Disclaimer: There's a new season of Digimon out! -Dances- I don't own it, but thats okay! Digimon Savers looks cool! Oh yeah... the fanfic. Right. Don't own Digimon. And after something a reviewer said, I'm not sure if I own this plot... O.o


In the history of the worlds, there have always been great people. These people are varied in what they were, and what they became. Their deeds have made them either devils or saviors of in the eyes of those around them, and it has always been a great controversy as to who was 'right,' be their deeds as cruel as Kisei's when he won the tournament, and wished that the hatred humans held for the supernatural was aimed at the witches. Or, if one is interested in religion, as kind as Jesus Christ to take upon himself the sins of humanity to save all from themselves. The supernatural world saw Jesus as a horrible cretin, but the humans whom believed in him saw him as their shining light for many centuries to come and probably many after the century now. Kisei had gained the approval of many supernatural beings, but eternal hatred from the witches and their allies.

Turning away from the obvious lessons however, the great people of the past worlds all had one thing in common: they changed their planet, and during their time became condemned for it. They all suffered; each had their own sacrifice made to get them to have their names passed down generation through generation. Many historians later began wondering to themselves… do these great people - these revolutionizing people - regret what they'd done? Yes, they made the world a better or worse place… but did they regret it? Some of them suffered greatly. Some had to bloody their hands, like Alexander the Great. Others had to lie and abandon their ideas like Galileo. In the end, their misery may or may not have been worth it in their eyes. Perhaps it was. No one knows, for they have all passed away… but here's a chance to know now. Whether or not the winners of this tournament, be it Kisei or Yamaki's group, will decide if everything they gave up to win was worth it. May the end of this challenge find it's conclusion.


"And now, ladies and gentlemen! Oh, and hermaphrodites, transsexuals, transvestites, asexuals, and all you other people… the last match of the final round," Cursed announced, a sly smile on her face and the crowds howled. "We all know Sponsor Kisei is sending in Kisei himself… now, it's up to Sponsor Yamaki. Will Yamaki challenge Kisei again this tournament, eight-hundred and eighty-eight years after losing the last one… or will he send in the human?" Once this truth was revealed, the group turned to stare at Yamaki in amazement. The man adjusted his glasses.

"Wait a minute…" Izumi began, staring at him.

"If you fought with Kisei in the last tournament, and you lost…" Junpei continued for her.

"And the only way to lose is to be disqualified or killed…" Tomoki continued. The blonde man looked to the brunette, as confused as the others.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Yamaki asked. The brunette hesitated, and then nodded his head.

"If you lost before, how can we trust you to win this round?" Takuya unsurely joked. Yamaki nodded.

"Then go. I'll explain to them, and you go do what I couldn't," Yamaki ordered, and the brunette teen gave another unsure nod.

"Because we already know our combatants…" Cursed started, stepping off the edge of the arena. "You two, hop on up and fight to the finish!" she called out, running out as the barriers fell from above. Noticing this, Takuya rushed up onto the platform, as Kisei simply sauntered over to it. The vampire grinned.

"I guess we get to play a game, now don't we?" Kisei asked, smirking down at the brunette who narrowed his eyes into a glare at the vampire. "Apparently our last visit didn't show you how foolish it is to face someone of higher caliber than you," he sighed, as though it was a terrible loss. "What's worse, neither of you accepted my offer. Such a pity." Kisei shook his head.

"Kouji and I don't accept lies as offers," Takuya spat at him, keeping his eyes trained on the vampire. He remembered his last encounter with Kisei and Zanshi, all right: how easily Kisei restrained Kouji, who had always easily overpowered Takuya. Yet the brunette could take down both vampires, with his bare hands just if he could hit them… not that he'd ever hit Kouji. Kisei however…

"Lies are oftentimes better than truths, Kanbara Takuya." Kisei gave a short laugh. "It's why humans invented them." The vampire was suddenly no longer in Takuya's line of eyesight. The brunette whirled around to see where he went, but when seeing nothing behind him a look of confusion crossed his facial features. Where'd he go…? Kouji motioned at the side, and when Takuya turned to see a fist crashed into his lower gut. He was knocked harshly back, and due to the excessive force of such a strike he rolled into the center of the arena prior to where he once stood near the edge. Coughing up blood, Takuya shakily pushed himself up as his eyesight blurred from such a hit. Kisei could have just hit him right through his stomach, creating a hole and breaking his spine. But he didn't.

"Bastard, playing cat and mouse…" Takuya cursed beneath his breath, wiping the blood from his mouth as he continued to search for the vampire.

"Humans invented a great deal of things, Kanbara," Kisei's voice echoed, and the brunette tried to locate its origins. "Why, some humans even create worlds all their own to escape the harsh reality that they invented already. Always building--never satisfied with their accomplishments, what they have," the vampire drawled on. "When they lose one thing, they immediately seek out to replace it… even if they didn't even like it in the first place." A laugh. "Such silly creatures… they brush the blame off themselves, and place it on others that are different from them. Humans kill other humans when something doesn't go well with them. Humans burn witches when it was their own fault a plague struck them." He laughed more, the sound grating on the brunette's nerves.

"If I remember correctly, didn't you decide that witches would get the blame for everything?" Takuya snapped.

"My, such a well-educated human you are." Kisei appeared behind Takuya, grabbed the brunette's arm and flipped him harshly onto his back before Takuya even had time to react. He stomped his foot on Takuya's stomach, receiving a yelp from the young teen. "Well now. You're winning this match with ease." A sadistic grin.

"Shut up." Takuya snapped, wrapped his hands around the vampire's ankles and mentally demanded the flames to come. They burst out from his hands, catching the pants legs on fire. Kisei jumped back, and dusted the flames out.

"So it wasn't a rumor," the vampire chuckled to himself, while Takuya picked himself up and glared at the other.

"You really thought it was just a rumor?" The brunette never imagined the other to be an imbecile, but this proved him otherwise.

"No, not that. I thought the rumor that you actually held some sort of intellect was false, but apparently you do think." Kisei smiled, a dark smile. "Come on, I want to see how well you can keep up with me." Takuya clenched his fists, thinking he was ready this time. Kisei was gone again, and before the brunette could relocate him he was kicked to the side. And kicked again, hit, punched… after a few strikes, he wasn't sure which was which. He was getting knocked around, but like the first strike Kisei did not use any fatal strikes. Indeed, the only time Takuya felt any blood exit his body was when he had been hit so harshly in his gut and coughed some up. Bruises would be covering his body before this battle was over.

The brunette wasn't entirely sure why it was that Kisei seemed so intent on knocking him around to death, but he was certainly doing a good job of it. Takuya's eyesight blurred in and out, his focus off. His depth perception wasn't doing well--either that or Kisei was moving in a manner to trick the human's eyes. A crack alerted Takuya, followed by a blinding pain up his arm. His body rolled on the harsh ground of the arena, and Kisei stood hovering over him. Clenching his eyes shut, Takuya tried to ignore the pain. He couldn't move his arm. Opening his eyes, he looked at his arm. It was fractured or broken. Either way, that snap did not signify a sprained nor dislocated bone. He glared up at Kisei, who just smirked down at him.

"If I break both of them, I don't suppose you'll be able to do that neat little trick of yours, would you?" Kisei asked in a purr. Takuya growled, and flailed his legs out in an attempt to kick the vampire. Kisei simply chuckled as he jumped elegantly from the attack. "I'll take that as a yes." He moved again, and groaning Takuya rolled as though trying to get away only to be roughly kicked like an overgrown football to the other side of the arena yelping in pain. Kisei laughed lightly to himself, strolling over to where the human was now weakly trying to stand up on his own using one arm. Takuya took an intake of breath, feeling just how sore his body was getting from the abuse inflicted upon him by the vampire. Just how exactly his skin had not been sliced and scraped up from the ground or even Kisei's hits was beyond him. It defied all logic humans have come to understand.


Kouji, on the sidelines, paced back and forth as he watched the fight between Kisei and Takuya. His brunette was losing. It worried him. He couldn't lose Takuya; he wouldn't. The panic was rising, and from his inability to hold still as his blue eyes watched this was evident. How he just wanted to run into that arena and help Takuya, protect him. A deep growl formed in his throat. Yamaki still had not explained to them just yet what exactly had happened all those years ago, but that was because they were all transfixed on the battle now. Why didn't Yamaki tell them before? He could have prepared Takuya by telling him how Kisei fought then! The growing malevolence towards Kisei was finding its way to Yamaki. Kouji couldn't help Takuya, and this was causing him agitation. This agitation wanted to escape from inside, and at this point its main target was Yamaki.

"Calm down, Kouji," Yamaki ordered, voice stern. The vampire turned on him, a harsh glower directed at the blonde man. "Just have confidence in Takuya. That's the most you can do for him," he said with a sigh. Kouji continued to glare hatefully at him, but turned his attention back to the fight, eyes instantly softening in love and concern for Takuya. The blonde man noted this, and sighed before turning his gaze to the fight. Don't let history repeat itself, he begged silently.

Izumi paid close attention to Kisei's hits and misses, to his strikes and quick decision as to when not to strike. There was no pattern she could make out--it was all erratic. As his actions were all made at the last moment, it was obvious that Kisei had no battle plan in mind. He simply desired to take Takuya out, first by breaking his arms… but then what? That was what worried the girl. Though, Kisei was taking his sweet time in breaking the second of Takuya's arms. What was going on in that twisted freak's head? Sighing, her eyes looked at the ground of the arena. It looked awfully clean… what, was the vampire obsessive-compulsive and unable to stand staining things with blood? It'd explain his decision to find a way to avoid drinking blood. She cracked her knuckles unconsciously. Junpei still had his hand on her shoulder in a comforting manner. She was quick at recovering, although guilt still weighed heavily inside her. Her eyes widened. Perhaps… that had to be it! She knew what was going on! Then the world went black.

"Izumi!" Junpei's concerned voice yelled in alarm, and that was all she heard until another voice spoke.

"You're not allowed to," Cursed's voice warned.

"Huh?" Izumi blinked at her, and then looked around. They were in a forest during springtime. On a log sat a blue fox, but rather than black markings, it had magenta. Its fur wavered, flickering like a glowing light, giving it an eerie look. Its eyes locked on the blonde girl, standing before her. "What do you mean?" Izumi asked.

"I mean it's against the rules. Telling Takuya how to win is cheating," Cursed informed her.

"That was never stated as against the rules!" Izumi snapped.

"Helping a teammate win goes against the rules," Cursed clarified.

"Only if we jump in there and help him!" Izumi snarled. She wanted to help her friend. If she had to, she'd fight this stupid referee!
"Would you now?" Cursed asked, the fox getting up and beginning to circle Izumi. "You're in my mind, my world. Fighting me here is unwise. I know exactly what's in your thoughts, precisely because you're in my world. I know what you wanted to do because Serlio informed me of it."

"So how is it that me telling him how to win is against the rules?" Izumi asked, hands on her hips as she watched the fox. She didn't care what Cursed had to say, or how the referee knew what she did.

"It's the final battle. A human is fighting a vampire, in front of rows upon rows of creatures. If you tell Takuya how to win, even if it is not cheating… those beings will see it as that. They don't want to see a human win. And I don't want an angry mob with an excuse to start a riot," Cursed explained.

"THAT'S CHEATING!" Izumi yelled, her accusing eyes searching the forest for signs of Cursed. The fox looked up at her.

"Here," Cursed said, though the fox's mouth did not move.

"Eh?" Izumi blinked down at it.

"Listen. It is true, in a manner, that it is cheating. It is not technically against the rules, thus realistically I should be permitting it rather than hindering you from telling Takuya. But… if Kisei doesn't kill him in this match, if Takuya wins the mob will perceive it as cheating. I cannot protect your team from angry beasts that believe 'cheating' was done, nor can those you have befriended," Cursed said, heaving a heavy sigh. "I'm very sorry."

"…Just… argh!" Izumi growled in anger.

"Until I hear from Serlio regarding the situation with you, you're stuck here," Cursed informed her, and the fox trotted away.

"HEY! COME BACK HERE!" Izumi yelled. "HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW HOW TAKUYA'S DOING!" she hollered furiously. The fox stopped and looked at her. It turned its head to a tree, and there a screen appeared revealing the battle from Cursed's point of view.


Takuya got knocked down again. Kisei walked over, and bent down near the brunette's ear.

"Give up yet, human?" The vampire asked, a superior tone in his voice. The brunette growled, feeling rage bubble up from inside. The fact he hadn't even hit Kisei was what really pissed him off at this point, for the vampire landed endless blows on him.

"I don't give up," Takuya hissed, and forced himself to stand. Kisei just chuckled, and moved away to give the human room to get up. His chuckle got darker and more amused when Takuya's uninjured arm buckled and he fell back down. Turning, the brunette glared at Kisei who stood back far enough to where the brunette's flames could not reach him. He was tired of this game of cat and mouse. Cats didn't even always eat mice! Takuya blinked. Why didn't cats always eat mice? Because cats knew that mice were oftentimes infected with diseases, duh. Though it was more of rats that a cat would kill but never eat. Something in his brain clicked. Why didn't Kisei just kill him? Because he was a sadistic freak, duh. All right, so why was it that Kisei didn't slice him from head to toe without cutting any major arteries so that it'd be a final form of vengeance against Kouji while making Takuya be in even more pain?

Because Kisei was afraid of him. Not really him, more of his blood. Kisei wasn't really in the room when the dirty deed was done to the brunette and Kouji, now was he? Indeed, it appeared the vampire tried to avoid making Takuya bleed. But then the question of why. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact he hadn't fed in who knows how long after figuring a way to not have too? But he coughed up blood earlier, and nothing really happened. Oh well. He had nothing to lose except his life, and at this point in time, it already looked as though he would. This would hurt. Kisei began walking back over, assuming apparently that Takuya had given up trying to stand on his own. That's right; take your sweet time, the brunette thought, glaring at Kisei. Closing his eyes shut as tight as he could muster, he bit down on his broken arm. Hard. His teeth sunk through his skin deep enough to draw blood. Lesson one: If one is to bite their arm, be sure it is not the injured one. It doubles the intensity of the pain. Kisei stopped, giving Takuya the strangest look the human had ever seen.


"…Why did he just bite his arm?" Junpei asked, staring disbelieving at Takuya's actions, holding Izumi's limp form. Kouji stared unbelieving at the brunette's actions as well, and immediately shook his head and tried to distract himself from the intoxicating scent rising. Just how badly did the idiot bite himself? Yamaki watched with a placid look, though subtle surprise could be seen from how he ruffled from the action. Ruki couldn't help herself, she gawked. It seems losing was making Takuya do some strange and very crazy things.

Spitting out the coppery liquid from his mouth (Takuya didn't find the taste to be as tantalizing as the vampires did), he looked to see what Kisei was doing. His vampiric opponent was giving him a look that spoke plainly what most everyone was wondering: 'What the hell is WRONG with you?' That plan didn't work out too well, it seems. In any case, it was worth it to see such a strange expression on Kisei's visage. Maybe. Trying to pick himself up again, Takuya slowly but surely managed to stand. His good arm squeezed as tight as it could over the bleeding area of his injured arm. Kisei watched him, and his eyes narrowed.

"Suicide is a cowardly way to lose this match," Kisei told him.

"I'm not suicidal," Takuya grinned, earning a raised brow from the vampire. What was this? The brunette's opponent wasn't sure what to make of it. Takuya was taking control of the battle from the vampire, even if he was losing. Where that made sense he wasn't sure. "Why are you hesitating? If you want to win to kill us all, go ahead. Get it over with and kill me," the brunette egged the vampire on.

"I don't recall hitting your head that hard," Kisei retorted coolly, but was still obviously unnerved by the brunette's peculiar behavior. Still, he fell for the bait and disappeared from sight. Takuya relaxed his muscles, despite knowing what was coming. He'd try the rag doll effect, which was his own personal theory: if he wasn't tightening his muscles, the fat in his body might be able to absorb the hits better. The only problem being he didn't have too much excess body fat… damn Yamaki, training them to have fit bodies for the tournament! The hit never came, however. Takuya looked around, trying to find his enemy. Eyes traveling up finally, he saw Kisei perched on the same pole with the pocket that Kouji used in a previous fight. "Hiding?"

"Hardly. But I am trying to figure out… what are you up to?" Kisei's eyes flicked back down to the human. The battle was at a standstill now, with no actual fighting. The crowd was growing restless, irritated by no bloodshed nor breaking limbs. Kouichi and the group in the stands seemed concerned, not wanting them to get too bent out of shape.

"I wouldn't tell you, even if I knew," Takuya snorted, and got a small entertained snicker from Kisei.

"How lovely." The vampire hopped down, standing pretty far away. "You're telling me… you've no idea what you're doing. You're just doing what seems to work?" His blue eyes narrowed and glanced back at the brunette.

"You were too." Takuya leaned on one leg heavily, the other aching.

"You noticed…" Kisei chuckled. "You know, even if I win this round I haven't won the tournament. Considering how your group killed my 'teammates', it's five to one. The five being in your favor… so even if you die, you've accomplished your goal. Humans won't be extinguished." He shrugged. Takuya felt relief… so even if he lost, his brother would be safe. He shook his head. He still needed to survive this; he had a date with Kouji at the end of this to look forward to.

"I'm not going to die," Takuya declared. The vampire laughed, rolling his eyes at the brunette.

"You're a dense, naïve human… you will die. It's the least I can do to return the favor of your friend, Izumi killing my wife… the least I can do for Kouji who rebelled against me… and as Yamaki knows so well, every time he and I meet it's a custom of mine to take something precious from him." Kisei's eyes slit, and instantly Takuya felt a hand gripping his neck tightly. Gasping, the brunette clawed at the cold, bony hand that squeezed his throat. His damaged arm hung limply at his side, bleeding while the other feebly attempted to get Kisei's grip to soften. He was being choked, the dead hand clenching tighter and tighter.

"Le… ah…" Takuya couldn't speak; all that came out were short sounds and squeaks of pain. The vampire held his neck tightly, a faint glare in his eyes aimed at the human he was strangling. An unmerciful, and uncaring expression…

"There seems to be a lot you don't understand. Firstly, they say you can have whatever wish you want to be granted if you win. That's a horrible little lie they feed you. You can't bring someone back from the dead; it doesn't go over well with either Reaper. You die in this match, Kouji can't ask for you back. Besides, vampires and humans don't belong together. It's only a matter of time before the vampire can no longer resist its nature to kill and feed on the weaker one. The forbidden is what attracts us, as damned creatures. In the Gardens of Eden, Eve took the Forbidden and committed the first sin. This sin is the most sacred, and to commit it and reenact it tantalizes us. Villiyan, the dear, used to be human. Her name then was Victoria. I had found a way a year after we fell in love to never need blood to survive. It seemed ideal at the time. Of course, one day she just accidentally cut her finger. Happens all the time. It smelled so good… next thing I knew, she was lying almost dead in my arms. Couldn't let her die, so I changed her." Kisei roughly pulled Takuya's face to him, forcing a small-strangled yelp from the brunette.

"It's only a matter of time before Kouji ends up accidentally killing you, trust me. And with that curse you're stuck in, when he tries to change you after he realizes his mistake it'll kill him too. No matter how you look at your relationship, no matter what you try, it's doomed to fail. I don't know what type of person you are, but in my experience most people would rather die honorably at the hands of someone they hate, than, in a cruel twist of fate, by someone they love." Kisei's eyes narrowed, and he tightened his grip more. Takuya eyes blurred, darkness ebbing around the outsides of his vision. His hand no longer fought with Kisei's.

"I don't particularly care for you, or your blood. It has no pleasant scent for me to care enough for. Now let's hear that neck snap…" Kisei's eyes widened in a wild, crazed expression. Burn… Takuya thought weakly, and a huge flame exploded from his hand. A spontaneous flame burst at Kisei's feet, startling the vampire. He released his hold on Takuya, and dropped the brunette jumping from the fire. Trails of flames chased after him, curling around his leg. Coughing and gasping for air, Takuya looked up at what was transpiring. The fire was traveling up Kisei as he attempted to put the flames out. They burst all over him, and a horrible scream filled the stadium. All who were not deaf covered their ears, trying to drown out the horrible sound.


"You're allowed out," Cursed said, and Izumi awoke in Junpei's arms. She hopped up, and looked out at the arena. Junpei pulled her back slightly, obviously still worried after she 'passed out.' She'd explain to him what happened later. Her hands clamped over her ears, as her awareness was returning quickly as she watched. Kouji was standing still finally, his hands over his ears but his eyes were wide in alarm and worry. He didn't know how Takuya was doing. He couldn't tear his eyes away from the burning body of Kisei.

"Kisei is dead… Takuya has managed to survive the match. Sponsor Yamaki has won the tournament!" Cursed said suddenly, the barrier falling down as she raced up onto the arena. Serlio hustled after her, and when on the arena began frantically searching for something. The referee walked over to Takuya, and shook his shoulders. "Hey, human. You need to drag yourself off here or else Lady Death here is going to snag your soul, too," she said softly, trying to encourage him to stand up.

"…wha…?" Takuya looked at her, weakly trying to pick himself up.

"No, no, crawl or something. Trust me, Serlio already told me your legs are not able to hold you right now. Look, when someone dies on this arena their soul is trapped inside until the end, which is when Serlio gets here to reap the souls and hold them until her husband gets here. She's the Reaper of Souls, he's the Collector. In your battle, don't tell anyone but apparently the soul of a certain fire demon gave you a bit of help… Serlio is trying to find her right now. Now go, hurry, hurry." Cursed ushered him to get moving. Groaning, Takuya slowly pulled himself with his good arm towards the edge. So close… and what fire demon? He couldn't think straight… he'd remember later. At the edge, he just scooted to where he fell off. And felt no solid ground. Kouji had caught him, and held him carefully.

"Takuya, you're safe… sort of," Kouji sighed with relief, nuzzling Takuya's face.

"Careful Kouji!" Izumi yelped, running over to help the vampire with the injured human. "He's bleeding."

"Not surprising, considering he bit himself like that… Takuya what were you thinking when you did that?" Kouji asked softly. The brunette didn't answer, just snuggled closer. Kouji… heart… That about summed up what Takuya felt. And thought.

"Zere you are!" Serlio could be heard in the background. A swipe was heard, and then an angry snarl. "Dam-eet!" Yamaki raised a brow, as a silvery-blue sliver of life wavered on the sharpened edge of the sickle held by Serlio. "You just ahd to prozect her… fine," she sighed, and the sickle absorbed the soul. The decaying body of a woman left the arena, Cursed following after.

"You're all beaten up… come with us," an Angelic ordered, others following. The group of Angelics gathered around Yamaki's group.


Dancing Chibi's o.o


"We won… ah, how wonderful." Izumi sighed, lying on a nice comfy bed. After the Angelics fixed them up, they were given an exquisite hotel room. "What do we ask for though…? A million dollars?" she joked, grinning at the others.

"That's greedy…" Tomoki murmured softly. Izumi gave him a soft smile, and then ruffled his hair.

"Hey, I was kidding. What could we do with all that money anyway? Blow it on anime and manga? Although it'd be perfect for our budget…" Izumi mumbled thoughtfully.

"Oh, the budget!" Takuya cried longingly. "We haven't talked about that in forever…" He flopped on his own bed.

"A lot of things haven't happened in forever…" Junpei said quietly, fiddling with some electrical cables. He amused himself in strange ways humans didn't understand. Kouji flopped on Takuya soon after this, and just kind of laid on him. "Kind of like that," the Thunder Demon nodded.

"Kouji, please get off me." Takuya sulked. Even if the Angelics healed him thoroughly, he was still sore.

"'Or 'orm." Kouji replied in a muffled voice.

"What?" Takuya lifted up his head, turning back some to look at the vampire. "Or worms?" He asked. Kouji looked at him, and said nothing, just kind of returning his stare. "…what?"

"Wonder where Ruki is…" Tomoki wondered, fiddling with his necklace.

"Saw her go with Yamaki earlier," Junpei told him.

"…maybe we could ask for world peace…" Izumi was off in her own little world--but it's okay, they know her there. And here. And in that direction… maybe over there…

"Kouji…? Are you there?" Takuya asked. Kouji had determined something that the brunette was unaware of. When he had caught Takuya in his arms that day, bleeding… the scent did not bother him. All that mattered to him was that Takuya was okay. He knew he could resist now, so he made a decision. He was about to act on that decision (which was to smoocheth Takuya because the brunette looked illegally cute at this point, giving him a quizzical look), but fate intervened. And by fate, Kouichi burst in through the roof.

"GUESS WHAT!" he cheered, scaring Takuya, Kouji, and Junpei. The vampire cast him an evil, evil look. Kouichi noticed, and grinned. He sent a pillow flying at Kouji, knocking him off Takuya.

"I see The Haunting continues," Izumi commented, blinking at the grumbling Kouji.

"At least he's not staring anymore," Takuya thought out loud.

"You're being cruel to my brother today, I see," Kouichi noted.

"…You." Takuya glared at the poltergeist, who grinned.

"I assure you, the t.A.T.u CD is still unharmed and where you left it. BUT GUESS WHAT!" Kouichi floated around excitedly, waving his arms around wildly.

"Tell us what already!" Takuya snapped. If Kouichi weren't already dead, he'd kill him! Because last night Kouichi stole his toothbrush and still has not given it back!

"I'm engaged!" Kouichi swooned, holding his face with his hands and feigning a swoon.

"I think you're lying to them," Junpei sighed, sweat dropping.

"What's Kouichi going on about now?" Izumi inquired.

"He's going on that Yamaki will be here in a few minutes to explain everything to you guys. Any and all questions. Shortly after, Cursed asked if she could talk to you all. THEN WE GO TO THIS RAD PARTY AT BLOOD MOON CAFษ! Hosted by all our wonderful friends, and the owner," Kouichi told them.

"Seriously?" Takuya asked, as Junpei explained everything to Izumi and Tomoki. They all hopped on their beds (except Kouji, who refused to leave Takuya's), and expectantly waited for their Sponsor. After a few minutes, the blonde man finally stepped in.

"TELL US ALL!" they yelled, voices echoing. Yamaki looked at them, and finally opened the door more for Ruki to enter. He closed the door behind them, and then stood there with Ruki next to him. Kouji leaned back and decided to use Takuya's lap as a pillow, making the brunette sweat-drop. Someone was affectionate today.

"Tell me where to start." Yamaki requested.

"Okay! The Tournament before this one buster!" Izumi ordered.

"There's a great deal that goes with it." Yamaki sighed. "Please narrow it down. Once I start from one point, it'll all link together."

"All right. Take off your glasses, and tell us what you are. How did you survive all these centuries?" Kouji asked, his eyes narrowed; however, he wasn't too intimidating, considering he was resting his head in Takuya's lap, and the brunette was playing with his hair. Pimpin' it. Yamaki removed his glasses. At first they couldn't see his eyes, as he was blinking repeatedly, unaccustomed to the light.

"It's been awhile, pardon me…" Yamaki requested, rubbing his eyes. He pocketed his glasses with his free hand. Finally, he opened them, although blearily at first. They were brown, and the pupils were dilating to a slit. "There. Well now, in the Tournament I was the Sponsor, just as I am now. Kisei however, was not one and was a participant. In almost everything, we were polar opposites. Except one thing: it was an uncanny relation we had, something similar. And because of what I was then, most my kind shunned me. Now, as you know… Kisei won the last tournament," Yamaki rambled, going in several directions at once trying to find a way to explain. "Have you guys ever wondered… about how there's supposed to be one Sponsor, and then six Participants? And how Kisei was the Sponsor, and there were five Participants under him?" He asked.

"No… Kisei worked as the sixth," Tomoki said with a nod.

"Do you know how they came to find that it wasn't against the rules for that? I mean after all, it still doesn't quite add up. A Sponsor doesn't count as two people, so there isn't altogether seven people like there's supposed to be," Yamaki pointed out. The Participants were quiet. "Look… I'll just put this bluntly. In the Tournament, I was a vampire just like Kisei. In that same Tournament, one of my participants was one of Ruki's ancestors," Yamaki explained slowly. They all looked at the redheaded witch. "Ruki here… is the descendant of a product with a witch as a mother, and a father as a vampire." They all stared at Yamaki.

"Does that mean…?" Izumi began.

"Yes. Yamaki is my distant grandfather," Ruki confirmed.

"…what'd you mean by, 'in the tournament?'" Takuya asked, catching those key words.

"And what does it have to do with the Sponsor and Participant numbers…?" Izumi asked, confused.

"That Tournament was perhaps one of the shortest. Kisei's team was ruthless and powerful, I'll give them that. A team full of angry vampires is a scary thing. They tore through all their matches, as did most other teams. Ruki's distant grandmother, my wife… she and I had not anticipated what would happen that year. What had happened was… I was involved beforehand because it had always been my dream to be a Sponsor of a team in that Tournament. But then Kisei's team announced what they'd have happen if they one. The persecution of witches. My wife's kind… she then joined my team. I had faith in her, and I couldn't say no to her. We didn't know, however, that she was pregnant with our child. We didn't know until one of the last battles. I asked Cursed if it was all right that I fought for my wife after we discovered this. It's not that we felt she couldn't win… it was just we didn't want to risk our daughter's life. Cursed saw nothing that said I couldn't. Come the last match…" Yamaki trailed.

"You were killed," Izumi finished in a whisper.

"Yes. I'm much like Kouichi is now. However, I'm a bit more than he is. I requested this of Serlio, because I wanted to be there with my child. And her children's children… and so forth. Because I knew what Kisei had done," Yamaki finished.

"Is that what Kisei meant when he said every time you met, it was a custom of his to take something precious from you?" Takuya asked. The blonde man looked at him, and gave a sad smile.

"Partially. When Kisei and I first met, he ended up killing my sister, who was still very much human. Later, he killed me at the tournament. And then, finally… the last time I saw him before this tournament he had killed my wife," Yamaki explained, sighing heavily. There was silence. "Cocky bastard must have thought he was going to kill you too." He chuckled quietly.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Izumi said softly.

"No need to be. I visit my wife every weekend via Serlio," Yamaki happily informed them.

"Err… cool…" Takuya blinked. Yamaki was a strange being.

"Hey Yamaki… do you know about what happened with Cursed and me…?" the blonde female asked.

"Yes. You were going to give a suggestion to Takuya in his fight, and she stopped you. I'm very aware of it. I know what you're going to ask. Why did she stop you, if when Takuya figured it out himself nothing happened? That it, right?" Yamaki asked, and received a nod. "If you noticed, Kisei, at first, didn't want to get anywhere near Takuya. But after a few well-placed comments from Takuya, which I'm sure he wasn't even aware how nicely done they were, Kisei decided to try and end the fight as soon as he could to make it look good and avoid an embarrassing situation of sucking Takuya dry. Let's face it, a vampire who supposedly doesn't need blood grabs a bite in an event creatures have been waiting to see for centuries." Nod nod.

"…Yamaki…" Junpei began.

"Yeah?"

"When can we go back to the Human World? While they do have crazies, they aren't as screwed up," the Thunder Demon pleaded. They asked a few more questions, shared some stories, and then it wasn't long before the party would start.


A/N: Whooo... I don't feel so great, so no rambling or excuses from me today. Give a super special thanks to Solange MacLeod for beta-reading so beautifully and quickly! She got it down faster than it took me to write the entire chapter! LOVE HER! And because so many of you wanted lotsa blood, and I ended up giving you hardly any... -Stabs self- OH LIVING LIFE THE PAIN! -Slowly bleeds to death, but you guys get your lotsa blood and thats all that matters-
Now you guys need to make a decision. Do you want just one more chapter, or two? The two options are total polar opposites in how the ending works out, so choose wisely. I really need you guys to decide, because I like both endings and can't choose myself. And I refuse to do both. There's certain OTHER fanfics (like Our Final Destiny) that I need to get a move on with. So... lemme know!

CrashedmyHarley: You are very feared. o.o -Been having trouble sleeping- Daggers... scare me too. -Sniffle, crawls away and hiiides-
Jake U Freak Of Nature LoL: Phew! Glad you got them! I'm... not sure. XD I completely forgot to be honest... and after this chapter, if you have more questions I wouldn't be surprised. Not quite sure what happened in it. o.o YES! KOUKUYA ALL THE WAY BABY! Hmm, I sent it to you but I'm not sure if you got it... -Races-
GemmaniGirl: Ahahah... you didn't jinx it. Takuya... is very hard to kill. He's like a cute little kitten... that at times you're curious as to why you have a strange urge to dress it up in cute frilly little lacey dresses. Eerrrmm... about the lotsa blood thing... you see, I was on a lot of horror films and... -No excuse- Hey now, hyper reviews are the more interesting ones. Always a joy to read! -Sneaks you soda and candy-
Angel Born of Darkness: You know, when I got locked out of my computer and thought I lost this chapter I had nightmares about you killing me in my sleep. It wasn't pleasant. Here's your chapter (lacking the lots of blood). Please don't kill me. -Whimper, hide-
Puppeh: O.O I can't properly explain to you how sorry I am to update so late. Your review had me very concerned for your well-being. I AM SO SORRY! -Grovels before you- And I so badly wanted to use your ideas, but I didn't know how! Again, I'm very sorry! Your ideas kicked so much ass mine is dead! PLEASE FORGIVE ME!
Largo-sensei: I was? Why did no one tell me...? We are! Yay! SNACK ON! I wasn't sure what you were talking about to be honest... gomen. -Grovel- Wow... why is it so many people I meet either used to live in Ohio, or moved from there...? Ah well. That just makes it a spiffier place. YES! KH II IS LOVE!
Bonnie Mizuhara: So relieved the previous chapter wasn't as crappy as I thought... so... happy... -Floats to cloud nine- Nyaaah! I didn't kill him! I didn't! Only killed him once! -Points accusingly at that oneshot- (LeaderXLoner pairings own) Yes! You must see! They're over thar!
Shitza: It's still going? Suh-WEET! -Happy dance- Hey, it's okay. I understand busyness. -Glares at Subway- Anywho... please dun hex me. T.T -At your mercy-
takuya: o.o You likied? YAY! Hope you like this one too.
chibikuro rose-sama: Lol, and now it's almost over!