Disclaimer: I don't own Diabolik Lovers. However, I do own Akira.

Warnings: Language, Mature Scenes, Sadism and Masochism, Gore, Death, Dysfunctional Relationships, Incest

"Oi, what's the meaning of this?!"

"Oh, it's you, Ayato." Cordelia greeted the eldest triplet coyly, "It's been a long time."

The male's bright green orbs narrowed in disdain.

"What have you done?" Ayato demanded, though he was already aware of what had transpired. Akira was never one to lie; she deemed it pointless. If she had wanted something to remain hidden, she would have been rather obscure with the topic or would have simply outright refused to say anything. But when she revealed that his mother had returned, the redhead wasn't sure what to make of the situation.

It was maddening to think that the woman who had tormented him all his life, who he had assumed to be dead for so many years, now roamed freely through the mansion grounds wearing the bride's face. Ayato had never imagined that he would ever witness such a cold expression on Yui's features – her normally sweet and harmless countenance replaced by a sly smile, and a sinister glint shining in those sherbet pink orbs.

"It doesn't appear you're here to say how pleased you are to see me again." Cordelia mused, causing Ayato to click his tongue in annoyance. Clearly, this woman was delusional if she thought that anyone besides his pathetic uncle would be thrilled at her presence. He could never comprehend what the older vampire saw in her – how her nasty personality and unfaithfulness would push him to the point of reviving her.

"As for why I'm here…" the wraith gestured to the older Sakamaki male, "Richter, would you please explain it to him? I need some rest. I'm not fully used to this body yet. She shouldn't even be conscious, yet she's trying to eject me – it's tiresome."

Ayato's steely visage did not falter as she spoke, his sharp stare never straying from his uncle as she walked past him with a smug little smirk and retreated inside.

"What did you do to her?" the redhead asked once she was out of earshot.

A long minute passed before Richter let out a huff in amusement, "I'm sure you already know."

The clock struck ten.

"So, it's true. The heart you removed is now inside her."

"The girl still exists, but only just. However, once she awakens, the girl's soul will be obliterated for eternity… leaving only Cordelia." Richter stated as he gazed up at the moonlit sky, "Indeed, Akira has done well to keep you informed, but not even she could stop the awakening."

Ayato gritted his teeth anger as he turned and stormed off in search of the bewitched bride.

The blonde did not even flinch as she sensed Ayato approaching her at the docks and peered at him from the corner of her eye as he stopped a few paces away. "What will you do now, Ayato? Will you kill me again?"

He did not deign to answer her directly. Instead, he told her, "I used to be a bad swimmer."

"Yes, I remember. However," Cordelia turned to face him fully with that same impish look he so despised, "You improved greatly, thanks to me."

Ayato's brows furrowed in aggravation, "Now, it's your turn."

"But surely, you know that I am an excellent swimmer." Cordelia taunted.

This woman really should have known better than to provoke him.

She barely had the chance to react as Ayato abruptly appeared less than a foot in front of her and shoved her wordlessly into the lake. The wraith yelped as she hit the freezing water, the cold practically seeping into her skin and slowly coursing through her veins. She had almost forgotten how fragile mortal bodies were.

Cordelia attempted to push herself to the surface as her limbs numbed, only to realize that Yui's body refused to comply and she could not seem to move as she wished.

W-What is this? Can't she swim?! Her arms flailed uncontrollably in her panic, trying desperately to keep herself from sinking further, and liquid filling her lungs as her lips parted in a muffled yell.

…

…

It's so dark…

Yui wept with chains coiled durably around her helpless form, and a dense black fog filtered through the air. She couldn't see nor hear, yet she could still feel how her body moved without her volition, and the disconcerting sensation of hands tracing a path across her skin. Her face, her neck, her arms – the ghost of a touch made her recoil and squirm uncomfortably as she cried for them to "Stop it, stop it!", only for the chains to clench further, tightening around her until she couldn't breathe.

She choked as her lungs seemed to constrict, and her petite frame seizing as the temperature suddenly dropped. Was this it? Was she dying? Her fear heightened as spots clouded her vision, and all Yui could think of was…

Cold… So cold…

She didn't know when she had closed her eyes, but as pink pools snapped open, Yui found herself descending to the bottom of the lake.

…

…

"Get lost." The redhead sneered as he watched the harsh ripples and bubbles rising to the water's surface.

Ayato moved to leave. He had merely taken two steps, when a familiar call of his name halted him in his tracks. That voice – it didn't sound like his mother at all; it was too soft, too timid, too frightened. Surprise flittered across his features as he glanced behind him, to find Yui staring at him pleadingly as she held onto the dock.

He wasn't entirely convinced, even with Yui's docile tones verbally seeking his aid. Cordelia, while blatantly conniving and coquettish, knew how to portray the victim and manipulate certain situations in her favor when it called for it. Laito had been the most unfortunate recipient to the consequences of her antics when they were children. And though Ayato would never admit it to his sibling out loud, he had admired Laito's resiliency despite the younger being thrown into the dungeon with false accusations and punished for that vile woman's entertainment.

Hearing the human's struggles, Ayato sighed reluctantly, hoping he would not regret it as he walked over to the edge and hoisted her onto the pier.

…

It was just like when he had stumbled upon her in the underground waterway. She couldn't recall a thing – how she had ended up in the lake, or why she had been donning one of that woman's dresses.

That night he found her – had she been possessed back then? It would have certainly explained the odd taste of her blood. The eldest triplet couldn't help but wonder how long Cordelia had been controlling Yui since she had settled into their home. How often did his despicable mother parade around the corridors as their sacrificial bride? Cordelia had played the mortal like a puppet on strings, and the latter was absolutely oblivious to what had occurred whilst she was trapped within the depths of her own mind.

"Ayato-kun?"

Disregarding her state of confusion, Ayato leaned towards her neck, causing Yui to instinctively tense in apprehension.

"Just be quiet. My body is unbelievably parched." He muttered before mercilessly sinking his fangs into her delicate flesh. As the crimson liquid flowed into his mouth, Ayato's eyes widened in astonishment at the flavor that burst on his tongue. While there were remnants of the sickening sweetness of Cordelia's blood, there was also a richness to it that urged him to take heavier gulps and sating a hunger he hadn't even realized he had felt.

"Ayato-kun," Yui snivelled when his incisors dug deeper, but her plea fell on deaf ears, "Yamete… onegai…"

Rather than relinquishing his hold, Ayato wrapped an arm around her waist and continued to drink greedily, ignoring the human's distressed gasps and whines. He knew that if he didn't stop at this rate, he might actually end up killing her. Why couldn't he stop? Why did her blood taste like this?

Was this the awakening?

It was Laito's voice that eventually jolted Ayato from his seemingly endless voracity, "Hmmm~ I see. It finally makes sense."

The older redhead finally pulled away with great difficulty, gritting his teeth as he fought the temptation to plunge his fangs back in and drain the blonde girl dry. He stood, his words slightly muffled as he covered his mouth with the sleeve of his blazer, "Damn it… Your blood is so filling now."

"I thought it was strange. Only recently, the tiniest whiff of Yui's blood smelled so sweet that it would drive me crazy." Kanato remarked, hugging his precious stuffed bear close to his chest, "Teddy, it was so hard to restrain ourselves, wasn't it?"

"I'm sure a drink of her blood would be very satisfying. I'm getting excited just thinking about it." Laito purred, salaciously licking his lips in emphasis.

Yui shakily pushed herself to her feet, utter terror plastered on her face as she stumbled a couple of steps back. The triplets' attention was solely on her, and if she lingered any longer, she was certain at least one of them would be enticed to feed.

Turning on her tail, Yui bolted towards the forest and did not dare to look back, fearing that they would give chase. But contrary to her belief, none of the triplets bothered to follow. Instead, they watched as her silhouette disappeared further down the murky dirt path.

Kanato scoffed as he derisively eyed the blonde's departing figure, "Foolish girl. Doesn't she know that running away is pointless?"

"Ara~ It looks like Bitch-chan is heading back to the mansion." Laito chimed in, "She'll need to be careful. Aki-chan's been fairly restless as of late."

"Tch, if chichinashi's smart, she'd avoid Akira unless she's planning to live up to her title as 'sacrifice'."

Were they behind her? Were they waiting around a corner to ambush her?

Yui frantically raced through the trail lined with dull trees and bushes, leaves and pebbles crunching beneath her heels, and the sanguine moon glowing ominously overhead. It wasn't long until a familiar maze of red roses came into view, indicating her arrival on the mansion grounds. Though relieved at the sight, the bride was anxious at the possibility of bumping into the remaining brothers, who were most likely lurking somewhere within the estate.

She made a beeline for her bedroom, immediately rummaging through her bedside table and digging out a gleaming silver knife – the same knife Subaru had lent to her the night he had prompted her to escape. She still didn't understand why she hadn't done so; if Subaru's words were to be believed, she could have left. She had the means to ensure that they wouldn't follow her – all it took was a single, well-aimed strike.

But killing one of them? Yui's grip on the knife hilt tightened. The notion of it made her sick.

So lost in her bleak ruminations, she did not notice as she was approached from behind, inhaling sharply as a hand firmly encircled her throat.

"Calm yourself, Miss Yui. Struggling will do you no favors." her assailant cautioned, catching Yui off guard when she recognized who it was.

"A-Akira-san…?" the older female's face loomed close to hers, eyes narrowed in contemplation.

"Interesting… The scent of your blood is much more potent now. It's making me feel a bit peckish – that's quite a first." the raven-haired vampire murmured in bewilderment, before her lips curled into a sneer, a great contrast to her usually composed demeanor that had Yui blanching in dread, "And yet, the mere breath of it also makes me want to rip your throat out. How can something be so enticing but so utterly revolting?"

The blonde's breath hitched. The words shouldn't have shocked her; the brothers had often expressed something similar to the sort whenever they sought to feed from her. But somehow, hearing Akira say them made them all the more disconcerting. From the moment she had stepped into their household, the female Sakamaki had shown nothing but indifference when it came to her blood. And with that, the bride had deemed her a saving grace – a safe haven – in the twisted reality she had lived in, solely because Akira had been the only sibling that had yet to bite her.

"P-Please don't…" she beseeched in hopes of appealing to the sibling's more merciful side that she had been fortunate enough to witness.

But this Akira wasn't one she remembered encountering. Her normally bright sapphire pools were shadowed with a nearly indistinguishable esurience, and her frame tensed in vexation as her dainty fingers pressed against the blonde's throat warningly.

"Be still." the vampire commanded, idly noting how the mortal trembled in her hold as her mouth hovered over Yui's pulse point. The bride attempted to stifle her whimpers as Akira's incisors easily pierced through her skin like a hot needle through paper. The sensation was odd, and did not feel like how most of the brothers had bitten her – while it was still unpleasant, it wasn't the most excruciating she had endured so far. Like Reiji, Akira was careful but less acrid with her methods.

The raven-haired female took slow sips at first, as to not spill a single drop and cause the human further discomfort. But the longer the essence played on her tongue, the more frenzied her feeding became. She began to draw mouthfuls, her grip absently becoming harsher as her teeth dug deeper into supple flesh.

Yui squirmed and wheezed in pain at the rough treatment, silently imploring for Akira to unlatch herself as she mirrored Ayato's earlier actions. This… this was the feeling she had grown so accustomed to, and for some strange reason, it wounded her beyond the physical affliction. But why? Akira was a vampire. It was an undeniable truth that constantly lingered in the back of her mind, yet one she often forgot. So why did the thought of Akira not being any different from her brothers trouble her so much? Was it because she had trusted her? No – perhaps it was because Yui had assumed that the female Sakamaki treated her diversely. She had heard snippets of the latter's antipathy towards the previous brides, and the blonde did not want to be deemed as another object of her enmity. In fact, she longed for the opposite.

Surroundings drowned out by her pounding heartbeat, Yui's vision swam as her breathing grew restricted, and her limbs growing weaker as the vital crimson fluid was continuously drained from her. The silver knife slipped from anesthetized fingers, landing on the floor with a noisy 'clang'.

The sound snapped Akira from her ravenous state. Sensing her grasp loosen, Yui wrenched herself from Akira's arms, ignoring the throbbing hematic mess on her neck as she curled up on the edge of her bed.

Akira's eyes were momentarily wide with shock, before her expression settled to one of nonchalance. Tracing the corner of her mouth with her thumb, she wiped off the line of scarlet and delicately licked the excess off the appendage. She hummed, glancing between the fallen blade and the frightened bride, "So you have become afraid of us, then."

"I haven't!" Yui disputed unconvincingly, her tone reflecting her splintering resolve, "But if I carry that with me, I don't know what I'm going to do!"

"Does it make you feel safer, having the knife with you?" Akira queried blasély with a quirk of her brow. She picked up the knife and twirled it in her hands as she awaited the bride's reply. But the blonde said nothing and averted her gaze in shame. "The fact that you had even considered carrying it with you is an adequate response. As I've mentioned before, Miss Yui – you would be a fool to not be afraid, especially now."

That was true, but it wasn't enough to make Yui want to kill them. She was well aware that they weren't themselves, and that there was something about her – about her blood – that was driving their thirst and prompting their continuous mood swings. Akira was clearly no exception to whatever infliction had affected the brothers.

But as Yui lifted her head to argue, Akira had already vanished from the room, the knife laying innocently on top of the pink bed covers next to her.

Omake ~

"It tasted like that vile woman, but I couldn't stop drinking." the female Sakamaki let out a disgruntled sigh, "The awakening seems to have brought forth primal instincts as well as amplify the need for her blood. How bothersome…"

"Fufufun~ Now, now, Aki-chan – it's almost over." Laito soothed as he encased her in his arms and placed a hand behind her head, guiding towards the curve between his neck and shoulder, while the other rested on her lower back, "In the meantime, let me make it all better and wash away the poison for you~"

Akira took a whiff of his scent to calm herself, looping her arms around his waist to tug him closer. The redhead had shrugged off his blazer and fur-lined hoodie, making it easier for her to pry his shirt open and expose his shoulders and collarbone.

She felt Laito shiver in excitement as she dragged her tongue across his skin, fangs grazing his flesh as she purred, "How lucky I am to have such a good Otouto."

Laito chuckled breathily, pupils dilating with want, "Does this mean I get a reward, Nee-san?"

"If you're a good boy while I feed, you can have something a bit… sweeter." Akira nipped at the curve of his neck, taking his hand from her back and deliberately guiding it to the hem of her ruffled skirt, "Does that sound fair?"

"Yes," Laito moaned, "Please…"

*Oi – Hey

*Yamete – Stop it

*Onegai – Please

*Ara – Oh

* chichinashi – pancake/flat-chested

*Otouto – little brother

*Nee-san – older sister

*Omake – extra or bonus

~Cassandra