This was an extremely dangerous idea, but his feet guided him regardless, pulling him nearer The Sun Dorms. He knew The Disciplinary Committee members were given the weekends off and usually stayed at the Headmaster's private residence, just off the grounds, and that, Kaien Cross, took up patrol on their downtime. So, Aido had to ask himself, what he thought he was doing, skulking around at night, way past curfew, with an ex-Hunter, once known as, The Vampire Without Fangs, on patrol? Yet, he continued moving cautiously forward, hoping the man wouldn't sense his presence, wherever he was.
Luckily, curfew was now in effect and all the Day Class student would be in their rooms, including Akane and her small friend. I'm dead if I go in there! Aido shuddered thinking of what Kaname could and would do to him if he knew where he planned to go. Despite this, he persisted and managed to get into the female dorm building without incident and followed Akane's scent, allowing the delicious aroma to lead him to her room.
Thankfully, the corridors were relatively empty, except for some girls switching rooms on the second floor, causing Aido to have to duck back down the stairs and wait for their hushed voices and tentative footsteps to subside. Soon, he stood before a door with a silver plaque screwed into the wood and engraved with the numbers, 210. Akane's scent strengthened at this door and now, he realised, by the lack of her scent, Akane's roommate was not inside the room beyond.
This was such a ridiculous reason to die. Who cares if this Human is something new? Just let it go... But a Human has never intrigued me so much before… I want, no, I need to know more about her! His curiosity wouldn't allow him to leave and his ego wanted retribution for the way she'd acted so rudely indifferent towards him. He'd heard her heart race when they'd spoken at the changeover, and on the roof that same night, but her face hadn't betrayed her once.
He was somewhat startled to feel the cool brass of the doorknob in his hand. He turned the handle and opened the door with one quick squeak of its hinges. He entered, quickly closing the door behind him and pressed his back against the wood as his eyes scanned the room for the Human.
To his right was the only odd convenience to the otherwise, unremarkable room. A door stood ajar with a bright sliver of light and a small cloud of steam billowing out, seeping into the darkened bedroom. The sound of running water confirmed that Akane must have been in the shower, which did nothing for Aido's control and sent his imagination soaring of ways he could make this emerald-eyed Human crumble at his feet, like every Day Class girl should.
He slinked into the darkened room with its solitary lamp sitting on a bedside table, nestled between the two modest, single beds on either side, illuminating the room in a dull, yellow-tinted shine. Both beds were covered with warm, thick blankets of a rich, dark plum colour, with one bed pushed up against the wall and the other resting, partially under the window. There was a two-door wardrobe and a tall, six drawer chest-of-draws, and sat atop the dresser was a plain, wood-framed mirror.
Aido stepped to the bathroom door, close enough that he could almost make out the girl's reflection in the steamed-up mirror on the opposite wall. Again, he attempted to reason with himself. You do not have a death wish. You can let this go, just turn around and leave. But his feet were rooted as he watched the blurred figure in the mirror move around temptingly. Am I truly this affected by a Human girl? She's interesting, so what! She doesn't find me charming, who cares?... But that's impossible!
He could make any woman swoon over him, even this Human with her cold, sarcastic tongue. Her jewel-encrusted eyes narrowed on him in irritation, ebony hair that shone like moonlight reflecting off the cold, dark ocean. He wanted to see her face flushed by the heat of the shower. He wanted to know what she'd do or say if he were to step into her bathroom as confidently as he would his own. Would she shriek at the top of her lungs? Yell at him to leave and cover herself with her arms, crying over her modesty, or would she swoon at the sight of him?
Wait a minute! Aido's thoughts screeched to a halt. I shouldn't care about how she looks or how she'd act. I don't 'want' her, I want to study her! She's a specimen among a sea of ordinary Humans, nothing more. Her blood must be teasing my senses, he concluded, shaking his head to clear himself of such unhealthy thoughts.
Akane rinsed the coconut-scented conditioner from her hair, enjoying the relaxing sensation of the warm water running down her body, before reluctantly turning off the shower, knowing she had to get to bed after a jaw-popping yawn. She pulled her towel off the railing beside the shower door, ran it over her body, catching the droplets before wrapping it around herself and stepping out, placing a second, smaller towel around her shoulders to collect the water that escaped her hair.
She stood in front of the misted-up mirror and rubbed the condensation to reveal her reflection. Her skin was tinged red, in sharp contrast to the blue of her hand this morning at the fountain. She brushed her teeth and quickly combed through her tangled tresses, brushing her hair down. Her hair was getting longer, now long enough to cover her upper back and shoulders.
Akane turned from the sink, pulling on the light cord and exiting the bathroom. She pulled the hairdryer Miu had left for her to use from the dresser's top, left-hand side drawer, plugged the appliance in and began to dry her hair, lazily running her fingers through the fine strands as she went. Akane had no idea a Vampire, had just managed to squeeze past her into her bathroom and was now, stood in the shadows, watching her every move.
Aido was panicked at this point, questioning his sanity as well as his supposed intelligence, which he'd clearly overestimated at this point. I'm an idiot for coming here! What was I thinking?! His curiosity was forgotten as the girl wafted her scent more effectively in his direction with the aid of that damned hairdryer. He knew he had to keep himself as calm and quiet as possible, and just look away until the Human fell asleep. Then he'd creep out and back to his dorm and drown himself in blood tablets, which he'd forgotten to bring with him in his impromptu, exit from the dorm building, and forget this nightmare ever happened.
Unfortunately for Aido, Akane allowed her towel to drop to the floor, revealing her fully naked form, vulnerable and exposed to the colder air in her bedroom, and him. He pulled his eyes away praying his mind hadn't locked the image away and scolded himself vehemently for admiring the Human at all. He staggered further into the bathroom until his back hit the wall. He slid to the clammy tiled floor trying to breathe calmly, in through his nose and out through his mouth, but her scent was just more effectively drawn to his tongue.
He needed to cool right down, or the girl would be drained completely, and then they'd both be dead! Ok. Aido ran his fingers roughly through his hair. She'll dry herself, get dressed then go to sleep. All I need to do is hold my nose, think calming thoughts, ignore the burning in my throat, and wait.
He scowled into the darkness, cursing himself for not bringing his blood tablets. At least if he had, his thirst would be quenched satisfactorily, and having Akan's scent blown into the bathroom wouldn't feel like such a cruel punishment. Normally, he wouldn't put himself through such torture and just take what he wanted. But, after the fiasco with Yuki Cross and the anger of his Vampire Lord still fresh from the incident, Aido knew this girl's blood, although, incredibly enticing, it was not worth further angering Kaname.
Once Akane was satisfied with her hair, she finished drying her body then pulled a white, long-sleeved, camisole top and loose-fitting, white pyjama bottoms, decorated with black and red hearts, out of the second draw of the dresser and got dressed for bed. The top belonged to Miu. Most of the clothes Akane wore belonged to Miu, except for her uniform. She hadn't packed many things when she'd left home, having little time to gather everything. So, she only took the essentials, food and money, and of course, her test score papers she'd been given by her old school as well as her scholarship and transfer papers.
It was still only 8:30 p.m. so, despite her tiredness, Akane decided to read a little of the book she'd checked out of the library earlier that afternoon. She sat comfortably on her bed with the pillow propped up behind her back, draped her quilted blanket over her legs and began to read but quickly stood back up to switch on the bedroom light, as the dullness of the lamp would hurt her eyes. She was blissfully unaware of the Vampire currently fighting his natural impulse to drown in the taste of her sweet life's blood.
He wasn't sure when, but time felt like it caught up with him again. Aido stilled and listened for signs of movement from the bedroom. He had no idea how long he'd been in the bathroom, or when it became cold sitting on the tiled floor but now that he could hear the tell-tale sounds of someone deep in sleep it was finally safe to move.
He crept forward and peered through the crack in the door into Akan's brightly lit bedroom, where he had a clear view of her sleeping soundly on top of her bed, with a book resting on her lap. He squeezed himself between the door and the doorframe, afraid the door would creak and wake the Human if he so much as brushed it. He daren't even breath as he exited the bathroom and began inching across the floor to the exit, and his salvation.
For Akane and the Day Class, it was late, maybe passed midnight, but for Aido and the rest of the Night Class, it was early afternoon (technically speaking), and still bought him time to get back to The Moon Dorms and make up a plausible excuse for his absence.
"Mm…" Aido froze in the middle of the room as the Human turned in her sleep, kicking out at her blankets. He let out the breath he'd been holding since the bathroom when she finally settled. He was nearly half-way to freedom, tiptoeing across the wooden floorboards when, suddenly, a scream echoed in the silence of the room. "No!"
The girl shot up-right, her eyes bulging and her chest heaving with fright. Aido dived to the floor and crawl quickly out of sight, behind the other bed. He held his breath as he lay, listening to the Human as she shucked air into her lungs desperately. She kicked her blankets to the floor in her haste to leave her bed, dropping the book she'd been reading onto her bedside table before striding to the bathroom to wet her face and drink a glass of water.
Aido was exposed. As soon as the girl left her bathroom, she would see him and probably scream the place down. His eyes frantically searched for a quick and accessible exit before he got into more trouble than his life was worth. He looked up and saw he was below the window, so, without any further planning, he moved as fast as he could to his escape.
Akane had filled a glass tumbler with shaking hands, chugging down the water greedily when a thud from her bedroom window being hastily pushed open startled her. She already jittery and the fright caused the glass to slip from her fingers and dropped into the sink and shattered, the shards cutting her fingers when her hand had reached, too late, to catch the glass.