AN:

Hello everyone ^^

Missed me? Well, worry no more! I am back and more pumped up than ever about writing this fanfiction! I won't expect you to believe me since I haven't really been punctual, but don't give up on this story! While this chapter is mostly transitional, we will soon be plunging in the heart of cannon and I can't wait to share what I've planned for our dear characters with you guys.

For now, here's one.

Chapter 19

"Poisonous blood?"

"It certainly seemed that way." Kaname replied.

Takuma sat back into his armchair, disbelief in his eyes as we told him what had happened the previous night.

"I have never heard of anything like this before. Have you never been bitten by anyone before, Katsumi-chan? Was there ever any incident similar to this one?"

I answered Takuma with a confident 'no'. And that was true. One of Kaien's first teachings and one of my most strict rules was to never be bitten by a vampire. I had managed to keep a clean record up until last night... I shook my head off the bits of unpleasant memory and voiced out my theory about what happened. "I think it might be linked to the golden chain tattoos."

Kaname looked at me with his usual blank expression and Takuma asked, "You mean the ones you got when you went to get your weapon from the Hunters' Association?"

"Yes. The tattoos... well they're kinda weird; they feel more like real chains than a drawing of chains. Yesterday when that guy bit me, I felt the chains tighten momentarily. But then I tried to reach out for my... energy and I could actually access it. It just confirmed my thoughts that the chains were locking my powers and this guy biting me, for some reason, loosened them a bit. Also, remember how I was sick when I first got the tattoos? I think that the weapon the well gave me was this poison and that was why my body had such a bad time adjusting to it."

I got up to get some water as Takuma pondered over the idea for a bit. "So you mean that anyone who drinks your blood will be poisoned?"

Well... not everyone. I tried very hard not to glance at Kaname as I thought back to the time I'd given him my blood. No no, don't think about that right now, he's a pureblood anyways so who knows what else he might be immune to. The other vampires though, I'm pretty sure my blood would have an effect on them. I can feel it.

So I replied, "I'm pretty sure that's the case. I mean, I wouldn't mind testing it with anyone who's got a death wish." I joked.

They both glared at me. I rolled my eyes. They could never take my jokes.

Kaname sighed, starting to walk towards the door, "Nobody else is going to bite you just to prove your theory, Katsumi. Do not get any strange ideas into your head. I will not forgive it."

His tone was dead serious and even Takuma, who was about to say something, just opted not to. "Besides," he said, walking out of the room with us right behind him, "we have enough complicated matters to handle as it is."

Takuma nodded, "Indeed. Sara Shirabuki is starting to go too far."

"I was referring to a more pressing problem." He stopped in his tracks and turned around to look at me. "Blood was spilled last night and our fellow students will easily trace it back to you. You will not leave my side until they calm down."

I shrugged, looking away. "Yes, Your Majesty."

Turned out Kaname was right. The students had noticed and you could see it clearly. Confusion in the air, jealous glares here, curious eyes there, general blood lust showing through their flashing fangs. But that was ok. More than that, it was almost hard to ignore the barely concealed whispers as the night class progressed.

"I'm sure it was her blood last ni.."

"Did Kaname-sama bite her?"

"What about the no drinking blood rule?"

"Does that mean we can t..."

"Is Kaname-sama feeding off her?"

"Is that their relationsh..."

"They've always been clo-"

Argh shut the f*** up!

These gossiping b**ches didn't have anything else to do? I glared at them, my head resting on the table behind an open book sitting upright as the teacher droned on about, well, I wasn't listening so I had no idea. And here I was trying to forge-

Nope. Not going there. I forced myself to calm down. Thank goodness for meditation.

What happened last night, in the bathroom, was most probably nothing. Kaname valued me dearly as a friend and so did I. That was all.

I yelped and sat up straight in a flinch as I felt a hand touch my back. Kaname.

"Are you feeling alright?" he asked, concern lining his voice.

I breathed out before replying, "Yeah, just wondering when they'll get bored of spouting nonsense."

He smiled, "Soon enough, no need to worry as long as you are beside me."

I cringed. Couldn't help it. It felt a bit like deja-vu. He was insufferable back when he insisted on buying me weird presents. And now I could feel like the same behavior was about to repeat. It felt a bit alien to me, too much.

I sat with Takuma for the rest of the evening, engaging in uninterruptible manga discussions any time Kaname tried to tell me to sit with him.

I felt almost relieved when he stopped trying.

Really, what was wrong with me?

That morning after class, I threw my body on our living room couch and let out a long, long sigh. My hair was still wet from the shower and my head was just plain smooshed.

I'd been avoiding Kaname all night, and I'd managed to do it in such a shamelessly obvious way. Right now, Kaname was with Akatsuki and Hanabusa discussing something and I could finally breathe a little.

I felt horrible. I hated that I was avoiding him and I hated how 'on nerves' I was feeling. It. Was. Nothing, Katsumi. Get that in your head and get over it.

I closed my eyes and contemplated falling asleep right there. Takuma's voice interrupted my contemplation. "Katsumi-chan, is everything alright?"

I just grunted in response as he sat beside me. "Did something happen between you and Kaname-kun?"

"Don't ask me, Taku-chan. I really wouldn't know if something happened or not."

"My guess would be something did. You've both been acting weird since yesterday."

I perked up, "Really? How weird has Kaname been?" I asked, opening my eyes to look at him.

"Well, he slept in my room last night and told me not to ask any questions about why. Also, he asked me to lend him some of my 'Paruto: the Last Samurai' tomes. If that is not strange behavior for Kaname..."

"He just wanted to give me some space last night… probably..", I replied, letting my head fall back to the couch's headrest.

Takuma scoffed, "I'm not sure if Kaname even knows the meaning of 'giving space'. I'd be especially surprised if he started to do that with you of all people."

"What do you mean by that, Taku-chan?"

"He sticks to you like glue."

I blinked, then started laughing out loud. Of course that was it. "Hahahaha! He does stick to me like glue! Like one of those band-aids that you left on for too long!"

Takuma looked confused, "I can see why you think this is funny but I didn't mean it as a joke, Katsumi-chan."

"I get it Takuma, believe me." And I did. Kaname, dramatic, romantic, old man Kaname who reads poems in his free time, of course he'd do something like that. Of course he'd get confused. He's always been clingy, just because he said a few pretty words does not mean anything, just Kaname getting a bit lost in his fantasies. He was by my side way too much and he was so hungry for love, it made sense that he'd try to distract himself with me. I actually found it a bit cute, like a baby dragon thinking that whoever it hatched next to was its mom. Not that Kaname was a baby dragon or I was his mom *ugh*, but it was a cute feeling indeed.

I giggled out loud and Takuma looked at me with his I-will-never-understand-what-you're-thinking straight face. He then sighed and got up, "Just take care of both you and Kaname-kun." He said, walking towards his room, "I'm not staying up answering his random questions tonight."

"Sure. Sleep well Taku-chan!"

I uncovered my food plate, appetite back again, and grabbed the sandwich. What do you do with a band-aid that you left on for too long and is now stuck to your skin like glue? If you don't give a shit, you rip the band-aid off. If the band-aid is your friend, you drown it in water and gently peel it off. In this case, I thought, biting into the sandwich, it meant that it was time to find Kaname an acceptably sane pureblood princess to love.

Kaname returned to our quarters as I was finishing my sandwich. I had been mentally listing off potential female pureblood partners that I could remember from the story (and I could barely remember that). The only people I could think of were immediately crossed off. Yuki, nope! Sara, lol no. Maria, Kaname would kill her in a second haha. Shizuka Hio, they'd both kill each other. Conclusion, zero names. But I wasn't ready to give up yet. Surely there has to be more female purebloods in this world other than the ones I can recall. I will have to ask someone about it when I get the chance.

I looked up when I saw Kaname get in and gave him my biggest smile. His stoic features managed to look shocked and he froze in place. "How did the discussion go?"

He carefully approached the sofa, taking small steps and then sat down next to me. So cute, I thought, the baby turtle image still in my head. He did not answer my question, but that was ok. I was very comfortable with the situation now that I knew what was going on. And I was going to make him feel just as comfortable around me. If any of us was flustered by the other's every move, things would get awkward and he might get confused again. Most of all, I did not want things to be awkward between us. So come on Katsumi, time to be your natural self and save your flower boy from prickling himself with the thorns of his own roses.

I leaned close to Kaname, smiled again and punched him in the gut- his face was too pretty and people would notice.

Kaname gasped and grabbed his stomach, bending his body slightly. That was to expect from his highness though, another person would be rolling around on the floor, maybe hacking up blood by now.

I slapped him playfully on the shoulder. How was that for a wake-up call? Kaname's expression was not showing anything, he didn't look angry or shocked. His eyes did have a slight glint of curiosity though.

"This was my sorry for avoiding you today." I smiled again, standing up and holding out my hand to him as a show of peace. "Are we cool?"

Kaname straightened up, "I will accept your apology." He grabbed my hand and pulled me towards him, as his other arm attempted to hug my waist. But this Katsumi was prepared. I resisted the pull with my newly-regained power and instead of falling on his body, I kicked the space beside him on the couch to maintain space between us and grabbed his sneaky arm with my free hand. We stayed in this position as I stubbornly continued smiling at Kaname while he effortlessly held onto my hand, expression puzzled.

This level of natural self is not enough Katsumi, you need more. "Let go, Kaname, before I rip your arms out." I maintained my sweet smile. Kaname did not let go.

"Do you have more apologies to make?", he asked. "Go ahead, I will accept them all."

This little bit- "Didn't we just make up? What are you being stubborn for?"

"The stubborn one is you, Katsumi. What are you trying to do?"

"Can't you see that I'm trying to make things go back to normal between us, you idiot?!" I was seriously considering headbutting him at that point, but then he suddenly let go.

"I see." He simply said, getting up and heading towards the shower.

"Really?" I asked, lighting up. Did he really get it?

"Yes." He turned towards me when he reached the door, and almost glared at me there, "You are a cunningly stubborn blind woman."

He went in and I stayed there with my mouth gaping open for a few seconds.

After a little while, I went back to the room and lay on my bed.

That reaction was actually… not bad at all! I grinned. It was probably the first time Kaname had so openly insulted me, but I only saw it as one thing: back to normal.

I woke up early the next day, at around 2 pm. I got my clothes out of my closet and carefully made my way to the bathroom. I didn't make a sound but who knew whether Kaname still heard me. Regardless, he did not stir.

I wasn't awake because I wanted to be, nor was it because I could not sleep. I had sensed Ichio's monthly envoy creeping outside the bathroom window, waiting for me to make my report. Normally they'd just wait until I went in and noticed them to show themselves and ask for my report. But my ability to sense presences and energies had not only returned, but skyrocketed since the vampire bite incident. I sensed a presence in the middle of a dreamless sleep and immediately recognized it as one of Ichio's stuck-up ninjas. I didn't bother getting up straight away, that guy could wait. But then his energy was starting to feel as annoying the buzz of a mosquito whirling around the room, so I decided to just get up.

I locked the bathroom door, dropped my clothes on the sink counter, threw the window open and glared into the eyes of the ninja who was hanging upside-down from the window overhang.

He didn't come inside, they never did. And they never talked much, at least most of them didn't. This one just said one word, "Report."

I told him what had happened on Valentine's Day in simple bullet form. I left out everything about how the bite had affected me but told him that Takuma got hurt and that I got bitten. Takuma's grandpa had obviously become aware of my powers declining to a certain extent. I never told him about it but the way I dealt with the assaults were becoming less and less refined. And now Takuma got hurt. I would never hide what happened to the boys from Ichio, not as long as his intentions were to protect them, even if it meant that I'd probably get an earful for it. At this point, he wasn't going to fire me. I was too precious to his protégés and too valuable to him. But he was undoubtedly going to meddle in a way that I will not like. That damned old man.

I also handed the ninja a small bundle of pictures that I had been secretly tasked to take. I watched the ninja secure them into one of his pockets, probably thinking they were important spy information. Really, all of them were creepshots of Kaname and Takuma I stole from the boys' fangirls. I had no time to go around stalking them when I was by their side all the time.

Instead of letting the ninja vanish into thin air to return to Ichio as I usually did, I asked him to stay for a little bit longer and guard the guys. He gave me a disapproving look that clearly questioned my work ethics.

"Don't worry Ninja-San. I'm not skipping out on duty. I have to go get some information, but I can't do it together with the boys. And," I added, flipping out another bundle when he continued to frown in a very reluctant way, "I will give you this rare one-of-a-kind bundle of pictures of Ruka smiling with her hair flowing in the wind if you stay while I'm gone." Twinkly eyes right away, they were all fanboys.

I shut the window and got ready quickly, mentally thanking Ruka's stalkers for helping me out. I left the Moon Dorms through the bathroom window, catching one last glance of the ninja dutifully maintaining rounds around Kaname and Takuma's rooms even while his energy overflowed with flowers and little hearts.

Usually, I'd just leave the boys in the care of the more-than-capable night class close group if I had things to take care of. But they were all sleeping so I didn't want to bother them. I wouldn't be long anyways. I wasn't really going to get information, I was going to visit Kaien for a very specific reason. And I didn't want anyone asking questions.

I found Kaien in his office, busy signing papers like a perfectly normal principal. I was peeking in through the window and I saw that he was mumbling something, probably cursing at something that he found annoying. I smiled at the scene, Kaien looked like he fit so well in there. He looked content.

I swung myself in and he let out a small shriek. "Hey Kai-chan, you look busy."

"Katsu-chan! You shouldn't come in through the window." He chastised, straightening his glasses.

I shrugged, leaning on the window sill. "The door's too boring. I need you for something."

He just sighed out in defeat, turning back to his papers. "Well, as you see I am quite busy. Unless you wish to join me in a tea party, of course."

"Oh, quit your nonsense. Let's spar. I need to check something and you're the only one here I can do this with."

Kaien blushed, "My cute daughter is so grown up now, but as your father I-"

I gave him my death glare and he shrunk back immediately. "Kill that suggestive part of your brain right now." I sighed at his theatrics and continued in a more serious tone, "Vampires attacked Takuma and Kaname on Valentine's night. We got rid of them, but one of them bit me."

Kaien did not look shocked at the news. He was aware that enemies were trespassing into his academy despite all of the security measures he had taken. For now, he could do nothing more than let the guards (in this case me for Kaname, Takuma and by extension for the night class and the Guardians, that is Yuki and the Kiryuu Combo, for the Day Class) take care of the intruders. He still looked sad though. "I see, it finally happened." He said, no doubt referring to me getting bitten.

I huffed, moving closer to him to pat him on the shoulder as he looked down, "Yes, but it was surprisingly a good thing!"

Kaien continued looking down, "Yes, you can learn from it but.."

"No, that's not what I mean Kai-chan. Something happened when the vampire bit me and that is why we have to spar now." I told him everything that happened and at some point, he got up so abruptly that his chair flipped backwards. After that, he was more than eager for us to spar. I needed it to figure out how much of my strength I had gotten back after all. I needed to re-assess my limits again.

We went back to his mansion and stood once again on opposite sides of the training hall. It brought back so many memories of my childhood here and we were both grinning before launching our attacks. The spar in itself was filled with joyful cries and playful remarks, even as I realized half-way through that Kaien should probably have been the last person on my list for this task. He was a great sparring partner, but he was never going to go all out on me. Still, I had a great time, one of our best moments in a long time and I left the mansion with a huge smile on my face, my clothes slightly wet with sweat and two bags filled with various cookies and cakes.

I had no idea what my limit was. But I had still been able to make some observations while fighting Kaien. The only thing that seemed to have considerably improved was my sensory abilities. I was also back to being fast and strong, but not as much as I'd been before the chains locked my vampire energy. However, they were loose and I had a lot more breathing space, working space with my energy than before.

I was walking back to the Moon Dorms when a voice called out from a distance behind me. "Katsu-nee?"

I didn't need to turn around or rely on my sensing to know that it was Yuki who had called me. She came rushing over with books in her arms when I smiled at her. She was accompanied by another girl with short blond hair. The other girl, who I vaguely remembered as the original Yuki's friend in the story, followed Yuki at a slower pace. "Katsu-nee, what are you doing here?" Yuki asked when she was close enough, a wide grin almost splitting her small face in two.

"I was just here to see Kai-chan for a bit. I'm heading back now. How have you been Yuki-chan?"

Yuki sighed dramatically, "Drowning in school work and guardian patrols. But Katsu-nee, if you're coming to see Tou-chan, you should come to see me too! I want you to visit me too!" She pouted cutely and her friend gave her a side-ways glance before introducing herself to me as Sayori Wakaba.

"We do see each other all the time when you come to Moon Dorm gates for crowd control though." I pointed out.

"That's not the same!"

I laughed, patting her head, "Hahaha, sorry. Fine, I will come see you without fail next time."

"I will not forgive you this easily." Yuki did not lessen her pouting even as Sayori outright informed her that she was being unreasonable.

I sighed, this little brat. "What do you want?"

She grinned mischievously, "We have half of the day off tomorrow. I want you to come shopping with me to town."

I rolled my eyes, "You did not have to use your underhanded tricks on me for that you know. I love going shopping with you Yuki-chan."

"But you're always so busy so I wanted to make sure that you'd come!"

I smiled and waved at her as I turned around to be on my way again, "See you tomorrow, Yuki-chan."

"See you Katsu-nee!" She yelled out after me, with Yori probably facepalming beside her.

Back at the Moon Dorms, I shooed out two human researchers who'd been bugging Hanabusa and went up to the room to prepare for the school night. Kaname and Takuma were already up and they did not ask where I'd been after seeing the cake bags in my arms.

After a few minutes, I was in the bathroom again, standing shirtless in front of the mirror. Golden chains roving my body, as pretty and mocking as shining jewelry imposed on me by an unknown captor. The heart with the three daggers was still there, almost embedded into my skin like a jewel. I had already noticed before, but I looked again at one of the daggers which seemed a bit… damaged. Cracked.

I laughed silently to myself as I undressed further and turned the shower on. This whole thing with poison blood, chains and vampire bite that releases the chains was absurd. It was all messed up.

But at least I was beginning to see a way out.

At least I wasn't helpless anymore.

… definitely not enough.

That day after school, Kaname and Takuma were the ones who were crawling underneath work. They had tons of papers brought into the room and were busy reading reports and writing letters. Kaname's pile was from his own estate and people, because yes, Kaname had a whole slew of people working for him and at the old Kuran Castle. He's had those even while he was staying at Ichio's place. I had known about it for a long time, but it was rare to see him actually work so much. Most of the time I tended to forget that Kaname was actually royalty who was filthy rich and laid claim over vast lands. Takuma's workload was from his grandfather who wanted him to start participating in running the Ichio Empire.

While they just worked the day away in our lounge, I did some catching-up on lost sleep. When I woke up, they were still at it, Takuma making comments about some horse kicking butts. Both him and Kaname still looked pristine despite their all-nighter. I groggily glared at them as I crossed the lounge towards the bathroom.

Just forget about them for today, I said to myself and took my time leisurely getting ready for my shopping trip with Yuki. Today was my day off, though there was no notice for it. I had already bullied Hanabusa and Akatsuki into filling in for me last night so I was covered.

I took a full relaxing bath. Best thing ever. Then I brushed my long hair, braided a few strands and tied it all into a high ponytail. A few strands still fell around my face to frame it and I left them. I was so satisfied with my looks this time around, thank you Kami-sama for these awesome genes. I wore a black turtleneck with a knee length rust-colored skirt that flared out a bit. I topped the look with a brown coat and slipped on the leather heeled boots that were the fashion craze around here. Underneath my coat sat my gun harness, hidden from view and I had also had various knives nestled in my clothing all over my body.

I didn't bother with breakfast and just waved the boys good luck with their work before heading out. I felt like I was in a cute mood today (compared to my usual bitchy moods, bored moods or angry demon moods) and it was a nice feeling. I was happily excited about the day and I almost skipped along on my way to the meeting point with Yuki, the school gates, where my excitement was met with a slight halt due to two additional presences.

Yuki called out to me in her usual energetic voice and I hugged her back before asking her about Zero and Ichiru.

"Oh, they insisted on joining us. But if you don't like it I can tell them to f*** off." Yuki replied earnestly. I don't think I've ever looked at her with my eyes so wide open in shock. Where had she learned to speak like that?! Yuki was waiting for my answer with her honest, adoring eyes and I almost sighed out loudly in despair when I realized that, yes, 'twas I, the bad teacher.

Well, another reason on the list of why I'm heading to hell after this life, I guess.

In the end I smiled, both at her and at the boys behind her, "No, they are most welcome to join us." And that was the start of one slightly uncomfortable trip to the town.

On our way to the town, Yuki stayed by my side, arm locked with mine as she chatted happily about random stuff. She and Zero started to bicker as soon as we reached the shopping area and they were soon so engrossed in their argument that I was left alone with the other Kiryuu twin. The one who confused me to no ends. He had spent the entire time until now either glaring daggers at me from behind or snubbing me from across the shop. Whenever I approached an item, he would scoff or turn his eyes away in a dismissive way. He was so high up his horse what the hell! He was like a male version of Ruka.

Just treat him like Ruka then, I told myself. I grabbed a scarf and went to try it on in front of the mirror, and he scoffed again. This time, I looked at Ichiru via the mirror and scoffed back. What I got in return was an ice-cold glare and then he turned away to look at other items. He was getting on my nerves.

I couldn't take it anymore! I turned around, fully intent on asking him if he had a problem with me. But Yuki stepped in my way to show me a cute pair of socks and Ichiru just moved away. I took a deep breath. Calm down Katsumi. He's being a brat, doesn't mean you have to be one too. Don't let this ruin your precious day off. I took the socks from Yuki and smiled at her. She smiled back and started dragging me to the corner where I could find other such cute socks.

"Look Katsu-nee! This one has little rabbits on it!" Yuki exclaimed, passionately shoving a pair of white and pink socks in my face.

"They're very cute, Yuki-chan. But hmm," I looked around their selection for something a little more… Ah! Found it! "I'm getting this one!" Black with a golden and red yakuza style dragon embroidery. "So cute!"

Yuki grinned and grabbed another pair of the same design but in pink instead of black, "Hehe, now we have matching ones."

"You both have such weird tastes." The bored voice of Zero sounded behind us. I was slowly getting used to being around this one. Tall, low voice and beautiful face, yeah I was used to it by now. I snickered when Yuki commented on his own 'boring' choice of plain grey socks. He glared and they started bickering again.

Ah youth, I sighed fondly. Witnessing them like this, being able to just be normal teenagers, maybe with mutual crushes on each other, warmed my heart. I had done it before, several times, but I wanted to do it again and again when I saw how free and joyful Yuki was, Yuki could be, in this moment. I thanked whichever force that governed this universe for this twist in the story, for saving these boys, for sparing them from the suffering that the death of their parents would have brought on them and on the people around me. Even if one of them insisted on glaring daggers at me for some reason, seeing Yuki like this, Kaname's- no, my little sister laughing wholeheartedly, without nightmares haunting her eyes, without the burden of her own blood on her tiny shoulders, seeing all this made me relieved. At least the things that I have been doing until now were not for nothing. This was reward time.

We spent a few more minutes in that particular shop before moving to take a break in a café. And that was where my actual meeting with the Kiryuu brothers really began.

AN: Please review ^^

More is coming!