Chapter 4: It's a stalker trifecta

"…Stupid Tsukune." Moka grumbled sadly to herself, attempting despite her distracted thoughts to choose between the different Pocky flavors the on-campus shop had to choose from. More than likely she was probably just going to grab some at random just so that she could move on already. "I was kind of hoping shopping for snacks would be like a date…"

It wasn't like she couldn't understand why he'd gotten so bent out of shape. She could use the excuse that her name had been thrown in as a nomination too but she knew it wasn't the same. One of their guy classmates and his buddies volunteered her but most everyone figured out pretty immediately that it was just because they found her hot and no one took it that seriously. But Tsukune on the other hand…

"I know that you're scared, and you're really worried about the attention. But…" Moka's eyes went back and forth between the chocolate and strawberry flavors but that being the extent her brain was taking them in. "Their cheers for you were genuine. People are really accepting you now and I… I don't want you to miss out on that."

With the change in headmasters it was no surprise she was thinking so much about Mikogami. Her childhood in that big empty house of his. And…the many years at those schools in the human world.

She knew how Tsukune was feeling. Which was why…

"I can't stand the coconut coated stuff. Stick with just the regular dipped Pocky."

"Yeah…" Moka replied back without thinking.

Her brain then caught up with her mouth and her ears soon after, causing Moka to give a startled jump at the sudden presence beside her.

"Oh? My apologies. Didn't mean to frighten you." The pleasant smile of the silver-haired girl said, though the just slightest hint of a fang may give the impression it was actually quite intentional.

"M-M-Miss Bloodfallen-!" Moka finally registered her image, her heart still beating a bit fast. She didn't even notice the other girl until she'd spoken. Had she really been that lost in her own head?

Shalltear thankfully didn't seem too upset by her jumpiness. If anything it seemed to make her only most amused…which in itself might not exactly be a good sign. "Come now, we're classmates, are we not? No need to be so formal."

"S-Sorry. Shalltear, then. Sorry, I guess I was in my own little world. Am I in your way?" Moka asked, realized how much she was probably blocking the stand.

"Not at all. In fact, I'm here see you."

"Me?"

"But of course." Shalltear said, gently taking her aside so they could talk more privately. "I know it's against school rules to reveal one's true nature, but I have been hearing so many rather interesting rumors and I just had to know." She spoke in a whisper, as not to be overheard, and the close distance between them made Moka start to feel a touch nervous. "You're a vampire too, yes?"

Moka hesitated with how she should answer. It wasn't as if there weren't a decent number outside of her circle of friends who didn't already know (usually finding out just before a solid kick to the head) but it still felt worrying to share such things with a stranger. "…When you say "too", do you mean to say you are…?" She finally decided on that.

"Is it not obvious?" Shalltear retorted so casually, palm sliding across cheek as if to show herself off.

That was honestly a hard question to answer. She and all her siblings greatly resembled their respective mothers, almost to a T, but they also looked almost nothing like each other, hard to spot even any of the traits that carried over from their shared father. Red eyes and fangs were the common physical description for vampires but those weren't exactly hard to find in other monsters either. Shalltear could easily lying about what she really is.

And yet…something told Moka she wasn't.

"If I might ask…" Moka worked up the nerve, catching Shalltear's interest. "What clan do you hail from? I thought I knew of all the other families but I've never heard of Bloodfallen."

"Well, that's hardly a surprise. It's only recently I came up from underground." She brushed aside the question without concern. "Quite frankly I'm looking forward to going back eventually but first I've apparently got to get the high school experience."

"Underground? Like…?" The mob, Moka wanted to say, though she knew better than to blurt something like that out loud. It certainly made it easier to believe Shalltear's claim of what she was. Vampires weren't exactly strangers to organized crime…which also made it even more strange that she'd never heard of her, since any clan who wanted to operate a…legitimate business…here in Japan had to do so with the permission of the Shuzen family. Her family.

This didn't necessarily mean Shalltear was lying. Moka had been away from home for quite a while after all. Just that, if this girl was telling the truth, then Clan Bloodfallen either came together extremely recent or operated extremely far away from the country. Possibly both.

Noticing how quiet she was being, Shalltear playfully cocked her head to her side, raising an eyebrow at the other girl. "Do I make you uneasy, dear Moka?"

"N-No. It's not that." Moka tried to say in her defense, though even she could hear how unconvincing that sounded. "It's just…besides my family, I've never met another vampire. In person, anyway." She found herself admitting honestly, closed hand over her chest as she looked away to the floor. "All the others I'd heard about might as well have been just characters in stories. And when I was living in the human world, for time I wondered if I actually might be crazy thinking vampires were real at all, let alone that I was one."

Shalltear's expression eased into slightly more seriousness, Moka's words sparking a bit of curiosity. "Well, let me assure you of one thing, if nothing else." She told her. "I am indeed a vampire. Not only that, I guarantee you that you will not find a more true vampire than myself. I was masterfully created, after all, and there is not one shred of doubt in my mind as to the skill of my divine creator."

"I'm actually kind of in envy of her confidence." Moka admitted. Shalltear's expression matched her tone exactly. She was outright bragging about herself, without a hint of shame.

"It does make sense to me now though, why you hang around with that boy."

"Boy?"

Shalltear smiled at her. "Tsukune Aono. I've had blood from plenty of other species before but his was especially delicious, and I only got the smallest taste."

Fear gripped Moka's heart. "H-hey, wait a minute! Did… Did you do something to-"

"Oh, relax yourself. He's perfectly fine. I simply happened to benefit from an unfortunate cut he received across his cheek. That's all. I'll admit I certainly felt the urge to gulp down a few more gallons of him but looking back, now I'm glad I didn't. I'm not exactly one to enjoy others trying to steal what I've already staked my claim on either and that'd hardly be a good first impression to make with someone I want to be on the good side of."

"It…it's true that Tsukune lets me drink his blood sometimes but it's not like he's my property. He's my friend!"

"Your human friend?"

Moka froze at that question, needing far longer of a moment to recover than she would have liked. "What? N-No. Tsukune isn't human. He was cleared of that. He's a monster, just like everyone else at the school."

"Come now, there's no reason to be so scared." Shalltear cooed, trying to assure her of her sincerity. "Human or not, I'm not going to do anything to him. He is your friend, after all, and you clearly want to protect him. I can respect those boundaries. It's simply that, as the only other vampire around, I was hoping we could get to know each other better. Know you better, and your friends as well."

Shalltear placed her hands on Moka's cheeks. The pink-haired girl wasn't that much taller than her but her feet still had to raise her up at least a little to bring her in closer to her face.

Moka nearly asked what she was doing. Almost on instinct she probably would have pushed her hands off her.

And yet…she couldn't.

Shalltear's eyes… So beautiful. For a moment Moka could almost swear she saw them flash. Maybe she wanted to see it again. She couldn't stop looking into them…those lovely red irises.

She was being pulled in. Closer and closer to Shalltear.

"After all, we vampires have to stick together, yes?"

Shalltear spoke those words, the distance between them so short Moka could almost taste the breath on her tongue.

"Yes…" Moka replied back so easily. It felt like the word hadn't even come from her. It was just something someone else had said that sounded good.

Out of the corner of her vision she watched as Shalltear's lips drew in towards her. To her…mouth? Her…neck? It was too foggy, she couldn't tell. And maybe…maybe she didn't care.

She couldn't…resist her…

"Shirayuki…could you not…pull me?"

Moka's eyes popped open, Shalltear's doing the same in surprise. The reaction was so sudden that both found themselves tumbling off each other; Moka's back into the wall, nearly knocking over the Pocky, and Shalltear's rear right onto the hard floor.

Moka's eyes pinched themselves shut as she shook her head, her brain giving itself a hard reboot. "Tsukune…?" The name passed through her lips as sight peeled back into her world. That was his voice, wasn't it? Where was… No… What had she even been…?

She looked across from her, the pouting Shalltear still on the ground rubbing her tender rump. Rather cutely, actually. It kind of reminded her of a reaction Yukari would have, or maybe even Kokoa when she thought no one wasn't looking.

"She broke through [Charm Species]?" Shalltear grumbled internally, half in surprise and half in annoyance, observing the clearly confused Moka through one open eye. "I suppose it is only a 4th tier spell so it's certainly not impossible, but still, I thought when she wasn't able to resist that would have been the end of the matter." Undead were supposed to be immune to mind-affecting magic but it seemed vampires here operated under somewhat different rules than in the previous world.

Still trying to remember what exactly the two of them had even been doing just a moment ago, Moka's eyes soon widened again, her voice giving a small squeak before she quickly darted around the shop's corner.

Shalltear could almost feel the question mark floating over her head, having no idea what'd sparked that. That is, until she turned around, spotting the same sight that girl had.

"Oh… So that's why." She said to herself, almost disappointed.

When Mizore pulled Tsukune finally over to the shop, there was not a sign present to hint to either about two of their classmates having been here just seconds ago, nor how close by they still were.

"Does she really have to keep holding my arm like this?" Tsukune bemoaned his situation that, admittedly, most other guys probably would be in envy of. She was practically hugging him as she'd been leading him around the school, and even now as she was offering to treat him to anything he'd want from the array of sweets. It wasn't a terrible feeling…aside from the fact that he barely knew her. "How'd I even get in this situation?"

Could this girl read minds? Perhaps she could, for as soon as he was having those thoughts…

"…I basically missed all of first semester. People make me nervous." She confessed to him, it catching Tsukune off guard as it felt as if it came out of nowhere. Though the somewhat dour tone of her voice…it suggested this had been building up within her for a bit. "But…" Her mood picked up a little, a small smile alighting at the memories. "I always loved getting the newspapers Ms. Nekonome delivered to my door. That's how I came to know of your work."

"She did that?" Tsukune thought to himself, at first in some surprise, but then he supposed it did make sense. The cat-eared homeroom teacher seemed like a bit of an airhead but she did always try to do right by her students, and the only one who cared more about the Newspaper Club than she did was maybe Gin. She was the entire reason himself and Moka had joined, after all (he didn't want to say anything aloud but he was mostly certain Kurumu and Yukari had joined almost solely because they were in it).

Still, that made it even more strange that she was just suddenly gone along with the headmaster. He didn't know Ms. Albedo well enough yet to make any kind of fair judgment but he did wonder if she would do anything like that for a student.

Tsukune was soon pulled back out of his thoughts as Mizore released her hold on him, wresting with something under her sweatshirt and soon after presenting him with a notebook; slightly thicker than the norm.

"See? I made a scrapbook out of the papers." She explained, handing it over to him with just the touch of an embarrassed blush tinting her pale cheeks, Tsukune noticed. Bad as he might feel about such a thought later, he did admit he kind of preferred this side to her.

"She seems a little weird at first but really she's just shy and has trouble expressing herself properly. I can get that. And there's certainly nothing wrong with appreciating good journalism."

He cracked open the scrapbook.

"…"

He may as well have just opened the book of the dead for how similar of an effect it would have had on him.

What a caring guy!

Writes like a dream.

Can he sense my love from afar?

We share the same soul!

Nothing will come between us!

Mizore Aono.

Mizore S. Aono.

Mrs. Tsukune Aono.

"…"

"I wrote down my thoughts next to all your articles." Mizore told him.

"YOU CALL THESE THOUGHTS?!" His inner monologue retorted, only barely keeping such words within himself, possibly out of fear he may get stabbed.

These were certainly articles he'd written in here…along with a good number of hearts, the occasionally drawing of a bunny, and a great deal of comments that made him feel as if some dark specter was oozing its way out of the pages to try and consume his soul.

"I love your work. It's always written from the perspective of the underdog." She explained herself, sharing opinions Tsukune would have appreciated more if he didn't have the added context of the "thoughts" she actually wrote. "We're so alike. It's like we're soulmates."

Feeling a bit of nervous sweat start to come to him, Tsukune tried to think of how to let her down gently. "Hey…listen…"

"You feel it too, right? That loneliness?"

That… That caused a pause in him. And whatever he'd been about to say he found those words forgotten.

He looked back up, and her face…it was smiling but had that touch of sadness again. What she had said, she'd done so with sincerity.

"Loneliness?"

Why did that word…hit him so squarely?

"Shirayuki…"

He supposed he could spend at least a little more time getting to know her.

The two continued on with their conversation. Only one of them noticing Moka hiding around the corner.

"Hrmm…" Ainz flipped carefully through the old book laid open across his desk. The lights of his red eyes were tinted purple from behind the blue lenses of the sliver framed glasses he currently wore. He was not of poor sight. In fact, ironically, despite lacking the actual organs, his undead nature meant he actually could see far better than most, be it in distance or darkness. He did not need glasses to read in general. And yet still, he required these specific glasses to read this specific text. "Well…at least they still work."

"For what little good that does me at the moment." His inner thoughts chimed in, always happy to make sure he didn't get too happy.

It'd been a pleasant surprise-…oh, who was he kidding? If magic and species ability wasn't holding his bones together Ainz would have probably collapsed into pieces in his relief upon finding out that Japanese was the natural language of where they'd been teleported to. It'd been so long since he'd been able to reading the writings of the world outside of Nazarick without the use of these glasses that he'd started to doubt he'd ever had the ability to read prior.

Still, and he supposed it was only natural, just like back in his original world, there was more than just one language to be found in this one. They were in Japan. An alternate from the one he knew but still Japan, and thus most everything on campus was written in Japanese. But then there were tomes like the one in front of him, from the other headmaster's personal library (it was hard for Ainz to think of him as the former headmaster, given he more than likely would return someday to reclaim his job).

Not Japanese. Not English. Not Chinese, Arabic, Egyptian. Not even German, as he'd had Pandora's Actor personally verify. Whatever these indescribable marking were, they were not known to the human world. And from what Mare had been able to look into for him, possibly not even known to most monsters.

"Is everything alright, my lord?" The voice at his side asked him. The ever faithful and diligent butler, Sebas had noticed his master starting to sink in his chair.

Ainz debated internally how much he should try to play things off. He was supposed to be the brilliant and all-knowing Supreme One, after all, despite how far from the truth he knew that was. But, after weighing the potential outcomes, he decided the fault couldn't really be assigned to him and thus there was little harm in telling at least the mostly truth.

"It was the same for the prior world we found ourselves transported to, though that doesn't make it any less frustrating. The difference in how items function." Ainz admitted with a sigh, carefully sliding off the glasses, placing a fleshless finger against a fleshless face in pondering. "Players could learn spells or make class and race changes just by activating the corresponding book, yet the New Worlders gained no such effects. They couldn't even read them. And by the same coin, we gain nothing from the texts not of our original world, be they of the prior world or this one. I can read this book thanks to the glasses but I cannot comprehend what's written. Not meaningfully, anyway. It's just words. Then again, I suppose there is the possibility our builds are simply incompatible. The man was an exorcist, after all."

"Do you suppose Shalltear may be of use then?" Sebas gave his suggestion.

"That is a thought, though many of the same potential problems may remain."

Despite being an undead like himself Shalltear's creator had made her into a divine magic user. In contrast to how Ainz had built himself and Pandora's Actor around roleplay, Peroroncino had masterfully crafted her into a Bloody Valkyrie, reaping all the benefits of her race while also being pure poison to any build weak to holy magic. She was, in theory, compatible with the same abilities Tenmei Mikogami could use and possibly learned from the books in his library.

However, like himself, Shalltear's level and negative karma were completely maxed out. All of Nazarick's testing told them that they could not gain any new spells or skills, and even if she could the gods of this world may not bless someone with so truly black a heart.

Ainz grumbled internally. It wasn't that there was likely nothing potentially useful in the collection of books the other headmaster had left behind. They'd only just started looking through them, after all. But it was certainly clear why the other headmaster hadn't been worried about leaving them behind. They gave no immediate insight onto what his true intentions were, nor was there anything here that played to Ainz's strengths.

"Yet another reminder of my shortcomings to keep me humble, I guess." Ainz quipped to himself, not that he really needed many more. The pit in his stomach that'd formed the first time the NPCs ever praised him was still there and had only become deeper since.

Snapping him out of his self-pity, Ainz and Sebas raised their heads to the sound of a knock on the door.

"One moment." Ainz called out them, taking the time to carefully deposit the Magic Glasses back into his inventory. He was most certainly what one would accurately call a hoarder; his collection stuffed to the brim with more items than he could ever hope to use in his lifetime, let alone anyone else's, with more than a few duplicates. However, the glasses themselves were of an extreme rarity, even back in YGGDRASIL. He only had the one pair and could not afford to take for granted their usefulness.

Closing the pocket dimension back up, Ainz placed the Mask of Envy back upon his face and resummoned the metal gauntlets to cover his hands. With all that done, Ainz gave his nod of permission to Sebas, prompting the butler to cross the long office and open the doors for their visitor.

"Please, come in." Sebas welcomed him, giving a proper servant's bow as he moved out of the way for him.

"Well, I'll give you new guys this; you're certainly less creepy than the usual crowd Mikogami had hanging around him." The blond man said with some mild amusement as he made his way in. "The way they looked at me sometimes I'd think I was about to be tied to a bed and given last rites."

He was rather casually dressed. Just in a pair of loose pants and a tight cotton shirt that showed off his lanky but still decently muscled build. Given the clear age of his face and height putting him at least a few years out of high school, one would be correct in placing him as a teacher and may find such attire rather unprofessional. But given what his exact subject was, such choice was actually appropriate.

"Ah. Okuto Kotsubo, am I correct?" Ainz greeted him, recognizing the man rather quickly once he was close enough for Ainz to see the three black studs decorating each of his ears. He'd been given a dossier detailing the staff he'd have working under him and Kotsubo's photo had certain stuck out. At least in regards to what Ainz was personally used to seeing in the workplace. "Thank you for making the time to see me. I was worried such a request may have been an inconvenience."

"Not really by much. You basically said to stop by whenever worked best for us." Kotsubo replied back, his attitude laid-back, though his eyes clearly glazing over Ainz's mask somewhat since it was so close compared to the assembly. But Ainz had grown used to it at this point and didn't comment on it. "You meeting with all the teachers?"

"Indeed. I'm aware the transition was quite sudden so I wish to take the time to make proper introductions with those working at this school. Keep the channels of communication open and the like. Just a little while ago in fact I met with your fellow staff member, Ms. Kagome."

Unable to help himself, Kotsubo gave a snort. "I'll bet she made quite the impression."

"…She indeed had some…interesting…suggestions for how to help the students learn better." Ainz said as politely as he could, at one point having wondered if maybe he should call someone during that meeting. The police, perhaps. He cleared his throat before continuing. "Anyway… If there is anything you feel I should be informed of regarding your position so that I may keep your job running smoothly, please, feel free to speak your mind. It's my understanding you're the Physical Education instructor, yes?"

"That's right. Been on for a couple years now. Naturally that means I occasionally get called on to help the other teachers who act as coaches for the sports teams, though boys' soccer is my priority, since I'm their official coach."

"I see." Ainz nodded his head, definitely feeling the difference between these students' school experience and his own. Gym. Sports. Pretty much anything that wasn't going to be an immediate benefit to a corporation, the education system wasn't going to bother with, at least not for what was available to the common man. How had Ulbert described it during one of his rants? Ah yes. The only way to dig your way up is with a silver spoon (a bit of a mixed metaphor, Ainz had thought, but he still got what he was going for).

"I'm guessing it's not going to be as simple as asking for a big budget for P.E. and you'll just give it to me, huh?" Kotsubo said in jest.

"Unfortunately not, though I do certainly feel your pain." Ainz replied in kind with the same tone, more honest than the man could ever know. "I have people looking into where the school's budget can be fine-tuned for the benefit of everyone but for now it must stay as it is. If nothing else I can put your mind at ease that there are no current plans for making cuts anywhere. As I said, I'm hoping to make this transition as smooth as possible."

"Well…better than the alternative, I guess."

The two exchanged a few more bits of basic pleasantries and bits of general information, Ainz constantly finding himself amazed by just how many athletic programs and clubs this place had (especially since he was under the impression the academy didn't have any competing schools (who were they playing games against?)).

When it was all done, Kotsubo was dismissed and took his given permission to leave, starting his way back towards the door.

"Actually…"

He paused in his step, catching Ainz's attention as a thought was clearly dawning on the man.

Kotsubo turned back around. "There is something that might require your attention."

"Oh? And what might that be?" Ainz's asked. This was potentially the big moment for him; the one that would tell everyone at this school just how reliable their new headmaster truly was. He was caught somewhere between interest and terror and whatever was said next would almost certainly determine which end of that scale he'd be about to slide down.

Having been given permission, Kotsubo reapproached the desk. "I've heard mutterings about the reappearance of a certain problem student at this school."

"Problem student? In what regard?"

"Her name is Mizore Shirayuki, in the freshman year, Class 3, though that's somewhat of an amazement given her chronic truancy." Kotsubo explained. "During the first semester she fell in love with a teacher and ended up stalking him. When she eventually confessed her love to him and he naturally rejected her, she retaliated by attacking him and freezing him in ice."

"Froze him?" He had Ainz's curiosity. "An ability of her species, I'm assuming?"

Kotsubo nodded. "Mikogami let her off with a suspension last time. Creepy as the man is, he's got a soft spot from troubled kids. But I'm hearing that Shirayuki's seen following some new guy around. A student this time, but still. I can't help but feel like we're about to get a repeat of history soon and if you want my advice…"

"You believe I should give her a much harsher punishment, should she step out of line again." Ainz finished the sentence for him, more than getting the idea. "Expulsion."

"If not outright bringing someone with authority in to take her away, but that'll depend on what happens." Kotsubo said, taking clear care not to overstep his bounds.

"Hm. Well…thank you for bringing this matter to my attention, Mr. Kotsubo. I'll be certain to keep an eye on it."

"Just wanted to give you a heads up." He waved off Ainz's gratitude, showing it was no big deal.

Renewing his permission to leave, Kotsubo turned and again headed for the door.

Until…he felt the weight of hard eyes against his form. Turning to his side, there Sebas still stood, right where he'd been this entire time. But the glare he was giving off…

"Is…something wrong?" Kotsubo asked in confusion.

Sebas was silent for a moment, causing even Ainz to share the teacher's emotion.

"…The teacher this girl attacked…" The butler finally spoke up. "Who was it?"

Kotsubo was struck by the sudden question, apparently having thought things were over enough that he wouldn't be asked it. But he recovered quickly enough, closing his eyes as he gave a small, defeated chuckle. "I'm really that obvious, am I?" He said, knowing when it was best to just come clean. "Sorry. Not exactly something I enjoy talking about. Hard to get kids to run laps around the track when they think you got beat up by a schoolgirl. Aaaaaaand just as hard to get a date when women think there's even a chance you may have led on said schoolgirl. Old headmaster was kind enough to keep who Shirayuki stalked from becoming public knowledge."

Ainz listened carefully to the story. It did certainly make sense why he'd hide something like that. Still, he couldn't help but feel embarrassed he hadn't even noticed such a big missing gap in the information the teacher had given him the first time. It seemed so obvious now that it'd been pointed out to him. No wonder Sebas had caught it.

"Embarrassing though it may be, I do ask that you not try and withhold such details, Mr. Kotsubo." Ainz quickly threw in that line to try and recover at least some of his dignity, even if no one would have noticed its absence other than himself. "I promise you, I can be discreet."

"Yeah, sorry. Again. That's on me." Kotsubo rubbed the back of his head, smiling in defeat since he knew there was no way out of it. He'd already been caught. "Won't happen again, boss. Promise. Anything else?"

He'd directed that question at Ainz but the way his eyes wandered it was clearly Sebas who he wanted to get a sign of belief from. But the butler gave him nothing to take comfort in, nor even a hint that he was truly in trouble. That stone face…it gave him nothing to work with, as Sebas just continued to watch him silently.

"…I suppose not." Ainz was finally the one to end the awkward mood. "Thank you, Mr. Kotsubo. You are dismissed."

With that, Kotsubo was finally able to take his full leave. When the door shut behind him, both men within still waited a few moments before speaking, just in case he may still be waiting on the other side, listening in. They had anti-surveillance spells in use but one couldn't be too careful.

"Sebas, is everything alright?" Ainz broke the silence, feeling it was safe enough.

At his master's words, Sebas turned to face him and gave a deep bow. "Forgive me, my lord. I spoke out of turn. It was not my wish to shame you in front of your guest."

"Nonsense. Please, share your thoughts." Ainz encouraged him. Sebas had already been through one test of loyalty back in the last world and passed with flying colors. Beyond that, he was the creation of the man who had brought Ainz into the guild in the first place. Demiurge and Albedo were the most intelligent among their group, Pandora's Actor too, he supposed, though his mannerism may suggest otherwise, but Sebas was still someone Ainz deemed very much as worth listening to.

In thanks, Sebas rose back to his feet, though his head made a turn back to the door, as if still seeing Kotsubo walking out of the room. "I have no evidence I can give for my feelings. There is…simply something I distrust about that man." He admitted, ashamed he had little less he could give but that.

Hand to the chin of his mask, Ainz pondered it over for a minute.

"…We have a few sets of eyes available to us. No reason we can't have their sights set on more than one person."

Plip!

Plip! Plip! Plip! Plip! Plip! Plip! Plip! Plip!

Splash!

"Didja see that?!" Mizore's throat let out that cheer when the stone finally sunk into the water. "Didja see it?! Nine skips!"

Her cheers were accompanied by the applause from her audience of one. Polite and soft as they were, Tsukune did still mostly mean them. It was the most skips either of them made managed to make across the lake and even more so this was the most enthused he'd seen Mizore all day, the girl trying to play it off despite how clearly exhausted all the attempts had made her. Her hair was somehow even more of a mess than it already had been.

Still though…

"The party's already started…!" Tsukune cried pathetically to himself. It'd been almost an hour since they'd left the shop and he kept failing every opportunity he had to wrap things up.

"Hey, listen. Shirayuki… I have really been enjoying myself, but there's someplace I've got to be. You mind if I take off…?"

He'd started to turn to make his leave but already Mizore was attached to his back. "You can't! It's your turn!" She said just as playfully as her hug. "You're so lame, Tsukune. You haven't even beaten four skips yet."

Tsukune's inward sobs continued. He wanted to do right by this girl. He really did. But everyone was waiting for him! And Moka… Jeez, he hoped she wasn't too mad at him for storming off. He was still certain he was in the right but he should probably apologize for that at least. "I gotta figure out a way to get her to let me go! Should I just invite her along at this point? It'd probably be the easiest."

It was only how inconsiderate that idea would be to the others that kept him from committing to it, even once he got himself out of Mizore's hold.

But, as he racked his brain, checking his watch and fidgeting about in a fret to try and think of SOMETHING, Tsukune started to feel…a sudden weight to the air.

"…I suppose you want to go to see…her."

It was Mizore who had spoken, all the lightness of her mood just moments ago now completely devoid in her speech.

It'd snapped Tsukune out of his thoughts immediately. The face he saw when he turned back to see her…it was…

"Don't. It might not be good. For her." Mizore warned him. "In fact…for her…it might already be too late."

Tsukune started to feel a chill coming over his body. "Shirayuki… What are you…?"

"After all…you are destined…to be mine."

Tsukune realized only too late that the chill was not just simple fear, as the cloud of cold air washed over the lake.

The desk's surface no longer felt cool against her cheek. That was the clearest indicator to Moka just how long she'd been lying there, without even needing to look at the clock.

Four of the classroom's desks had been turned to form one large table, though in place of the usual papers and stencils of the Newspaper Club it was instead an assortment of various candies and sodas that occupied its center. All as of yet unopened.

Kurumu at least told her that she'd be bringing something homemade and be running a little late, and Yukari, though both claimed they didn't get along, was hanging around her more these days and said she was curious (well, actually she'd said concerned) about what Kurumu would be bringing.

But Tsukune…

"Tsukune…" Moka found the name passing through her lips. Was he still with that girl?

"Outer."

Moka's head jerked up at the sudden voice. She nearly looked around the classroom to see where it'd come from, until she realized she hadn't heard it with her ears.

She looked down her collar, meeting eyes (or at least eyes to eye) with the vertical slit staring up at her from the jewel or her Rosario. "Inner?"

"You're really letting yourself be thrown off by another girl hanging around Tsukune? I'd have thought after the succubus alone you'd have broken away from such worries by now, let alone all the others that've gone after him."

"Come on. Call Kurumu by her name. She's your friend too, you know."

"I'm fairly certain friends aren't supposed other friends into love slaves. Or, in retaliation for that, kick them hard enough to cause internal bleeding. …Not that either of us would know, I suppose."

"Aww. So you do actually feel kinda bad about that fight."

"No." She shut that idea down immediately.

Outer and Inner were not exactly the most creative names they could have come up with but they worked well enough as intended. While it didn't always feel like it, they both were Moka and it felt weird to refer to someone else in conversation by their own first name, no matter how accurate it'd be.

Moka (outer) could only imagine how this would look were there anyone else in the classroom, and she supposed her inner self did too since she never tried talking to her when they weren't in private. No one else could hear Inner's voice, as her words were naturally spoken inside their shared head, but Outer's words had to be said aloud. Inner clearly had an awareness of her thoughts but until Outer was able to be more focused it was a bit difficult to carry on a conversation that way.

The end result was a girl sitting there talking to herself. Anyone would reasonably think she was probably crazy and she couldn't act like she couldn't understand why.

Still…a part of Outer Moka kind of wished that she'd started hearing Inner's voice a long time ago. Everyone in those human schools had already treated her like a freak. At least she would have had a friend to talk to, even if everyone else would assume it was only an imaginary one.

"Anyway, I didn't speak up to talk about your love life. Or lack of one, in this case."

"Now you're just being mean!"

Inner Moka gave a small chuckle, supposing it made sense for the outer layer to have the thinnest skin. But after that, Outer Moka felt the immediate change in her tone. She was all business now. "It's about Bloodfallen."

"Shalltear? What about her?"

Inner thought over best how to phrase her question. "What do you remember from your conversation with her in front of the candy stall?"

"She… She asked if I was a vampire, like her. She basically….well, not even basically…she outright said she was one. I asked about why I'd never heard about her family and she said they were underground."

"And after that?"

Outer thought back a little harder. It'd only been about an hour ago so it shouldn't be too hard to recall, but…but…

"I… I don't remember."

"That's just it. Neither do I." Inner admitted to her, causing Outer's heart to suddenly sink. "You and I have difference levels of awareness. No offence but I'm clearly the more resilient of the two of us, physically and mentally. And yet I'm missing time too."

That… That wasn't good.

Outer searched through her brain, thinking back harder and harder until the effort gave her a headache, but still came up with nothing that could ease her worries. From some point in their conversation to when she'd heard Tsukune's voice her memories were a blank, like a thick blanket of fog had been draped over them.

Whenever her Rosario had been removed, Outer's memories of what her inner self would do during that time were always a bit muddled afterwards but she could always eventually piece together what'd happened, even relive those experiences sometimes, feeling like she really was her inner self, saying and doing those actions. But this…this was different. Like a solid wall had been placed in her head, blocking off access to what she was trying to remember.

"Do you think…she was telling the truth about being another vampire?"

Inner was quiet for a long minute. "…At the moment, I'd say that she probably is. She has all the signs of being one anyway, and none of the false bravado of that fake we thrashed earlier in the year." She said, Outer certainly being able to agree with that at least. Junya had paraded himself off as a proud vampire but the sheer presence he gave off paled in comparison to what she'd been feeling from Shalltear. The simple difference between an imitation and the real deal. "The issue is exactly what kind of vampire she is. If I had to put it into the words…she reminds me a bit of Kahlua."

Outer felt something heavy get caught in her throat, and a bead of sweat started to roll down her temple. "C-Come on. Don't exaggerate like that." She laughed, though even she could tell how fake it sounded as she tried to wave away the idea.

"I'm not." Inner stated firmly, making absolutely certain that her other self knew how serious she was. "Whoever that girl is, whatever that girl is…she's dangerous. I'm not doubting our own strength but… I do think it would be our best interest to stay as far away from her as possible."

It was at that moment Moka heard the door to the classroom slide open. Nerves already on edge, it was no surprise how quickly she leapt out of her chair, turning to face the sudden presence.

"Who-?! …Oh!"

In place of sliver hair it was purple that'd caught her vision. Those dark red eyes that'd stared into her soul earlier were nowhere in sight. Instead they were blue, a shade so deep that you yourself may fall in were you to gaze into them too long.

"Thank goodness. It's just you." Moka relaxed, hand to her chest to still her beating heart.

"…I'll admit…that wasn't the reaction I was expecting." Mizore said, not sounding offended thankfully. Maybe…disappointed? It was hard to tell. Her expression was as unenthused as always as she walked her way over.

Shaking her head to try and come back to her senses, Moka pushed herself to focus on the present, setting aside for now what her inner self had gotten her so worked up over. "You're that girl who was with Tsukune, right? Do you know where he is?"

"…"

"Uh… Miss? Is everything all right?"

"…"

"H-hey-! What are you-!"

The back of Moka's head smacked against the surface of the desks; bottles and wrappers sent tumbling over the edges and onto the floor as she struggled against the hands now on her throat.

"I saw you. At the shop." Mizore said, her cold tone completely unchanging, even as she pressed down with more of her weight. "Tsukune didn't…but he was thinking of you. Whenever I'm with him…he's always thinking of you."

"Her hands…! They're like ice!" Moka's brain struggled to make that thought, as her breaths were getting harder and harder to take in. It wasn't just that she was being strangled. It felt as if her throat was literally being frozen!

"I can't…take it…anymore..." Mizore continued as Moka tried to pull her off by the fingers, but to no avail. Her grip only grew tighter in its determination. "If you weren't in the way, he'd be mine…"

Spots started to appear in Moka's vision. At the very edges, there was redness. Almost like a flashing light. Was it her pulse? "Can't…breathe…! If I don't…! Need her to…!"

"St-STOP!" In a last desperate attempt, she threw her fist across Mizore's face with all the strength she had.

And a sound like breaking glass was heard.

"Wha-…! What-…!"

Droplets of water dripped down onto her face. So cold they felt like they were stabbing at her skin.

Above her, Moka stared into only a single eye; the other shattered to pieces along with the rest of the area she'd struck. Half of Mizore's head was gone, leaving behind disjointed spears of ice in its place.

"This body is just an ice doll." Mizore explained, her voice no more heated than before. The closer to the impact mark, the more discolored her body was, until it reached the point of pure cold crystal that finally matched her tone. "The real me is with Tsukune."

When she had recovered from her shock, Moka attempted to hit the doll again, hoping another blow might be enough to free her. But before she could even raise her fist a new ounce of pressure increased around her throat, forcibly pushing the last bits of air from her lungs as she choked.

"Forgive me in your next life, Moka Akashiya. If you can." Mizore said simply as she kept her pinned down with one arm while the other raised itself up. Through teary eyes and blurred vision, Moka watched as the hand twisted and expanded outward, the ice taking the new form of a long, sharp blade. "For me to obtain by my heart's desire…you must die…"

With that, the blade aimed straight for the center of Moka's brow.

Like the stones they'd been tossing just moments ago, Tsukune's body skipped across the lake's length, now entirely frozen over. His shoes slid with each attempt he made to get back up, struggling to get any footing against the frictionless surface. And just when he'd finally managed to make somewhat of a stand, he felt it start to climb and curl up around his leg like a snake; the ice itself having reached up to ensnare him.

"If I freeze you, you won't be able to go anywhere, yes?" She said as she approached him, her path across the ice seamless. Walking without a single misplaced step. "You'll be all mine then, won't you Tsukune?"

Up his legs. Past his belt. And now, his torso. Tsukune was trapped in a rapidly expanding cocoon of frozen water.

His neck starting to become as immobile as the rest of him, he fought against the stiffness to, if nothing else, at least point his vision in the direction of his tormenter.

The ice of her hair matched that of her claws. Was it just frost covering up those purple strands or was this what her hair truly looked like?

Were his eyelids not too cold to be commanded to shut, Tsukune would have flinched, seeing those claws directing themselves up towards his face.

But…such a thing was not done in any attempt to harm him, and soon he found one of those icy "fingers" gently caressing his nose and cheek.

"We were meant to be together." Mizore said to him dreamily, almost seeming like she was having to hold herself back from cuddling his more and more frozen form. Did she even notice his harsh shivers? Did she care? Or perhaps she simply believed they would not be a problem for much longer. "We're drawn to each other because we're both on our own. We understand each other like no one else can. And…we warm each other's frozen hearts." She said, her hand touching tenderly at the area over his hand, her unkept claws unintentionally scratching at the ice. "You're all I have, Tsukune. That's why…I'm going to make you mine. Only mine."

Tsukune tried to force the words out. The air was so cold it hurt to breathe. Did that make it better or worse then that he was starting to feel less of a need to? "W-w-wait-! Who said that I was alone?!" He yelled, the ice climbing up his jaw cracking and then reforming further up its path. "Why would you-?!"

"I want to make it at this school on my own."

His own words rang clear as a bell inside his head. Despite how much his shame wanted him to deny it, Tsukune couldn't drown out the memory.

"I need to get better than I am."

"I can't have Moka and the others keep putting themselves through so much because I'm too weak to take care of myself."

"I want to make it at this school on my own."

"I am…so stupid!" He cursed himself, eyes shutting tight in his disgrace and almost too frosted over for him to reopen them.

He hadn't been wrong. He had been nearly killed so many times, and had to be rescued so many more. But…wasn't that the point? Every time he'd been in trouble, who was it that'd always been there for him? Whenever he'd bumped into the wrong monster and fell, who was it who helped him up, again and again, until he'd finally stopped falling?

"The only reason I'm confident enough to try and make it on my own was because I had the support of my friends. I only got this far…because I wasn't on my own."

So cold…and yet his body was starting to feel it less and less. He was going numb.

Mizore looked so at peace, just standing there with a gentle smile that once upon a time Tsukune would have given anything for a girl to look at him that way, as she watched the ice near its completion in overtaking him. Colors started to fade and she began to blur into the background, but only from Tsukune's point of view. The frost had reached his eyes.

"Moka… I'm sorry."

Despite all of that, those were still the only thoughts his brain couldn't stop making.

"If only…

"I could…

"Ap…ol…o…gi…ze…"

Falling asleep. That sounded so nice right now.

"TSUKUNE!"

That one word. A spot of light in a dark cold void.

And then…

THOOOM!

Tsukune opened his eyes to what seemed like an explosion hitting the lake, Mizore turning to see the thousands of ice shards scattering against the winds. The barrier she'd constructed. Reduced to shrapnel!

"Who…?" Finally, it was the snow girl's turn to be surprised. She did not recognize the girl before her.

"Well now… Is that really any way to treat a fellow classmate?" An adorably proper accent said, ponytail bouncing simply behind her with each step she took out onto the ice. "Someone really should have told me. I've been bored all day."

"That's…!"

Shalltear Bloodfallen. The girl he'd met only twice. Now here facing off against the abominable monster holding him prisoner.

And beside her…

"Tsukune!" Moka called his name once more, desperate for him to send her any sign that he was still alive.