Chapter Twenty-Six: Fifth Counterpoint

"Sick and weak from my condition, this lust, this vampiric addiction, to her alone in full submission; None better. Nymphetamine."

-Cradle of Filth "Nymphetamine"

Ghaleon

Ghaleon's gaze was considering the student body gyrating shamelessly around him with a sour expression, if it wasn't for the liquor he'd added to the paper cup in one of his hands he wasn't sure he could continue to tolerate this particular event. Curtiss had signed him up to volunteer for this less than favorable duty trying to keep the students from pawing at each other too much. It also left him in plain view of the other lesser creatures feeling up what was his. The favor would be reciprocated to his fellow professor at a later date, for now he was forced to observe as Kagome moved from one lovesick pup to the next as they all but drooled over his unenviable love.

More disconcerting was the fact that new admirers seemed to be entering the domain of this demented diminutive drama, and anyone with a meager understanding of arithmetic could figure out that with every new paramour his own chances were being depressed.

It was a credit to Kagome's patience that she managed to put up it as long as she had before Albel's embarrassing display. One of the high points of his night had been watching the moment of agitation flicker over the fool's face when she departed. Despite the unfortunate fact that it upset her, Ghaleon was pleased at her swift with drawl from the brawler's unsuitable affections. He had to smother his own inclination to follow her, as Jade had pointed out, anyone that witnessed too much friendliness between them could discover their relationship and it couldn't be risked.

He didn't get to watch where she went as some other couple was trying to dry hump to some heavy beat and a song Ghaleon didn't recognize. At least they broke it off when they saw him approaching but he still was forced to utter words of correction and to ignore the dirty looks most of the student body was offering him for his frigid behavior. They could suffer his displeasure however; most of them would be getting the sorts of physical activity he would only long for tonight.

Seto Kaiba

The C.E.O. sighed to himself as he climbed into the back of his limo…he'd wanted to confront Kagome tonight when he saw her. He'd learned of her questionable past, and wanted to know what it was she was hiding…he'd possessed resolve to do so and then she'd smiled at him with that small cant of her lips and complimented him and his intentions had altered. He grit his teeth as he tossed down the helmet of his outfit in disgust.

"White indeed," He thought at himself sarcastically.

His thoughts had been far less than knightly as he danced with her, years of practice kept him from asking her to walk off with him then and there. They'd of christened the new limo…

He put his forehead in one of his hands while the second reached around in a side compartment for percocet since he could feel a headache forming. It was going to be a long, sleepless night…

Seto Kaiba shook his head to clear it, it wasn't like him to have such lecherous thoughts and he certainly didn't plan to act on them. Whatever was wrong with Kagome, it wasn't something a hospital could help with and he half feared that she'd somehow infected him as well with as unnatural as his behavior continued to be. He knew he had to have Mokuba, or someone whose opinion meant anything to him, nearby when he finally did speak to her. He trusted his own actions less and less as the days went by, certainly his thoughts were treacherous most often lately. Why had he already gone so far for a girl he didn't know and that was clearly deceiving him? Why did he continue to go out of his way to see her and do things for her even though he knew of her deceptions?

Why did he want to pull her close and keep her secure despite those facts?

Even if he confronted her, would she have any answers for him? Would he be able to confront her at all next time or would the same fog that always seemed to grip his mind sway him again?

Kyoya Ootori

Kyoya sat down to do some figures, producing his notebook despite his lack of a bag of any kind. He had fewer requests than most, though there had been a few extra's since his dance with a member of one of the other schools. Generally at these events the Ouran students still kept mostly to themselves as such members of the elite so usually a step outside of that brought attention of some kind or other.

"Hi Kyoya, you having fun?" Honey asked, the older student sitting next to him, smile plastered on his youthful features. Mori was heading toward their table with things from the snack table, the tallest of the host club easy to make out in the room by height difference alone.

"It is a pleasant event." Kyoya replied politely, he was somewhat bored now that much of his own work was done but he had other figures that would keep him entertained. He had enjoyed the dance with Seto's love interest, for a commoner she'd been charming in her own mediocre way. It said a lot to her character that she wouldn't speak of anything involving her relationship with Kaiba even after finding out he spied on her.

"Yeah. I heard from the twins you bought that ticket with the girl from this high school even though they wanted it." Honey commented thoughtfully, curious how Kyoya had pulled that off. Even though they were all rich, both the twins together were a source of income to be reckoned with.

"I may have implied being seen seriously dancing with another girl could hurt their chances with Hikaru, and that she and our King have been experiencing difficulties." Kyoya shrugged lightly when Honey shook his head at him once, as though the petite male didn't approve despite the smile on his face.

"You are ruthless Kyoya." Honey stated it with a half-laugh, fond of his friend despite the cold surface. "At least you seemed to have fun with her though. I'm glad."

"It's our turn…" Mori commented as he sat down the food, nodding to Kyoya and then looking at Honey expectantly since a couple of girls were waiting to dance with them.

Kyoya watched them wander off, left to consider Honey's words. Had he truly enjoyed his short moment with her? "I wonder…"

Albel Nox

Albel had sung one extra song by request after Kagome left; mostly because right then he felt the need to go along with the choice. Godsmack's 'I fuckin' hate you' had been a good follow up to his own dedication.

His sudden popularity might have amused him on some level if the ungrateful bitch hadn't run out on him. What did the girl want with him anyway? She'd certainly been accepting enough that night on the bench, and now her shivering wasn't quite as disgusting as it had once been. Kagome had become like powder and he was suddenly an addict that couldn't pull himself away from the next dose.

"Get the hell away from me." He snarled at a few girls that had gotten close enough to ask him if he'd sing more. As though he wanted to stand up there like a fool and pretend to be something he wasn't.

Certainly he could sing, and he could probably make some money from it, but he'd never seen much of the appeal. It was all bleating out some made up nonsense. He swallowed the punch and then eyed the floor for Ghaelon. Albel had seen the professor spiking his own drinks as the night wore on and he could use the pasty fucker's flask of liquor.

This sort of shit was for lovesick idiots, and he grit his teeth at the fact that he'd somehow entered this welfare state of being. Muttering under his breathe about women as he headed toward the white spot he noticed to the side of the dance floor.

Jade Curtiss

The night was amusing as far as the leader of their little band of misfits was concerned. New men entering Kagome's life wasn't surprising, he knew that the spell was supposedly going to get worse and it was certainly an interesting thing to watch as it all unfolded.

Ghaleon's observations from the week previous hadn't been completely incorrect but Jade figured he simply had a better grasp of personal control than most of the others. Though he knew as well that he hadn't gotten himself alone with Kagome either and from what he'd been able to figure out from the spell thus far it seemed to take advantage of the situations that people were in. Though by the very out of character actions of the men and boys interested in her tonight things were starting to unravel more quickly than before.

He'd have to speak to Ghaelon if his pale associate could get his own mind off the girl for a time, they needed to work with Lezard and some of the more powerful magic-using members of the organization. Perhaps they couldn't cancel the spell, but they might be able to augment it in such a way that it wouldn't continue to get worse. It was a matter of time before the men started to turn on each other and get aggressive. Albel's attitude to being rejected was more mild than Jade expected it to be but even he seemed to realize he could only do so much with other people around.

Jade's own feelings were things he'd ignored for years, his history wasn't exactly a pleasant one, and while he did catch himself eyeing Kagome over in a less than professional way on occasion he wasn't as willing to debase himself chasing her so openly as the others were. Yet, that decision was somewhat inspired by strategy as well, if things were only going to get worse, and one of them had to look after her, all of the rest of the men would be more likely to trust him over any other…

If his beliefs as to what Kagome 'choosing' someone meant in accordance to the spell were correct, then he was simply biding his time. In the meanwhile he had to take action to protect her from the curse itself before it got so smothering she was caught in the crossfire of foolish action…

Sephiroth

It was just as well he had to return to work after his 'dance' with Kagome within the school, he knew he didn't do well with sharing and he had zero desire to watch her dancing with anyone else. Despite the fact that he knew and understood a spell was inspiring all these new emotions he also found he didn't care. If that was a part of the spell, or just his own interest in such new and semi-enjoyable feelings, he wasn't sure.

Still, it was bittersweet when she offered him a genuine smile. Particularly after he'd kidnapped her under orders to kill her; Rufus was still quite displeased with how that had worked out but he'd settled for having the Turks and Sephiroth keeping an eye on her and docked Sephiroth's pay for his 'temporary insubordination'.

The silver haired man grinned a little at the memory of the slight nervousness so clear beneath Rufus' cooler exterior. The boy was wiser than his father had ever been, but that made him more dangerous at times as well. Fortunately thus far Rufus seemed unaffected by this strange ritual Kagome suffered but Sephiroth still planned to watch the reactions of the members within his own group carefully, he didn't know an incredible amount of magic, but he knew enough to realize that it was an unstable thing. The other more knowledgeable leaders surrounding Kagome had stated the strange magic the god put on her was going to mutate and he intended to keep his eyes open for any such alterations so he could spot them as early as possible.

Tossing his suitcase into the back of his car he tugged his tie free as well, the rest of the outfit would have to suffice for his next job. As it was Rufus would be annoyed that he'd taken a short break from his other assignments of the evening but the blonde would have to accept it. His boss's frustration actually made Sephiroth's interest in Kagome better; it was like a bonus prize.

Ishida Uryuu

Ishida finished his own dance and was a little disappointed at how quickly it had ended. He'd wanted to apologize to her for…his uncharacteristic actions when she'd been at his home but hadn't had the chance. At least she seemed happy and as though she didn't plan to hold it against him. When the next few boys took her to dance he could feel the anger as though it was emanating from just under his skin and he didn't want to watch though through a couple of them he couldn't look away.

"Ishida, are you all right?" Orihime, who had the helmet of her hello kitty outfit off and on the table next to her had been chatting to Ishida but he's stopped paying attention, again. "You seem really distracted."

"I…I'm just thinking." Ishida replied, not able to bring up Kagome to his previous crush. He still wasn't sure if he had feelings for Orihime or not, it wasn't as though the redhead would ever feel the same even if he did. He certainly didn't miss thinking about her when she'd never shown him an inch of the attention Kagome had.

"Oh! You're jealous cause other people are dancing with the girl from this school." Orihime observed a moment before one of the boys from their class walked up to take the redhead to dance. Orihime put her large hat back on, completely unaware as to how disappointing her outfit had been to the guys that had gotten tickets to dance with her. Ishida had to smirk a little at her quirky exit, it was so much like her that it was funny.

"Jealous…" He glanced back to where Kagome was chatting comfortably with a man with long silver hair. He certainly didn't look like he should still be in high school, so either he wasn't or he'd just flunked several times. Ishida laughed at himself. "…yeah…seems so."

Lord of the West

She smelled incredibly familiar…enough that he'd spent much of his dance with the slightly above average human trying to determine just what it was in her aroma that had triggered the reminiscence. The oni mask was in one of his hands, the regal features of the mystery dancer staring up toward the moon that was well into the sky by this time of evening. It's gentle silver light seeming to create a slight shimmer in his golden hair, the celestial orb reflected in his eyes without seeing it.

His self-searching was interrupted when he heard the doors to the school slam open, drawing his attention to where the woman that had him so distracted stormed out of them. He dropped his half finished cigarette to crush it a moment later, not wanting the tiny embers to give away his position.

It was when another man came out and used a spell on Kagome to alter her clothing that his interest was perked in earnest. There was then much more to this seemingly normal student. She was chatting with him, though it was nothing of particular importance in the mystery man's opinion so he didn't care to take more than a general note of it.

After their inconsequential discussion ended the now velvet covered duo headed back into the lot of cars, pausing near one the male opened the door for her. Her steps were muted though, sluggish, beyond what they had been on the dance floor. As he watched her passing out the mystery man rolled crimson eyes and pushed himself off the edge of the wall. He'd seen enough women drugged by men to know what had just happened to her.

He couldn't have her dying before he figured out the enigma she'd placed on him, though at least this would be more entertaining than the drivel of humans inside. His hair shifted to silver as tiny points of horns poked through the mercury locks, the red that was his eyes seemed to adopt the former color of his hair as it took a honeyed hue. He would require his demon form to keep up with a vehicle.

Lezard Valeth

Lezard was humming lightly along with the radio as he drove back toward the mansion, occasionally reaching over at a red light to clear hair from Kagome's face or just pet it back.

"Soon." Lezard thought to himself. "The rest of the fools will assume you're safe for now, I already told Curtiss I was escorting you home and since it's the weekend we'll have time to get you acquainted to your new body."

The wizard was amused with himself; it had taken a little bit of planning and exceptional amount of spell casting to get himself in just the right position to steal Kagome away. He was more than amused that his suggestions to Albel had taken root and the boy had actually sung to her. He supposed if the psychopathic warrior ever found out it was Lezard's magic that inspired that embarrassing display he'd have to put the dog down but that seemed unlikely.

Lezard had little regard for Albel's intellect.

It was entirely too long of a ride for his tastes, sadly his own interests and habits in the realm of magic made living any closer to the city impossible. His garage opened and then he closed the doors behind them before he got out of the car. A few overlarge dogs that looked a little mangy and were dripping an unnatural green liquid bounded up to him, but he waved them away.

"Not now, guard the house, anyone that enters before morning, you have complete permission to eat them. Do not touch my goddess." Lezard commented, so accustomed to his own creations unique appearance that he didn't think twice about the monstrous creatures.

He crossed to the passenger side and carefully extracted Kagome, holding her close to him and kissing her forehead when she murmured something incoherently. Leaning close to whisper in her ear in a comforting tone, "Shhh, you're home now Kagome, we're just going to get you ready and it'll be done soon."

Lezard moved into his house and to the secret area that lead down to the laboratory in the basement. There were two beds set up, each with enough wired attachments that the area certainly looked like it was out of a 60's horror movie, though more technologically advanced. He set Kagome down on the empty bed next to the one containing her new body.

It'd taken him a while to perfect the finer details, after a lot of thought he'd decided to leave her mostly as she was, though there were still wings on the back of the unconscious form she would soon inhabit and while it looked human, it would have enough things to augment her personal abilities that she could protect herself. So often she was forced to rely on them to look after her, he would resolve that problem, he would remake her better than she was before.

It was with fervor that he finished hooking up her body to all the wiring and picked up a needle, tapping it to make sure there wouldn't be any air inside before he shot her with the serum. It would make the transfer possible, though was likely to cloud her mind for a few days while her soul and knowledge settled into its new form.

He leaned down close to her face, his chocolate colored bangs barely brushing her cheek as he looked over her face in detail.

"Soon we'll be together permanently my love, tied to each other." His whisper was light, reverent. He kissed her gently as he slid the needle into her flesh…

End Chapter

Comments: Ghaelon ain't getting any; he'll take it out on everyone else that is. Kaiba: OMG why do I want to be –nice- to someone! The world is wrong! Kyoya: Huh, did I have fun, what can I get out of this? Albel: I fucking hate Kagome, but I don't, but I do, but I don't, but I AH…I need liquor! Jade Curtiss: Well this is fun, lots of entertainment while I plot and plan. Sephiroth: Comfortable place atm. Ishida: Wow I guess I am jealous…weird… Lord of the West: Probably not who you think at first glance XD Mystery guy! Lezard Valeth: Just wants to make her better…

This chapter was so much fun to write, I really enjoy doing the counterpoint chapters and this one was a good way to move along while giving some basic feedback from all our smexy men. Mystery guy will be revealed fully sometime soon, probably next chapter.

-Aura

To my reviewers:

Sin of the Fallen – Drama is a bit fun, though a lot of people already know a fair amount of Kagome's past, just not all the guys. Not sure all of them ever will.

Setsuna Uchiha – I think you're the only one that guessed already. Shhhhh.

Tohru78 – I thought it was amusingly embarrassing for Kagome. While everyone still liked Albel and he was like 'go the hell away'.

Black Firelight – Well Albel's actions weren't totally his own. Lezard's a sneaky magicy jerk sometimes. Though it made for amusing chapters at least.

She Who Walks with Death – Thanks, I'm glad you like it so much. And for final pairing I can't say for sure. I can say: not Lezard. Yeah Sephiroth and Albel I think were the smoothest of the two for the dancing. Sephiroth was the sweetest, which is sorta funny thinking about it now.

InuyashaFanFictLover – Kyoya is pretty win, and sorry Albel isn't the one rescuing Kagome. All the votes were already for Mystery Guy.

Serenity Dinago – Sorry I don't know DN Angel. Albel is pretty cool XD I think he's everyone's favorite.

Heresybarrules – I think she's going a little crazy, particularly with this latest twist. I'm afraid I don't watch Naruto so no chars from it as I feel I can't really write for chars I haven't witnessed personally.