DISCLAIMER: None of the characters except for the villain and extra personalities belongs to me.

WARNING: This fanfic includes: Saitou x Sanosuke pairing;a vampire character; random silliness and unedited words.

PART 3: In Dreams We Remember

"Aren't you hungry, Hajime?" Saitou looked up and stared at the chestnut-brown orbs of his roosterhead, which were gazing at him, half-concerned and half-annoyed.

"Not really," he answered a while later. True, he had been swirling his soba in the bowl for at least five minutes, but he didn't think that Sano would notice. At least not with him wolfing down his dinner as if it was the last time he'll ever eat.

Sano frowned, looking hurt. "I don't get it. You keep on saying that I never work for anything, and when I do, you don't even have the decency to work up an appetite? Jeez, man!"

He chuckled at that last remark, earning himself another annoyed look from Sano. The kid was such a charming brat, and he was momentarily distracted from his thoughts. His thoughts on the mysterious letter sender and the disturbing message sent to him earlier today.

"You WORKED for this food?" he said teasingly, letting himself be entertained for a while. "Since when did gambling ever became a form of work?"

"Hey!" Sano protested. "Gambling's not trash, man. It takes luck and skill."

He briefly noted a flash of hesitation in his roosterhead's eyes, but he it was already gone before he could interpret it.

"Luck and skill, as I'm sure you possess?" he smugly countered.

The kid raised his chopsticks in the air, sparks of victory emanating from within. "Hah! Damn right!" Then he went back to gorging down his food, scowling when his bowl was soon empty and his stomach gave a resounding growl.

"Here," he said casually, pushing the still full bowl to his roosterhead. Sano just nodded in appreciation and resumed eating. For a while, he was transfixed at how carefree the young man was at the moment, completely engrossed at his dinner and not worrying about mysterious deaths and sick poets on the loose.

Damn.

In all the years he'd been in the force, he'd never encountered a more queer case. Sure, he'd had cases that were directly linked to him, but all those past crimes were committed by people he knew or actually met.People who, no matter how pathetic or twisted, have a specific reason for doing such acts.

Unlike the anonymous killer now.

He didn't want to admit it, but the truth is, he had no leads in the murder. He can't deny the fact that the killer has the upper hand. So far. With the lack of information, Saitou doesn't have any idea what might happen next.

But he can say this: it cannot be anything good.

".and he was kinda weird, you know? But otherwise still friendly." Sano was babbling on, seemingly oblivious that he was only half-listening.

He knew that the kid deserves his full attention right now, but he just can't seem to focus properly on anything except this case. Shit, he can't even think of his approaching birthday at the moment.

Damn. The autopsy results should give me answers tomorrow, or else.

And he was kinda weird, you know? But otherwise still friendly," Sano said testily, frowning when Saitou didn't even look at him. He had been like that for the past minute. Didn't Saitou think he would notice that he was only talking to himself?

Maybe the man was preoccupied with something, something so big that it took all of his concentration and even cost him his appetite. Yeah, it could be, with him being a police officer.

Or maybe, he wasn't just plain interested in what he had been saying. He had been telling him of the weird but stunning guy he met today. The man with the weird name. Alkira .

Not that it mattered. He just wanted to see how the ever-apathetic Wolf of Mibu would react on him meeting another man, much more a stranger. He wanted to see annoyance, or sparks of jealousy in those narrow, golden eyes. He wanted to see Hajime squirm or just smirk in his customary aloofness. Damn, he just wanted some form of EMOTION.

Yet, as he finished his dinner, including Saitou's, he couldn't even get the cop's attention long enough for him to accomplish any of his targets.

Meet Sanosuke Sagara, the king of idle conversations.

"So, is it okay if I sleep with him?" he asked naughtily, wanting to give Saitou one last chance to make up for his lack of attention. "I mean, with this guy?"

He was surprised and was further incensed at the cop's reply.

"Go ahead. I'll be outside."

Then the man stood up and without another word, stepped out of the apartment, sliding the door behind him as he went.

If Sano was serious he would have stepped out too and have a good lay with that Alkira guy, just for the heck of it. He would have loved to see Saitou look confused and furious upon finding out where he went.

But he wasn't. Jeez, was Hajime deaf? It seems all he heard was the word "sleep" and nothing more. Because if he actually heard what Sano had been saying, the kid reckons he'd been choked hard already by the possessive bastard.

Huffing in fury, he cleared out the table and unrolled the futon. He kicked of his shoes, not caring where it landed, before flopping down their bed and mentally cussing himself for being such a baby.

So this is what I get for scurrying home and shelling out a few coins for dinner. A kick in the butt.

Shit, if that bastard's attitude doesn't improve one notch, he's gonna use his savings for something else. A night of gambling and gargling sake wouldn't be too bad compared to this!

But as he looked at the little paper calendar on the wall, all his fury ebbed away. Drained, perhaps, by a powerful surge of love for the man standing outside. He hadn't told Saitou about this of course, as he himself couldn't fathom the depth of this feeling.

I guess I just love Hajime, and that's that.

If only the feeling was mutual.

Ah, but the word "love" seems invisible in the vocabulary of a man like Hajime Saitou.

Sighing, he stretched out on the roll and drew up the blankets to his chin, hoping that the ache in his heart could be soothed by sleep. As he began to drift off into the dark recesses of his mind, he had a vague image of smoke gray eyes looming closer and closer at him.

But before he could even begin to discern this, he fell asleep.

Darkness enveloped Sano as he walked across an unknown terrain. Deep, melancholic voices whispered at his ear, the unintelligible words making the hairs on his neck stand on its end. Still he walked on, for reasons he didn't know. The place looks familiar, as if he had walked the same darkened path before.

Suddenly, the place was illuminated. And as the land he was walking on was bathed in light, he saw, to his horror--- dead bodies piled around him. Pale, mangled bodies lying haphazardly, faces etched in fear, glassy eyes staring at him in a mute plea for help. He yelped, and almost fell in shock. He wanted to escape, to break free from these horrible visions, but his legs felt as if they were rooted on the spot.

A voice whispered again, and he turned in the direction of the soft sound. There wasn't anyone alive in sight, except for a large cherry tree in the distance. Someone seems to be standing underneath it, beckoning him to move forward, promising enlightenment. And so he did, though his legs felt heavy and his heart hammered in his chest in rising fear and anticipation.

Underneath the blooming tree stood a young man, who smiled hauntingly as he stood before him, clad in traditional clothing of people years ago. The youth's hazel brown eyes looked deeply at him, and Sano noticed that they had the same spiky hair, though the other one's tresses were a little longer. They stood like this for a few moments, as if transfixed by the sight of each other, amidst the swirling cherry blossoms that fluttered their identical red bandannas bound in their heads.

"Who are you?" Sano said, but the words were drowned out by the wind, and he wasn't sure if the other heard him.

The identical man just smiled again, before raising his left hand and placing it on his chest, right above his heart. Amazingly, Sano mirrored the action, unaware of what might occur next. Soon their right hands both covered their left.

Then the youth said, in a voice that seemed to echo in his mind:

"Change history."

Then the mysterious young man removed his hands from his chest and revealed a bleeding wound, its stain growing rapidly, soaking his garment. Instinctively, Sano did the same, and gasped as he saw his own chest sporting a similar wound.

Then he felt pain, indescribable pain, as he saw the crimson liquid flowing profusely from within him.

His scream sounded hollow to his ears as the darkness enveloped him again.

Saitou drew another breath from his cigarette, his mind exploring all the possible angles of the case. He almost let out a sigh of relief when the kid finally mentioned "sleep", but was quick enough to repress it. That would have sent his already annoyed roosterhead to mindless wrath.

He let out a puff, his ears straining to hear any sound from his lover, who was probably knocked out in dreamland. Poor kid. He was ever so excited when he presented the food he bought for me.

He didn't say it, but he really appreciated Sano's effort in cheering him up. But this damn case just took all his concentration tonight. He longed to tell the kid that he was sorry, but his stubborn pride wouldn't allow it as usual. It was stupid, he knew, but he couldn't just go against his nature.

He moved his hand to flick off some ashes from his stick.

That was when he heard the scream.

"Shit," he muttered, tossing his cigarette completely as he dashed immediately inside.

He saw Sano, tossing and turning restlessly in the futon, his left hand clutching his chest tightly, and his mouth open in sheer terror. His hoarse screams reverberated in the apartment, making Saitou scared beyond his wits.

He must be having a nightmare.

He cradled Sano's perspiring head into his arms, hushing the screaming mouth with his hand. Sano didn't seem to be aware of this, for he continued to trash violently, as if in great pain.

"Sano! Sano!" he said urgently, "Wake up! It's only a dream!"

This he said a few more times, coupled with rough shakes, before Sano's eyelids fluttered open. The kid's eyes roamed immediately to him, and he stroked his forehead gently before saying, "I've got you now."

The young man gulped, then snuggled closely to Saitou. He waited for the kid to say something, but no word came.

"What did you dream about?"

Sano stiffened by his side, his sweat-soaked body trembling slightly. "Nothing, 'Jime," came the mumbled reply.

"Hn. You okay?" he inquired further.

He felt a brief nod as his reply.

Soon, he felt his roosterhead relax again in his arms, his soft breathing even and regular. Still he held him, wanting to let the sleeping kid know that he's safe now.

You're safe now, Sano.

So why did he still feel like someone's watching their every move?

In the night, a man with piercing gray eyes blended once more in the darkness of the trees, a mysterious smile on his lips. Soon.

Then he turned at the dead man lying on the hard ground, grinning in satisfaction at the sight of the thick wooden stake brutally driven into corpse' chest, marring the snow-white robes with splotches of scarlet fluid.

"You're second mark, Akira," he whispered. "You better find me soon, or it will be too late."

He placed a piece of parchment in the dead man's hand before leaving, his thoughts on his beloved Senko.