Blue... bright, sapphire blue that rivals the beauty of the sky are dull with worry. All the while they hold a tinge of relief in their depths. The young man standing in front of Vincent and Riku is nothing short of unique. His wiry body is accented with muscle and his brown hair seems to spike out in every which way. Thick corduroy pants hug his hips and a long sleeved gray shirt barely reaches the waistband. Most notably is his eye color – the brightest of blues.

Behind the young man is a petite female. Her auburn hair falls to her shoulders and bangs cross over her face, dipping slightly into her blue eyes. A long pink dress billows around her legs while an ebony jacket seemingly swallows her arms and torso, most likely belonging to the man. As she tries to peer around Vincent, her eyes water up just enough to be obvious and the brunet's expression turns to one of relief.

"Riku...it's you isn't it?" he asks, reaching forward with a shaky hand.

Vincent's glare forces the male to retract his hand, as if he had been burned. Curious, Riku looks up at Vincent. "Do I know him?"

The glare slips from Vincent's eyes with easy as he glances back at Riku. His words are gentle and try to comfort Riku, as well as pull him away from the situation. "You don't need to. Now let's go before we're late."

Vincent's hand links with Riku's as he begins to tug Riku away from the scene, hoping to get out of there as soon as possible. But the other male refuses to let that happen so easily. He lurches forward and clasps both hands around Riku's free hand, trying to force him to stop.

"I know it's you Riku! I'm not stupid! What happened? Come back to us, we care about you."

Despite the gentle tone, something in Riku's subconscious seems to snap. The memory keeps itself hidden from his view, but the angry and abandoned feelings that surge through him are more than enough. Riku yanks his hand away, stumbling back to bump against Vincent. "Stay away from me."

Vincent's hands fall onto Riku's shoulders, ushering him toward the pathway. He willingly does as he's led to, only sparing one glance behind him. The young man's head is hung while the girl hurries to him, trying to comfort him. But Riku doesn't stop. He heads straight back to the vehicle and slips inside without another word. Once the car begins to move again, Riku molds himself to the door, leaning his head against the window as he closes his eyes.

The second he blocks out everything else a single image invades his mind. One of that same brunet kneeling before him and clutching at his hand just as he had done a moment ago. Riku can even hear his voice calling him over and over again, the noise being a welcomed comfort for some reason.

"Riku, we're here." Vincent's words draw Riku out of his thoughts and back to reality. "Don't say anything to these men. I'll speak to them and you'll only speak if I can't answer their questions sufficiently enough."

Riku nods and slips out of the car. The second he turns toward the residence he's taken back. The intricate home is more closely resembling a mansion and it shocks him to see it on this small island. It's bland and dark against what he would expect of such a colorful place. Completely gray with black trim, it stands out like a sore thumb.

Straight to the door, Vincent knocks softly against it. It's barely a second before it opens to reveal a tall man with shortly cropped blond hair that's slicked back. The crimson eyes are a stark reference to what he is, not that Vincent would trust anyone that isn't his kind in this situation. The open white jacket flaps about his black vest as he turns, intending to lead them inside. Riku can only follow after Vincent, eyes not bothering to pierce through the dim lighting to see his surroundings.

He assume that he should trust them wholeheartedly.

And although he doesn't remember, it's not the first time he's proven wrong.

Before the blond man can turn around, soundless footsteps fly toward Riku. He barely has a chance to react, but with his enhanced movements it's more than enough time. Just as the attacker gets close, Riku pulls back his arm and throws it forward. His fist catches the other vampire in the gut. The force alone sends him backwards, well past where the blond stands – unconcerned of being hit as his companion sails past him.

The attacker wipes at his face and rises to his feet. Bright wine colored eyes cut through the darkness and glare playfully at Riku. His long crimson hair, tied back in a loose ponytail, sways back and forth behind him as he strides forward. As he comes to stand beside the blond, he raises a hand to his hip and cocks his head, showing the red marks on his cheekbones, "This one's good, Rufus."

Said man only curtly shakes his head. He ignores the other completely and focuses on his guests instead. "What have you done Vincent? You know bringing a newly formed vampire here only works Reno up." Rufus sighs softly. "Regardless, you are fortunate that I am in your debt. It was hard to cover the tracks of such a prominent resident."

Reno butts in quickly, grinning over at Rufus while his eyes remain on Riku. "Hey, let me play with him for a bit while you two big boys talk."

Rufus slips his hands into his pockets. "You truly are hopeless. What would the others think if they saw how you're acting?"

Giving the blond his undivided attention, Reno laughs. "They don't even know we're alive. And you say I'm forgetful." He turns his eyes back to Riku. "I'm sure you two need to talk so I'll just show the newbie the ropes." The only permission he receives is a subtle nod, one that sends Reno heading off to the left. "Yo, come on."

As Riku hurries off after him, Rufus and Vincent retreat deeper into the house to speak in private. Of what Riku can only wonder, but as he can only trust Vincent at the moment – he lets the thoughts slip from his mind. Instead he watches Reno's every move even once they're standing outside in the backyard, simply staring across at each other.

With a glint in his eyes, Reno smirks. "Don't worry about a thing. This whole neighborhood is full of vampires or those going to be. So don't worry your pretty little head."

Something about this man makes Riku's memory twitch. There's something so familiar that he can almost put his finger on it. And it makes him want to scream that he can't. Every time he thinks he's figured it out, the thought slips away like the wind.

Reno obviously takes that into account from the look on Riku's countenance. A chortle leaves his lips, "I'm sure knowing who you were you knew the name Lea. You could say him and I were... close. Heh, but trying to visit them is impossible. They probably couldn't handle this anyway."

Riku watches the redhead's eyes and he can almost pinpoint the sadness that tries to bury underneath a hardened shell. He almost feels bad for the vampire. Wanting to dig a little deeper, he tries to push Reno into spilling some secrets. "This?"

"Vampires and how it happened. It wasn't pretty. All those creatures clawing at us as we tried to run away, ripping us away from everything we knew." A broken laugh echoes around them. "Not that it matters. Being immortal is a bigger deal anyway. So, what has Vincent told you?"

"I know enough."

"Is that so?"

Riku barely has a chance to blink before Reno is standing in front of him, lifting him off the ground. The redhead tightens his fist into Riku's shirt, letting the smirk take over his face. "Well here's a lesson for ya. We have unnatural strength, hearing, speed, healing, and..." He inhales deep through his nose before exhaling with a blissful smile, "...smell."

As he lets go, Riku drops back to the ground. He stands as still as a statue, stronger and straighter than he has since he woke up. Reno takes a couple steps back and gestures around with one hand. "Go on, take a sniff."

Although he doesn't like to be ordered around by this vampire, Riku does as he's told. Upon doing so he's infested with the scent of dying flowers and other such plants. It's strong enough to make him want to sneeze – anything to get it out of his sinuses. But as he waits a moment he's able to pass through the scent of decay and find something much more sweet.

Riku curls his fingers into a fist and closes his eyes tight. He doesn't need to breathe, yet still he wants to gasp for air and curl into a ball. The pain in his chest is as if a fire is ripping through his very being – consuming all that is him. The urges refuse to die down and every second makes him shrink inward even more.

A sharp laugh cuts through the air, barely piercing Riku's ears. "I guess Vincent hasn't given you enough to satisfy you." Like the flip of a coin, his tone darkens into something that's almost cruel. "Better be careful. You wouldn't want to kill anyone."

Tremors make Riku's body quake like waves during a storm, ones that never cease to beat on the sandy beach. The fire reaches his throat and if it would help, he'd more than readily rip it out to stop the pain. He only wishes he could do something – cry, scream, groan – anything to plead for this torment to end.

Instincts take over – instincts to shield him from pain and reach a solution. It's as if he watches himself from a third perspective; watching himself race for the the solution to his symptoms. He can briefly see the panic on Reno's face, but it's not the panic of being attacked.

Riku snaps his head to the side and with one slight inhale he knows exactly where he needs to go for the nearest remedy. He darts for the fence, not even glancing at Reno who charges at him. He easily dodges and jumps the fence. Speeding down the street, it only takes a moment for Riku's instincts to reach the one thing he needs.

Snapping his eyes shut, he grabs a fistful of hair and forces the victim's neck to the side. He easily sinks his fangs into the supple neck and greets the relief that floods him. Warmth glides down his throat and he desperately laps it all up, barely able to satiate the thirst that refuses to die. It doesn't go away completely, but the pain dulls to a bearable ache. However, he tightens his grip on the strands of hair at the sound of a muffled moan.

A scream pierces the air and shatters Riku's fantasy. He opens his eyes and all he can see is another man picking up an unconscious woman. Riku pulls away from his prey as he watches the couple hurriedly leave before he looks down, eyes widening ever so slightly.

Whoops! lol Day late. I totally forgot. :'D My bad. I forgot to update my sticky note so it still said last week's date.