(part three)
A Tenshi Ni Narumon Fanfic, by Cat Who
Standard disclaimers apply: Tenshi ni Narumon belongs to Studio
Pierrot and the Heaven Project, not me. I'm not making any money,
please don't sue me.
***
Saturday
***
One more day.
One more day.
Miruru kept chanting that to herself as she lay in her bed, nearly fully recovered from her "blood donation" the week before. She'd been a good girl and not visited Gabriel, although she desperately wanted to ask him if he'd really meant what he had said -- that he was afraid to admit that he loved her. She'd stayed in her room all week, making sure to eat plenty of iron rich foods and drink lots of fluids so that she'd be as healthy as possible when she emerged from her enforced isolation.
One more day . . .
***
Gabriel, on the other hand, was dreading the next day. He had been let off the hook early, because Mama had pleaded with Baba for mercy on his behalf, and he was out of his room, eating the morning meal at the table again.
He swirled his tomato juice around in the glass why the Family breakfasted around him.
"Natsumi is coming over for a study session later today, along with Masuro and Saiki," Yuusuke informed everyone. "We all have a test on Monday, and given our grades last time, we need to start studying early."
"Test, test, waku, waku," Noelle said with an oblivious grin. Yuusuke gave her a gentle smile.
"What is your test on?" Mama said politely, although it was hard to tell if she was really interested or not. It wasn't that the Family didn't want to take an interest -- especially Mama and Papa -- it's just that they didn't know how.
"It's on anatomy. We have to learn all the parts of the circulatory system."
Gabriel froze. He was still riding on the gorge high he'd gotten from Miruru the week before, so he wasn't craving blood too badly, but vampires by their very nature are interested in all things blood related.
"That's very nice to hear," Papa said, munching on Mama's delicious cooking.
"I'm really worried about it." Yuusuke sighed. "If we don't pass this one, we'll be held back for sure."
"Don't worry," Gabriel said confidently. "I'll be able to help."
"Really?" Yuusuke was surprised. The vampire seemed as ignorant as the rest of the family most of the time, and he'd never shown any inclination to go to school. Yuusuke suddenly wondered about something. How old was Gabriel, anyway? He didn't look a day over seventeen or eighteen, but he'd been old enough to agree to raise Noelle fifteen years ago . . .
Gabriel winked at Yuusuke, and put him in an enthusiastic choke hold. "When it comes to blood, I'm your man."
***
The study group met in Yuusuke's room as usual, with Sara popping in with cookies every once in a while. Even without Mikael there, she felt she ought to do something big-sisterly, and cookies were the best she could think of.
"Human blood is divided into two diferent parts -- plasma and blood cells," Gabriel explained, holding up a pointer and looking ten times more intelligent than usual. This was his area of expertise, after all.
Noelle raised her hand frantically. "Ooh ooh ohh!" she said.
"Yes, onee-chan?"
"What part of the blood do you drink?" she asked, innocently.
Yuusuke coughed. Natsumi looked confused. Masuro and Saiki sniggered to themselves.
"I don't drink blood, Noelle," Gabriel said urgently, looking more than a little embarassed. Well, anymore. Miruru's not human, he amended slightly.
"But just last week you mhmm -- "
Yuusuke had slapped his hands over Noelle's mouth. As if Suzahara-san didn't think they were all strange enough as it was . . .
"I did nothing last week. Ahem." Gabriel tried again, and realized that Noelle was going to make this a lot harder than he'd realized. "Blood is divided into two parts. The plasma is the clear liquid, and the cells, both white and red, form the solid part. The plasma containts platelets . . ."
***
Hours later, the study group finally broke up, with Natsumi thinking Gabriel was some sort of Gothic pervert from all the times that Noelle had asked about him biting Miruru's neck. Fortunately, Gabriel knew more about blood than even their sensei had, and Natsumi felt confident about their upcoming test.
"Uh, Suzahara-san," Yuusuke said, as she was leaving. She paused near the door in the garish foyer.
"Yes, Kamoshita-kun?"
"I'm sorry if Gabriel came off as a little weird. There was this scandel last week, and . . ."
"I figured as much. If he's going to go around seducing the maid, at least he could be more discreet about it." The annoyance left Natsumi's face. "But I'm surprised he knew as much as he did about the circulatory system. He seemed to have the location of all those veins and arteries memerized."
"Yeah. Haha." Yuusuke tried to laugh nervously. Natsumi already knew about Noelle, and she probably had her suspicians about the rest of the family as well, although her practical nature would never let her admit it.
"Well, seeya," Natsumi said, and left. Yuusuke watched his old crush go, and sighed slightly, before Masuro and Saiki pulled him back into the house.
"Soooo . . ." Masuro said, with an evil little grin.
"What's this about Gabriel seducing the maid?" Saiki matched his comrade in gossip.
Yuusuke gulped. "He didn't seduce her. Not exactly."
"He drank her blood?" Masuro said with a knowing grin. "I figured as much. I would too, if I were a vampire. Man, she's a hottie . . ."
"You're so lucky, Yuusuke. You live with all those cute girls."
"Noelle's enough for me, now," Yuusuke said firmly, and tried to shove his best friends out of the door.
"Okay, okay, we get the hint," Masoru griped, and they exited unwillingly. "But if Miruru rejects him after this, let me know, okay? If I can't have Noelle, she'll do . . ."
Yuusuke leaned against the door and sighed. Masuro and Saiki had their minds so deeply in the gutter nowadays that he should have known they'd catch on. And even Natsumi had put two and two together, although she'd only come up with three. Gabriel hadn't seduced Miruru, he'd made a meal of her.
Gabriel was on the couch, swirling around some tomato juice in a wine glass, staring off into space with a glazed look in his eyes.
"Um, Gabriel," Yuusuke said, never quite comfortable around Noelle's older brother. "Thank you."
Gabriel gave him a toothy smile. "No problem."
Yuusuke left to go find Noelle, who had fallen asleep near the end of the study session. Gabriel drained his tomato juice. Teaching the group all the wonders of human blood had honed the edge on his appetite, and he was beginning to have the urge to feed again. Tomato juice was all good and well, but nothing satisfied like blood . . . human or demon.
He remembered the very first time he'd drank Miruru's blood. It had tasted too alien, so cat-like then, that he'd found it disgusting. But this last time, her blood had been like a sweet nectar, running down his throat, her warm body thrashing beneath his as he feasted.
"One flesh, indeed," he said, uncharacteristically calm. Tomorrow Miruru would be allowed out of bed, and by tomorrow, he would have to come to terms with his feelings for her.
It wasn't like Noelle, who'd fallen for Yuusuke the instant she'd seen him, or Mama and Papa, who had fallen in love as they raised their hodge-podge family. He didn't know exactly what it was. But the week of being away from Miruru, and the memories of that night the week before that Noelle had inadverdently dragged up made him realize something shocking -- he missed Miruru. He missed being licked awake by her in the morning, he missed having to run in deathly fear lest she catch him, and he missed having her hang onto his arm wherever they were. Truly, he never really minded her when she wasn't acting insane. Not having her around bothered him in a way that he couldn't precisely name.
One more day . . .
***
To be continued...