A/N: Thank you everyone for the support!!! ^________^ It makes me happy to know y'all like it! *big smile* So many reveiws all ready, makes me really happy! ^_____________________^

Chapter 8- Sakura

I watched with worry as Li-kun ran from the room. I hoped he was okay. What had I said to upset him? Those amber eyes had watched me with such a ferocity and then...they softened. I still can't get rid of his eyes in my head. Bright...amber...eyes.

"Sakura-chan?" Naoko asked carefully. She must have walked over to me while I was daydreaming.

"Hai?" I asked back.

"Ano...you know Li-kun? Well he..."

I cocked my head at Naoko. "Nani?"

Naoko looked nervous. "He...last night at sunset..."

She was definatly upset. "He...what?" I asked with concern. She was begining to worry me.

"He...a-"

Naoko was cut off by the bell ringing. She had to go sit back in her seat. A teacher, different from Hoshi-sensei walked into the room with the principle.

"Class, I have some grave news for you today," the principal began in a quiet voice.

"Hoe?" I asked. Not loud enough to be heard.

The principal sighed. "It is with a heavy heart that I inform you of Hoshi-sensei's death."

This time I shouted... "HOE?!"

The entire class was now staring at me. So was the new teacher.

"So, you now have a new teacher. Mizuki-sensei." (a/n: I just HAD to put her in here somewhere. I really like Kaho.)

The new teacher bowed. The principal left.

How did Hoshi-sensei die?! She was a very young person, so it couldn't have been age. Mabye she had a deadly disease, but then she wouldn't be in school...

"I am sorry about your other teacher. I hope that we can continue with our normal schedule, even in the light of this tragedy," Mizuki-sensei said sadly.

We all nodded and began the day.

Li-kun never came back to school that day.

After school...

I was sitting on the couch, relaxing. Otou-san was going to be late, and I think oni-chan was at another job. I don't see how he ever gets time to sleep.

I decided to turn on the televisioin to catch the news. I made it just in time.

"Next, we have news about a murder that was commited last night, near Penguin Park. It has been guessed that this happened at sunset or shortly after. Twenty-six year old Kakono Hoshi' s body was found early this morning."

"HOE?!" I shouted. I leaned forward towards the screen.

"The only clue found to her death was, two puncter holes in her neck over her jugular vein. Hoshi-san was empty of blood, but there was no blood found anywher near her body. This resembles the murder of policeman Rokuban Juu, in Tokyo. Police are still searching for the culprit, as no one has witnessed the murders."

I switched off the T.V. I couldn't take anymore of that. I felt cold, and I was shaking.

"Oni-chan, was right. They have to be real...puncture holes in the neck...empty of blood. A regular person couldn't have done that...and one of those...those THINGS, killed Hoshi-sensei. Oni-chan was right," I murmured.

It was impossible! Vampires really exisited?! I suddenly felt frightened to be hear alone. But Otou-san wasn't going to be home for a long time, and who knew when oni-chan was coming back? After all, he hunts those Things, so he might not be back at all tonight. What was I going to do? I didn't want to be alone...please, not alone.

For some reason, I thought of Li-kun. His amber eyes. Strong and defiant.

"But I don't know how to find him...demo, I don't want to be alone, and Li-kun..." I trailed off. Sakura, you BAKA! You have only known him for two days! Why are you wanting his company so bad?! Just 'cause you invited him over for dinner, doesn't mean that you know him well enough to pine for his company! I continued to scold myself, but those eyes...so strong, that messy brown hair...that-

"Sakura! You shouldn't be thinking like that! I need something to do, so I'll go clean the basement now instead of waiting until this weekend!" I said outloud, just to hear the sound of my own voice and to stop my thoughts from wandering in an improper direction about a boy I barely knew.

So I went to clean up the basement. I was scheduled to do that on Sunday, since I volunteered, but I needed something to do now.

In about an hour, I was almost done, and covered in sweat. It was getting dark down there, because the sun was setting outside. I found a lamp and turned it on. I noticed that I was covered in dust, and dirt as well as sweat.

"Yuck." I guess since I was doing something, my fear had subsided.

I spotted a chest back in a dark corner of the basement. I walked over and dragged it into the lamplight and the fading light of the sun. It was a silver color, but it looked like it had tarnished over time. So mabye the thing was actually real silver. I tried opening it, but it was locked. I was determined, so I found a crowbar and pried it open.

The inside was linded in white padding, that was covered in silky material. Laying in the middle of this all, making a dent down in the padding was a sword. It had a long, thin blade. The hilt had a small handguard stretching over it. It was thin, just a place for your knuckles to rest. Near the bottom of the hilt, was something that looked like a wing. In the middle of that, where the wing was comingfrom, was a pink jewl. I looked to the top, and found that there was a simular jewl in the middle of the point. (a/n: This is supposed to look exactly like the sword card, and forgive me for getting some points wrong on it. It has been awhile since I have seen that card up close, and it was really hard to describe. So I am sorry about any mistakes in the description)

I gasped in shock. It was beautiful. I didn't know who it belonged to, for there wasn't a name on the chest, or inside of it.

"I wander who's this was or is," I murmured outloud.

"It was oka-san's."

"HHHHOOOOOOOOEEEEEEEEEE!!!" I screamed in surprise, and fright. It was just Touya, but he surprised me.

He walked up and knelt beside me. "It was oka-san's," he repeated sadly.

"But why would oka-san have a sword?" I asked.

He looked at me with a plain stare. "Where do you think I got the vampire hunting thing from?"

"O-oka-san was a vampire hunter?!"

"She was, for a little while after she married otou-san. But she told me when I was born she gave it up, so she could live to see her children grow. But then when you were three, and I was ten, one of those damned things killed her," Touya answered. His voice had gotten a little emotional at the end.

"That is how oka-san died?" I asked in a quiet voice. I felt myself trembling. Touya nodded. I hung my head. It was ten minutes before I said anything else. "Oni-chan, my teacher Hoshi-sensei, was killed by one of those Things. I saw it on the news. That is when I knew that you had been right...and I was scared, so I came down here to get my mind off of that. But now...I can't be scared anymore..."

I raised my head, to look Touya in the face. I felt anger running through me. Anger at those Things which just last night, I didn't belive in.

"Sakura?" Touya asked quietly.

"Oni-chan, I want to hunt those vile Things with you! I'll use this," I gestured to the sword, "and I will help rid this place of every last one!" Here, I reached into the chest and pulled out the sword. I wasn't going to let Touya talk me out of it, and he saw that, so he just nodded.

I, Kinomoto Sakura, am going on my first vampire hunt tonight.