So, I'm going to level with myself, or anyone reading this. I wanna make my plan for this story real clear. This show is not widely known, and it has a very small community. I only stumbled upon the anime because I was looking for Girls und Panzer and this was listed directly below it on AnimeDao. Now, I quickly fell in love with the Takanashis. The idea of the vampire mythos being placed in a slice of life setting, and the way it was handled by the show was just…fascinating. I loved every part of it, from the interactions between the sisters, the pack of human blood just sitting in the family fridge, everything. Now, I'll say here that I didn't care for any other part of the show. Yes, Takahashi was useful in that he served as the natural means for getting Hikari and others to talk about anything vampire related. However, his entertainment value stops there for me. And I honestly don't care for any other element of the story. Just the vampire. So, when I read manga chapters like We're All Friends, I loved seeing the idea of Hikari just sucking human blood in front of normal people being put on the page. Then, I saw the Tale of the Takanashi Sisters arc and, needless to say, I absolutely loved it. It was the final piece of the vampire mythos that the story hadn't covered yet in enough detail, and when it happened, it was pretty awesome. But, of course, the story never took it all the way and the actual act of Hikari biting Himari was only ever teased at. My endgame for this story is to show that, as best as I can. I was really hoping to see that someone had already done a fanfic about it, but there were only stories about romance, and a lot of them were centered around Satou and Yuki. So, looks like it's up to me. I don't expect anyone to read this. The show has been around for a while now, and the community is already so small. But, if someone is here, hope you enjoy. Cheers.
Into the late hours of the night and the early hours of the morning, Himari laid in bed, reading. She knew she was going to have a lot of trouble sleeping after what had happened that day, so she didn't bother to try. She wasn't alone, however. Not really alone, anyway. She had her favorite reading light on, and that was all the company she needed. It was a small lamp that hung from the epicenter of her headboard. It had a black, flexible neck, so that she might adjust the lamp to better suit whatever position she was reading in. The head of the lamp was a soft lavender color, with a cute cartoon vampire bat decal. It was her favorite lamp, sure, but it wasn't exactly a unique item in her room. For all the constant bickering she did with her sister, and her claims to not be interested in Hikari or especially care for her, it would take a stranger maybe five seconds to get an eye full of the overwhelming amount of vampire décor in her room. She had posters, t-shirts, and even a small collection of research books. She had read them each at least once, as a means of studying up on Hikari and any superstitions relating to her. They dealt with the vampire mythos, unique elements of Hikari's biology, like her fangs, and there was a book or two by some prominent demi-human researchers. Indeed, a simple scan of the room would tell anyone that Himari really did care for her sister. More so than she cared for anything else, save her parents, of course. But now, she didn't care to think about studying. She didn't care to think about doing anymore work. She didn't care to think at all, really. The day had been a rough one, and she was exhausted physically, mentally, and emotionally.
Then, as if on cue to draw her out of her book, came a creaking noise from the hardwood hallway just outside her room. It was a hallway that gave way to the twins' rooms and the bathroom they shared at the end of the hall, which meant there was only one person who could be making that noise. Himari used to be scared of...bumps in the night, as it were, but she had grown out of it and had, more importantly, learned to recognize this particular kind of creaking as either her sister coming to her for help, or her going into the bathroom, which always ran the risk of Hikari falling asleep on the toilet and that still ended with Himari having to get up and help her sister. Given that the creaking was coming closer to her door, Himari closed her book and grabbed her reading lamp, ready to have a little fun. Then, she waited for her expected guest, and Hikari did not disappoint. She wrapped her hands around the door frame and then her body popped into view. Her hair, normally so immaculately groomed, was now a disheveled mess. The moment Himari could see her sister's face, she did what she always did when this sort of thing happened. She twisted the head of the lamp and aimed the center of the cone straight into unsuspecting eyes.
"Ugh, hey c'mon sis, knock it off." Hikari whined, flicking her hands up to cover her eyes. "You know I hate it when you do that."
"That's what makes it so funny, and it's your fault anyhow for not expecting it." Himari replied, turning the lamp to illuminate the ceiling. Himari was telling the truth. She did find it funny when she got to mess with her sister, but that wasn't the only reason she did it, though she would never admit her true motive to anyone, least of all Hikari. In the brief window between the light hitting her eyes and her hands shooting up to shield them, Hikari's eyes always shined because they were reflecting the light. It was a small thing, sure, but Himari never failed to spot it. She loved it when Hikari's eyes shined like that. Maybe "shined" wasn't even the right word to describe it. More like...glittered. It was just one of the little things that made her who she was, and it was also one of the prettier aspects of her vampirism. "What do you want?" Himari asked.
"I can't sleep." Said Hikari.
"Yeah, neither can I." Came the reply.
"Can I come lay with you?" Hikari asked. Himari smiled. She liked it when her sister needed her and relied on her. It made her feel special and she liked that she was always the one Hikari came to. She never saw it as annoying, or needy, but rather a testament to the strength of their bond.
"Sure, you can come under." Himari said. There was enough light in the room that Himari could see Hikari's face light up. She would have just turned the lamp off, because she knew that bright lights in an otherwise dark area always bothered Hikari, but unlike her more…naturally gifted sister, Himari couldn't see perfectly in the dark.
"Thanks!" Hikari said excitedly, jumping onto the bed and sliding under the covers next to Himari.
"You know you're always welcome here." Himari said.
"Yeah, I know." Hikari said with a soft voice, and an even softer smile. After a minute or two of silence, Himari started up again.
"So, I know why I'm having trouble sleeping," she said, "but what's your story, Cory?"
"Well, you know, it was just a…long day." Hikari replied.
"Sure, but there's something else, isn't there?" Himari pressed.
"…how'd you know?" Asked Hikari.
"Sister's intuition," came the reply, "now spill."
"There's…there's also this." Hikari said softly, taking her phone out of her pocket, fiddling with the screen for a second, and finally handing it over to her sister. When Himari looked at what had been pulled up on the screen, she was not happy. She knew what this was. Her sister had shown it to her before. It was a message board for a very large group of people calling themselves the "Anti-Demi-Humans". Well, that was a ridiculous name. They never gave any trouble to any other kinds of demis, just vampires. It was only the vampires they hated. They hated her sister, for something she couldn't control. It made Himari furious. Himari looked a little closer and saw the root of the problem. It was another thread criticizing and calling for an end to the "Blood Tax". The "Blood Tax". Himari had done plenty of looking into it, given that it directly affected Hikari, and she knew what it was. It was a federal government plan implemented about 20 years ago that aimed to provide a safe, easy solution to the never-ending need for the vampires in Japan to drink blood. Come tax season, anyone could offer up blood in exchange for a rather generous tax cut. Usually, the limit that one person could donate was three quarters of a liter, the size of one whole blood pack. Anyone could opt into it, so long as their blood was clean and healthy. No human wanted to drink spoiled milk, after all. Himari recalled that their parents had done it a few times themselves. Then, of course, the system would flow as smoothly as it ever had, and each registered vampire would receive one of the blood packs every month. The packs were delivered to whichever health clinic the vampire in question was a registered patient at. Hikari, for example, would always go with Himari and their father on the first day of the month, provided that the Shibasaki Family Health Clinic was open. Hikari would run in, grab her little cooler, and that was that. It was such a simple means of keeping all the vampires healthy and thereby removing any risk of them attacking people. But these people didn't exactly see eye-to-eye with her on the matter. Many of the posts preached the same core message. Always along the lines of how vampires were gorging themselves on the "Blood Tax", and how normal humans "shouldn't have to give up our blood to feed these monsters." Himari read the quote in her head a few times. She resented the term 'normal humans'. Her sister was plenty normal. So what if her needs were a little different form everyone else's? Himari didn't care, and neither should these strangers. Himari gave an exasperated sigh and went to question her twin.
"Hikari, why are you looking at this site still? I thought I told you to never re-visit it." Himari chided. Her sister had been going to this awful place every now and then for a few weeks now. It was full of nothing but hate for vampires, she shouldn't have been going there and Himari had wanted to tell their parents. They'd have been able to force Hikari to stop, but her sister had made her promise she wouldn't, and, if today had been any indication, Himari would always keep her promises.
"I know, but I just wanted to check in on it, I thought maybe they would change their minds after some time. I was hoping that maybe they would start thinking better of me." Hikari said with a sad voice.
"They clearly haven't." Himari observed.
"No, it's been getting worse. The posts are becoming...meaner. They really hate vampires, but I don't get why." Hikari said.
"You're too naïve, sis." Himari said.
"No, I'm not! I get that they hate the "Blood Tax", but that doesn't mean they have to hate all vampires. I mean, no one is forcing them to participate. They never have to give blood if they don't want to." Hikari said, sounding genuinely confused. Her sister had a very valid point that couldn't really be argued with, but Himari still appreciated the moment. It was times like this, when Hikari was sad and confused, that she got to feel like the older sister.
"You're right, it doesn't make sense, and it's not right. Unfortunately…it doesn't need to. You know full well that there are some people in this world who are mean just for the sake of being mean and these," she gestured to the phone still in her hand, "are some of those people."
"I…I can understand that, but it's still not the only problem." Hikari said. "Things are getting worse for vampires than just mean words. People have started to attack us."
"Attack vampires? What are you talking about?" Himari asked. In response, Hikari took the phone back and pulled a new site up. It was a news article from about a week ago, from "The Japan Times". The headline read: "Vampire Attacked Outside Health Clinic, Blood Pack Stolen!" Himari gave a shocked gasp. The attached video showed a middle-aged man getting ambushed and beaten up just in front of a health clinic. The attacking crowd bore the logo of the "Anti-Demi-Humans". The man's cooler, containing his blood pack, was ripped away form him and he was beaten into the ground. They were yelling anti-demi slurs. The angry mob didn't stop and, by the time the police showed, not only had the attackers dispersed, but the man looked as though he had lost more blood than he would have gotten out of the blood pack. It was absolutely terrifying to watch. Now Himari understood why her sister was so shaken up.
"I'm scared, Himari. I don't want that to happen to me." Hikari said, trying to hold back tears. Himari pulled her sister in tight for a hug.
"I promise you, that will never, ever happen to you." Hikari said, her voice filled with an angry strength. "You know mom and dad would kill anyone that tried to hurt you, and if somebody managed to slip past them, they'd still have to get though me. You listen to me," Himari commanded, making sure that her sister's eyes were locked with hers, "as long as we are here to protect you…as long as I am here to protect you, these people will not hurt you." Himari said. She couldn't have been more serious, but she wasn't trying to be harsh. She needed Hikari to know how many people loved her and wanted to protect her, and just how safe that made her.
"I know. Thanks, Himari. I love you." Hikari said, her voice clogged with emotion.
"I love you too, sis." Came Himari's warm reply. Then, she started to sing.
"*Little vampire, little bat wings, rest your head and sleep*."
It was something their parents had made up when they were younger, and Hikari was still having nightmares about her vampirism, and about the time she bit Himari. As such, the lullaby was vampire themed and her parents had set it to the tune of the "Cossack Lullaby"*. It had never failed to calm Hikari and ease her off to sleep.
"*On your face the moon is shining, calling you to sleep*."
It was starting to work. Hikari was fidgeting less, and her breathing slowed. Himari had one last trick up her sleeve and gave her arm over to Hikari, who gladly accepted it. Himari knew her sister found nothing more calming than chewing on her arm, so she smiled when the nibbling started.
"*I will hold you in my arms and let your fangs bite deep*."
Himari flicked the switch above her, and the room went dark.
"*Here in this endless darkness, rest your head and sleep, rest your head and sleep*."
Then, the room was still and at peace, like Hikari beside her, and Himari closed her eyes, joining her sister in sleep.
*The Cossack Lullaby is a Russian folk song written in about 1840 by Mikhail Lermontov. I did what I could to write new lyrics that flowed with the tune of the song, but it'll only sound halfway decent if you listen to the real song while reading this.