddled in the canteen waiting to be served.
"I'm not hungry, plus this really needs doing, I don't want to stay for ages in a stuffy room with that woman, she infuriates me so much." She smiled up at him briefly before turning her attention back to the paper and finishing off another sentence. "I have a sandwich in my bag to snack on if I do get hungry. How are you feeling anyway, you look well but worried. Please don't fear about me alright? I'm perfectly healthy." She put down her pen, stretching out her fingers before tapping his cheek playfully. "Something I always wanted to as though, how long does one… meal satisfy you for?" He stared, a little shocked into her eyes. Her sapphire irises showed no fear of him, simple curiosity, harmless and innocent.
"I guess it all depends on how much we eat, I took quite a lot from you so I should be fine for about a month." He found himself answering automatically.
"Wow, a whole month…" She trailed off, her attention diverted from her assignment. "That's ages!" He chuckled at her expression of complete dumbfounded confusion. After a few moments of listening to his good-natured laugh, Haruka joined in, shuffling her position as her legs were going numb from sitting like this for so long.
He sat besides her, taking the stone from her and examining it quickly, after his analysis was complete he gave her useful advice, helping her finish the assignment before the bell rang signalling the end of the break.
"You didn't eat, are you sure you'll be fine?" They walked towards the building, they did not share the next class but they were in the same building.
"Oh it's fine, my teacher in the next class doesn't pay us any attention, I can eat in the lesson and he won't know." She smiled, turning to him and quickly kissing him on the cheek before whispering "Thank you. and then vanishing into the throngs of stampeding students.
Summer was drawing in, with it came swooping the exam period, baring its fangs and terrifying Haruka far greater than any vampire could.
In the havoc the exams had created, she fell further and father behind. She could just simply not keep up with the paces that the teachers set, plus her organisation and time-keeping skills had deteriorated dramatically. Many days she spent staying behind at school, sitting in various different classrooms as irritable teachers squawked at her about this and that.
But one thing had aided her the whole way through. Daigo had helped her whenever she really fell behind; he would tutor her in things she didn't understand and sit by her during the lunch-hour and afterschool times whenever she asked him to help her. She'd tried to offer him things in return, once even offering her blood once again. He had been the staple holding her life together for months now and she simply wanted to repay the favour in any way she could, but he had declined all offers she posed to him.
Haruka found herself now, in a darkening room finishing off an enormous essay for her English teacher. The day had been cloudy from dawn and now that dusk was setting in, the sky outside was closer to black than anything Haruka had seen all spring.
The second she scribbled the last word of her conclusion, she was out of the room, having leapt to her feet, practically thrown the essay at the teacher, snatched her bag and fled before any other task could be set. She was late, tired and hungry.
She rushed through the alleys and shortcuts through the city; it was the route she knew best home, and the quickest. Most people avoided these alleys as they feared the dark shortcuts. But she rushed down them without a fear in the world.
Daigo looked up from his papers, his homework almost finished. He could smell it, even from inside this room with no windows. Somehow the scent seeped through the building and finding its way to him. He knew that scent; it sent his inner beast on a silent rampage. What was this? Why could he smell... no?!
He slammed his book shut, standing quickly and rushing out of his room. He had to find out what was wrong, and quickly.
Daigo followed the strong scent and weaved his way through the alleys at a speed that no human could follow with their limited vision. Once he turned another corner, he stopped dead, his eyes flaring with longing and horror.
She lay, in a pool of her own blood, in the centre of the alley; the contents of her schoolbag had been thrown across the alleyway. It looked as though she had put up a hell of a fight, as there were splatters of blood across the alley which did not belong to her. Her eyes were half-open, her arms working as if to drag herself to her feet.
She could feel nothing, nothing but the cold numbness of her limbs. The liquid crimson she lay in had cooled, sapping her body heat from her. She tried to pull herself up, to get somewhere where anyone would find her; she couldn't die here in the cold darkness.
Then, another feeling, something faintly warm touched her, lifted her into a sitting position. The darkness in her eyes pushed away for a brief moment, allowing her to see a shock of silver hair, the hue striking her mind as something very familiar, yet she couldn't place it.
Words, shocked-sad words fluttered through the air, her brain tried to decipher them but something simply wasn't working with her mind. She felt something brush her hair out of her face. More words, louder and a little clearer. "Haruka, Haruka can you hear me?" She knew those words, she knew that voice, but she didn't and couldn't string it together. "Haruka?!" She felt warmth on her face, a voice in her ear. "I can save you, but it'll make you a monster. You've lost too much blood for a hospital to be able to save your life. I need you to stay with me a little longer, tell me please. Will you join me in an eternity of being a monster?"
A name rang in her mind, "Dai-go…" She felt the simple movement cause her so much pain, the numbness receding for the shortest of seconds. "Help…me…"
He tried speaking with her, keeping his demon in check as his heart ached. He hadn't even known that a still heart could throb and sting so much. "Haruka?! I can save you, but it'll make you a monster. You've lost too much blood for a hospital to be able to save your life. I need you to stay with me a little longer, tell me please. Will you join me in an eternity of being a monster?" He leant over her, speaking into her ear hoping this would help her hear him. He felt as though he was about to cry, yet his tear ducts had dried up years ago, when he had died.
"Dai-go, help… me…" Her voice was broken and hoarse. Daigo felt hesitation grasp his resolve. If he did this, he would condemn her to an eternity of being a demon alongside him. Was that the best option to take? "I-I don't want… want t-to leave you…" She croaked out, blood dribbling out of the corner of her mouth. He wiped it with his sleeve.
He knew how to save her, in theory it was simple. Bite, but instead of drawing in her blood, inject his venom - once that was done she would have to taste his blood - then the transformation would begin. It would be painful for her and afterwards she would be rejected from the society she lived in now.
Daigo felt her hand grip his wrist feebly. He looked down; her eyes were wider now, sapphire irises focussing blearily on his face. "Do it." He could practically see the life leaving her now, her face was drained and her voice, although assertive, was wavering as her voice began to leave her.
Daigo resigned to condemn her alongside him. Lowering his head he submitted to her demand, sinking his fangs into her neck once again.
Her eyes flickered open; it had been horrendous, as if her veins had been on fire for the past day or so. Once she opened her eyes she found herself staring at a white ceiling, her head was propped up on the arm of a sofa. New sounds and scents met her senses. She could smell something very close by, the distinctive perfume of a vampire, but how she knew was unknown to Haruka. Her eyes focussed on details of the ceiling she never would have been able to see before now. Vaguely her mind recalled a dark alley, thugs facing her down, looking to find something valuable. She recalled a fight, lots of blood, blood both on her hands and surrounding her. Although now she felt perfectly well, her body seemed uninjured.
She pushed herself up into a sitting position; she could feel every single fibre of the couch underneath her fingertips. Haruka recognised the room the instant she looked round, even though she had only been in there once. From here, she could read all the titles on each and every spine of the assortment of books lining the shelf taking up an entire wall. "I'm sorry." Her gaze fell upon the boy sitting at his desk; he had looked up from the paper he was scribbling on.
Haruka ran her tongue across her fangs, her mind figuring out what had happened. "For what?" Her voice seemed strange to her new ears. Each sense had been heightened, she studied his face closely, seeing sadness flicker through his marcasite eyes. "You saved me from dying there. Thank you Daigo-san." She set her feet on the floor, feeling the wooden panels beneath her soles. "How long has it been?"
"Two days. I've informed your parents of what happened. They are less than pleased with me."
"They'll be alright; I bet school isn't too happy with my absence." She looked down at her hands bitterly.
"I explained everything to the principal; he has taken care of it."
"So what now?" She asked him, the expanse of forever spanned out ahead of her, the thought was daunting. She had no plans for… forever! What was she to do now?
"You have forever to do whatever you wish." He turned back to his homework, not wishing to sway her one way or another.
"But… What do I do if all I want with forever is…" She trailed off, embarrassed at what she was about to say, but then looked up, directly at him. "All I want with forever is to be beside you."
Their eyes met as Daigo looked up from his work, "Forever it is then."
SelasVictoria: Thank you for the suggestions. Perhaps I should expand on my Disney-esque stories, I've based ... three/four stories on Disney at the moment but there are always many more out there xD Oh, i hate it when my creativity and motivation run off to another place, mine have a habit of jumping to an alternate universe, but at least when they come back they spin wonderful tales i can write down XD! -Iris
verecund: Thank you for your review and suggestion, I shall work on it and hopefully post something soon xD! -Iris