Howls are heard in the far distance as the wind starts to pick up its momentum. A rather chilly night in the woods but for animals, this was nothing to them as they were used to the cold. A lone wolf smashes his paws into a patch of fallen leaves, running quickly. Deeper into the woods. He had to remember where that place was. Where was it? Was it not in a cave not too far from his pact? His friends were worried about where he would go at night. He would leave so early in the evening and not come back until at least sunrise. Family on the other hand had no idea. He would like to keep it that way, he would always think, they wouldn't understand.

Once he hears more howling in the distance, the wolf picks up his momentum to follow the sounds. He was close. The wolves that were a part of this cause were giving out the location with their cries. As soon as he jumps over a few bushes and smashes against a few trees, he halts in his footsteps. What stood in front of him was a small, secluded cave buried deep within the mountainside. He sniffs the air around him and twists his head side to side, making sure he wasn't followed. Slowly he is led into the cave when two other wolves make their appearance.

The tunnel was not anything too special, just some dirt and rocks decorating the creases on the sides. Walking down was always silent, dark as night when going deeper into the cave. The moon that was once his light would soon fade away whenever the entrance closes behind them. They see a few torches starting to flicker with light until suddenly, fire rages. The wolf from behind whines at it at first, but the two in front pay no mind to it. They were getting closer.

The three wolves stop once they reach the end of their destination. A rock was blocking their way. One of the wolves steps up to the rock and growls.

"She is here."

The rock still sits blocking the path. After waiting a moment, the three started to step forward and phased through the rock entirely. Calm and collected. Once all three of them made it through, they are greeted with a huge crowd of people talking amongst themselves. What was ahead of that was a huge stage made out of rocks and a black curtain covering what was behind the scenes. A boy with white hair would be sitting over the edge of that stage, looking over everyone. The wolves then transform themselves back into their human selves. Two of them looked built and strong, the third being more on the weaker side. They split up, briskly going into the crowd to talk amongst the strangers. An alder and vibora's whispers are heard by the werewolf.

"Did you hear about what happened to the sisters?"

"I heard they got too hungry and attacked someone..."

"Where are they now...?"

"I don't know...I think they're missing."

The werewolf bites his lip. "What do we do...?" He asks them, the two women now staring at him. "What if...what if they were killed...?"

"Don't speak like that, Milo. Maybe they just got fed up and ran away." The vibora says, holding her hands close to her chest.

"Fed up..? Ran away..?! They were hungry, right? We're all hungry. How long does she think we can last without food..?!" He starts to shout, causing more commotion. Heads turn his way, and his wolf companions that lead him here look away.

"If she thinks she can get us by feeding us...whatever the hell it is, she's wrong. We need blood. We need that to survive. We have to do something! Or else we'll-!"

"Or else, what? Milo?" An older woman's voice is heard from the stage. Everyone freezes and goes to look on. It was still dark within the tunnel, so her face could not be made out. But those ice-cold blue eyes were just enough to silence everyone in the room.

"I...!" He begins, not sure what to say. "I just think-!"

"If you do not agree with what I am doing, then you are free to leave. Free to wallow in the inevitable suffering of your kind as it's taken over by his plan." Her voice became stern the more she spoke. She suddenly slams something on the ground. A cane. If there was anyone who was whispering during her statement, they were not now. All eyes were on her. Enraptured in her speech.

The one called Milo stays silent. Not furthering the fight much more.

"That's a good puppy~ You have nothing to worry about, everyone." She voices to the crowd, starting to pace around on stage. Her face was still omitted from the light. "This was one setback. Those two girls were weak, and could not live up to our rules. Once this plan succeeds, you will have all of the freedom you deserve. The food you desire is more than you can ever imagine. I will make sure you will never go hungry again. I will make sure I will be the leader you all need. And I'll make sure to rid this world of the sin that plagues it! Is that understood?"

Everyone cheers. Fists in the air. All creatures: werewolves, viboras, alders, ghouls, and even vampires were gathered here at this special place they called home. They would listen to her every command, no matter what the cost. A boy with golden eyes suddenly stands with the woman as the cheering roars louder. He looks on at the crowd with an unreadable expression on his face.

Freedom was coming.

...

After some decision-making was settled, Ryoutei Academy was shut down for the time being. All students are required to make up their assignments through an online portal to stay caught up with the curriculum. They were unsure when the school would open back up, but assure students that their safety came first.

Mifuyu on the other hand had locked herself in her room. She sits underneath her detective board most days while doing most of her homework in her closet. Her nightmares were becoming worse, being plagued more with recent events rather than the past. She hasn't been able to sleep well since that night. The night she saw her once childhood best friend... the one she thought would remain missing forever or, even worse. She grits her teeth and throws her pencil across the room, then pushes her laptop away with her foot. It was denial for sure. How did he show up the way he did? Why was he dressed in such a way? The way he acted...

I'm better than before and...I'm going to save you.

"Save me..."

I shouldn't have gotten you involved.

Mifuyu brings her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them. She blankly stares at her laptop. Several tabs were open at once with the recent news with the two new students missing, the two students who had been dead, and articles about the school. The ones that went missing, what did they look like again? Didn't they talk with her about something?

"Yeah...they wanted to talk to me. But, about what?" Her head suddenly begins to pound and she yelps, burying her head into her knees. What did they look like? Were they younger or older than her?

Why couldn't she remember?

All she could remember was Ryouichi's face and everything went black from there. Yuma Mukami was there too, and he looked out of breath. Any detail the detective tried to remember was blurred out in static. A few tears begin sliding down her cheeks at the pain. Not even two ibuprofens would help this splitting headache. Ryouichi and the mysterious happenings at the school...were they connected?

Her phone beeps. A message.

Mifuyu's eyes peep over her arm and read it was from Yui. Eyes widening she goes to open it quickly to see the full message.

'I hope you're doing okay, Satomi-san. I didn't get to see you after the festival. :('

The ravenette sighs and texts back, blinking tiredly.

'I'm alright, Yui-san. I just got really sick from all that takoyaki I ate. Do you need any help with your homework?'

Sent.

...Ding!

'...Okay, if you say so. Um, no I don't! At least not right now...I want you to rest, okay? Don't push yourself.'

Mifuyu closes her eyes and leans her head back against the wall. "Rest, huh? Maybe I need to get out of the house and do something." She nods to that suggestion and texts back.

'I will for sure, Yui-san. Don't try to worry about me, kay? Text me if you need me.'

She needed to do some grocery shopping for her aunts anyways.

...Hina gives her niece the list of groceries they needed, which wasn't too much. Just eggs, some flour, and some vanilla extract. Apparently, she was in the mood to bake a homemade cake. She would always get like that. Watching the cooking channel and seeing the most extravagant of wedding cakes on display, wanting to replicate it with her sister's help. Mifuyu wasn't exactly the type to help out with cooking, especially nowadays. But the support was always given. A small smile here and a quiet cheer from the sidelines. So maybe surrounding herself with family members that she loves would ease her nerves for the time being.

She steps into the nearby market and grabs a basket, eyeing the list while browsing the store. Soft chatter of customers walking by her, kids wanting their parents to buy them some sugary sweets, older people ranting about today's circumstances. It was just like any regular day. Life goes on as always. It would be at these times the adolescent would forget that. She catches herself staring off into space at some snack cakes before hearing loud yells coming from the meat ile.

"For the last time, I'm not gonna buy that!"

"But yours takes too long to grow. At least here it's already prepared for you!"

"Haah!? Why would I do that when food from my garden is much better?!"

Being the nosy woman that she was, Mifuyu peers around the corner to see a familiar sight of apricot and blonde hair. Yuma and Kou Mukami. In the farthest corner of the store she can see a group of fangirls also spying on them...but not for the same reasons she was. Mifuyu walks out of her hiding spot and takes a deep breath.

Socialization. She needs someone to talk to. So, go talk to them! They are your classmates!

. . .Yeah, no. Fuck that.

Mifuyu goes to turn around before she hears her name being called from behind her. "Is that Satomi-san?~ Hey, Yuma. I found your little friend." Kou says, warranting Yuma to look over his shoulder to see the back of Mifuyu's head. She freezes in place. Eyes twitching, a blush crawling on her face. She only just got here and this was her day already. Footsteps walk over towards her, Kou being in front and Yuma standing beside her.

"How are you doing, Sa-to-mi-saan~" Kou's voice rings out, putting both hands on his hips. Yuma rolls his eyes in tandem to Mifuyu's.

"Not the greatest. Now move." She shoves past him and continues to walk ahead of them. Kou grabs Yuma's hand, to his protests, and they follow her.

"Could you convince my darling brother that buying fresh vegetables from the store is much faster than waiting for them to grow, Satomi-san?" The customers that were once staring at the trio soon turn away and the fangirls start to follow them not so quietly.

"Why are you bringin' her into this? She's got nothin' to do with it!" Yuma exclaims, shoving Kou.

"Yeah, why are you bringing me into this? I'm just here to shop. Now if you could leave me the fuck-"

"Kou-kun! Kou-senpai!" The sound of his fans rings out through the store, unable to contain their secret identities for much longer. Little did they know that the Mukami were already aware of their presence. He smiles down at them as they wedge themselves in between Yuma and Mifuyu.

"So like, can we get a picture?"

"Pretty pleaaasee...?"

Yuma glances down at Mifuyu, to which she looks back up at him. Without warning, he grabs her hand. "Wh-!? Hey! Yuma!"

"Yuuma, wait! Don't leave mee!" Kou cries out as more girls start to waltz up to the pop idol. Already pulling out their phones and pictures to sign for him.

The detective duo soon escapes to the other side of the store to the in-store greenhouse. It was surrounded by well-kept flowers, gardening utensils, and products, smelling of soil. No one was in this part of the store. Mifuyu jerks her hand away from him and takes a few steps back, tennis shoes smacking against the concrete.

"What did you do that for?! I didn't want to-!"

"Just, shut up and listen. Alright?" Yuma silences her, crossing his arms. "How...how are you doing? Since the...incident." Mifuyu clicks her tongue, setting her still empty basket on the ground. She rubs the back of her head.

"Not great. I can't fucking sleep worth a shit, and every time I try to recall what happened that night...my head hurts." Yuma's eyelids widen a bit.

"Your head hurts?"

"Yes," Mifuyu admits, hand leaving her head. "It's been like this for a few days since then. The more I try to remember, my head starts to hurt. I don't know what's going on, or...even if what I saw was..." Her silver eyes glance to the floor and she then perks up, stepping towards the taller individual.

"You were there, right..?! Like I'm not fucking crazy or something? It wasn't some dream I had, right?" She questions, getting closer and closer to him. Yuma blinks down at the ravenette in confusion, raising a brow.

"Well, yeah. It did happen. I was there...some dude showed up and attacked you."

"Attacked?" That isn't what she remembered. "What did he look like?"

"What did he look like? White hair and piss-colored eyes. Distinct n' shit." He insults, looking away from Mifuyu.

"Did he...did he have anything else on him?"

"...He left behind a cane," Yuma says, shoving his fists in his pockets. Mifuyu's eyes widen and she suddenly grabs at his shirt.

"He had a cane..!? See, that's not...that's not what I..." Her head starts to throb in pain again. Yuma immediately takes her hands off of him, eyeing them for a bit too long before looking back at her.

"Calm your shit, Mifuyu. You can't do this if you're freaking out over every little thing, right? So take a couple of breaths." She nods at his demand and inhales through her nose taking a few steps away from Yuma, breathing deeply.

"Okay...okay, I'm trying." The pain doesn't cease but it lessens in severity. The vampire does a small toothy grin.

"Yeah, see? There's nothing to get so worked up for. Now, that cane..." His eyes wander again for a moment before looking at her again. "It was an ordinary cane. More so a skinny ass sword was inside the hilt."

"A sword...?" Mifuyu inquires, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah. It looked like a damn toothpick. I dunno what he was planning on doing with it. Probably for protection or somethin.' Regardless, he left it behind when he disappeared." Yuma explains, shifting his weight between his feet. "I still have it, but I plan to keep it."

"Why keep it?"

He shrugs. "I don't think whoever you're living with would think it's strange you suddenly came walking in with a cane. A lethal one at that. So it's safer for me."

"...Wouldn't your brothers care about that sort of thing too?" Mifuyu scowls, her left eye now twitching. "They do their own shit, and I'm a grown-ass man. I can do what I want. Tch." He spits in response.

"You're seventeen..."

"Yeah? And?" Yuma barks back, to which Mifuyu gives up on that conversation. "Fine. Keep it. But that means I'm entitled to see it too when...we see each other next."

"Yeah about that..." Yuma trails off. Was that a hint of red in his face, or was it just chilly in here?

"Just give me your number so we can talk all we want, yeah? It's better than just waiting to see each other." Mifuyu blinks a couple of times and now also looks away from him. She thought about that but she secretly still wanted to do this entire thing by herself without any help. But at this point, this was beyond that. She nods and pulls out her phone.

"Yeah, it would be easier. I'm ready when you are."

The two then exchange numbers, and Mifuyu picks up her empty basket. "I gotta get back to my shopping or my aunts are gonna start worrying about me. So, I'll talk to you later. Okay?"

As soon as she goes to turn around to leave the gardening area, Yuma grabs her hand again.

"Listen," He starts. She turns her head to face him. "We're gonna do this together whether you like it or not. I got my own reasons, and you got yours. So let's put our meat brains together and do this. Don't push yourself so hard, jeez." He does a light squeeze of her hand and lets her go.

Her eyes scan his face, searching for deceit. He seemed genuine enough and really fucking stubborn enough to keep telling her the same thing over and over.

"...Yeah, I got it. Sorry. I'm gonna do better from now on." Mifuyu nods and soon exits the area, sliding doors shutting behind her as Yuma watches her go.

"Memory fuzzy, eh...?" Yuma ponders, scowling at the thought.

Was it that kid? Or maybe...

"No, it couldn't be that four-eyed freak. What am I thinking? Ugh." He grunts in frustration and starts to walk back into the store. There was something sincerely troubling him though. Throughout that entire conversation, while Mifuyu spoke, his heart was racing faster than before. He could hear it in his eardrums; it had been so loud.

...And his throat was dry.

Has it really been that long since he drank? It couldn't have been. Why was he always this thirsty? His other brothers were not showing those symptoms either, were they? He'd have to ask them later. Yuma knew that he had to be careful around others, especially her.

Who knows what ravenous tendencies could unleash all at once?