Chapter 3

A hand slapped down over my mouth and my eyes flew open as I was roused from sleep for the second time. My vision took a minute to adjust but I soon realised that there was a face directly in front of my own.

Kanato?

The face had a finger to its lips, asking me to be silent and I nodded in understanding. It wasn't until the hand was removed from my mouth that I first noticed that my disruptor's eyes were green and that their hair was a light shade of red.

Ayato.

He grabbed my arm and began pulling me. I was too tired to resist so I dragged myself out of the bed and followed behind Ayato who was leading me out of the room. Before we left through the door I looked back to see Kanato still sleeping soundly on the bed, completely oblivious to my removal.

Out in the hallway I found myself confronted not only by Ayato but by Laito also who had apparently been waiting. I hugged my blanket around my shoulders nervously and then looked down at myself with surprise to notice that I'd taken Kanato's blanket with me unconsciously.

"Here you are Bitch-chan" Laito whined as he hung his arm over my shoulders. "We were looking for you."

"For me?" I said. "What for?"

"Idiot" Ayato scoffed. "Shouldn't that be obvious?"

When I look between the two brothers I did happen to notice that they seemed a little predatory. Laito brought his face close to my neck and I shivered. I still hadn't grown used to their constant demands for blood.

My voice squeaked as I felt Laito bite down and I pinched my eyes shut tight in the hope that it would all be over soon. Ayato was blood-thirsty also and I felt him tug down the side of my shirt opposite to Laito and sink his fangs into the flesh of my shoulder.

I could only hear the sounds of their greedy drinking. It made me feel weak but after some time I eventually did feel the pain cease as both Laito and Ayato had had their fill. They stepped back and wiped their mouths with the back of their hands before looking at me seriously.

"Why were you in Kanato's room?" Ayato asked me harshly.

"H-he asked to stay with him" I tried to answer truthfully. Something about the way both Ayato and Laito stared down at me made me feel like I was suddenly being interrogated. "I didn't mean to fall asleep."

"So you didn't stay there because you wanted to?" Laito said. I looked at him puzzled.

"What do you mean?"

Ayato rolled his eyes at me as if I was stupid for not understanding. It made me feel like an idiot but I didn't know what point they were trying to make.

"Look" Ayato said firmly, "you know Teddy? Kanato had that bear for a really long time. At first it was a little weird but we've all gone through some difficult times together and that bear is how he has managed to cope. We figured it wasn't hurting anybody to we didn't say anything about it. Are you following?"

Ayato paused and seemed to want a genuine answer. I nodded.

"I think so. You're saying that Kanato doesn't know how to cope now that Teddy is gone."

"Exactly" Laito replied. "That's why he has latched onto you. He thinks you're his new toy. His new confidant."

"But we don't want you to be" Ayato stated. "Not if you're only going to betray him and leave him eventually."

I looked first at Ayato and then to Laito. They both looked so serious that I was surprised. I didn't think any of the brothers hated each other but they never seemed to care a whole lot about one another either. Admittedly the triplets did seem closer but I still wouldn't have expected a lecture from these two. They must have really been concerned about Kanato.

"I'm not trying to hurt him" I eventually answered. "I just thought he seemed lonely."

"So you're doing it out of pity then?" Ayato asked.

"No!" I insisted. "I-I like spending time with Kanato."

They both looked sceptically at me as if unconvinced by my declaration. It was the truth however. I didn't know why but there was something about Kanato and the feeling I had when I was around him that felt good. I wasn't sure if it was just the fact that he paid attention to me when I too was feeling a little lonely in the household or if we actually genuinely got along. Either way, I didn't want our new relationship to come to an end so quickly.

"We'll be watching you" Laito said eventually. He and Ayato stepped back and I no longer felt like they were looming over me. "If you do anything bad to him we'll punish you for it. Got it?"

I showed that I understood and they left abruptly, leaving me alone out in the hallway. I wrapped the blanket more tightly around my body and shivered. I didn't like the talk of punishment but I supposed that I had nothing to worry about because I had no intention of hurting Kanato.

...

As quietly as possible I made my way back into the room and crept towards the bed. Kanato stirred as I sat down on the mattress and I froze. He still woke up however. I saw his eyes drowsily flutter open and as he became more aware of his surroundings I saw him look to the side of the bed where I had previously been sleeping.

He saw me sitting there on the edge of the bed and he frowned slightly.

"Where are you going?" he asked with a yawn.

"I'm not going. I'm just coming back."

"From where?"

I bit my lip unsurely. It would have been easy to make something up but I was sure Kanato wouldn't have liked it if I lied.

"Ayato said he wanted to talk to me."

"Oh" was all Kanato said in reply. I watched as he sat up in bed and stretched his arms over his head tiredly. When he looked towards me again his expression was blank so I couldn't tell if he was upset or not. He extended his hand toward me across the bed, as if offering it to me. "Come closer."

I shuffled onto the bed on my knees and took his hand. He tugged me inwards, forcing me to shuffle even further. When I was close enough he wrapped his other arm around me and pulled me towards him so that I sat directly next to him. I wasn't sure what he intended to do but it had my heart beating rapidly in my chest nevertheless.

He brought his face down towards my collarbone and I heard him inhale deeply. As he brushed his fingers over the skin of my neck I felt goose bumps break out over my flesh. When his fingers brushed over the fresh bite-mark that Laito had left there I winced but I also felt guilty. I didn't know why exactly but I felt like I was betraying Kanato when I let the others drink my blood.

"Your scent is so sweet today" Kanato sighed as I heard him inhale again. "I bet you taste delicious."

I gulped as he held me close and continued to brush his fingers over my skin. He hadn't bitten me in such a long time so I presumed his thirst was speaking. I knew what I had to say but it still felt awkward.

"Um K-Kanato. I-If you want, you can have some of my blood."

He pulled away and looked me dead in the eye. That's when I realised that he was not in a good mood.

"Is that what you said to Ayato and Laito too?" he said. His voice sounded like ice and I shivered when I heard it. "I can smell them on you. It's disgusting."

He pushed me away forcefully and I fell heavily back onto the bed. My expression turned into that of surprise and hurt.

"I didn't want them to" I tried to explain.

"Go away. I can't stand to look at you."

His face still seemed so cold and as much as I wanted to stay and defend myself I knew there was no point. He looked stubborn and there was nothing I knew I could say that would make him happier.

I got off the bed in defeat and retreated from the room. It left me with a hollow feeling in my stomach. I felt like I'd done something terribly wrong and despite affirming to myself that I hadn't intentionally tried to hurt Kanato's feelings I still couldn't shake the feeling.

...

We had to attend school that night and despite Kanato being in my class he didn't speak to me at all. I didn't think he even looked at me once. In the past I would have welcomed such disinterest but after having the kind of relationship that I had with Kanato, I was distracted for the whole day.

I could barely listen to the teacher's words as every minute or so I would turn in my seat to look at Kanato but he'd always have his eyes cast downwards at his books. He looked bored but I knew he was angry at me.

This only caused me to be angry at Ayato and Laito. I thought they were being kind for once when they had made it clear they were looking after their sibling. As it turned out, they had been the very reason that Kanato was in such a sour mood. Although a guilty part of me said it was also my own fault.

If Kanato was mad about the fact that Ayato and Laito and drained some of my blood then perhaps I was also a part of the blame for not resisting. I had been tired and none of my attempts to flee had worked before but I should have done something other than just stand there. I got a queasy feeling in my stomach that maybe Kanato knew I hadn't resisted. Perhaps he thought I had let myself be taken by his brothers willingly.

I just wished I could have explained it all to him. After all, since coming to the mansion he'd seemed like the first glimmer of hope of making friends among the brothers. Until then all I had been treated as was a sack of blood. Kanato had let me talk to him and we'd had real conversations. I didn't want to go back to being alone and I hoped Kanato would feel the same way too.

...

When we arrived back home after school that night I finally decided that I couldn't bear to wait. I needed to talk to Kanato before he distanced himself from me. Perhaps I was being selfish but I felt that a part of him still needed my support also.

I tracked him down to one of the parlours. He was sitting in front of the fireplace and I felt awkward as I realised it was the same hearth in which Teddy had met his fate. His eyes looked hollow and restless as he stared intently into the flames.

I approached him and sat beside him on the couch. He seemed surprised by my presence as if he hadn't even heard me enter the room. His look quickly became resentful however.

"Kanato?" I asked meekly. "Are you still angry with me?"

He frowned for a second as if wondering what kind of an answer to give. I was glad at least that he didn't dismiss me immediately. If I could get him to stay put then it would give me enough time to resolve our spat.

I gasped however when I felt my back hit the seat of the couch and I saw Kanato looming on top of me. He'd pinned me down and I suddenly had horrible memories of the times when Kanato used to hold me down in the past. I looked at him with questions in my eyes.

"You offered me your blood earlier, right?" he said.

I looked up at him worriedly. I'd offered him blood because I had figured that he wouldn't hurt me so much but now I didn't feel safe at all. His look had turned predatory.

"I take it back" I protested as I tried to push him away. "Please stop."

"Huh? You take it back? Girls are so fickle" he sighed. "If you let me drink your blood now then I'll forgive you."

My eyes widened at this new proposition. Would our small argument really be forgotten if I just let him drink my blood? It sounded too easy but from the way I could tell Kanato was craving to drink from me, I figured he would keep his word.

I suddenly got an awful feeling in my stomach however. I didn't want to solve our argument simply by giving him what he wanted. I hadn't been given a chance to explain myself yet. It was with a horrible sense of realisation that I abruptly came to understand that Kanato probably already knew I wasn't guilty of anything. I was innocent in whatever he had chosen to accuse me of and now I was only being humiliated.

I wondered if Kanato took enjoyment in tormenting me like that. It made me feel betrayed. I didn't want to become one of his toys that he could use and abuse to his heart's content. I was a person and I had the potential to be his friend. It meant then that I held more control than I initially realised. If anyone had the decision to forgive, it was me.

"Get off me, Kanato" I said with a little more strength. I managed to push at him harder so that we were both sitting upright again. He seemed a little surprised that I had refused but his look told me he was more curious than annoyed. "I don't want to forgive you yet."

"Forgive me?" he said innocently although his eyes told me he knew exactly what he'd done. Perhaps he had hoped that I would be a little more gullible and would fall into his trap to make me crave his company despite his foul attitude. I needed to make him understand that he didn't need to make friends by manipulating them or tricking them. I knew there had to be something inside of him that made his a good person. Why else would he have let me approach him to begin with?

...

I left Kanato with the resolve that I wouldn't let myself forgive him for being so rude until I felt like he was truly sorry. Perhaps he was the only member of the family I had gotten close to but that didn't mean I had to settle for his unkindness. I'd sought him out because I saw something of myself in him. We were both lonely souls. If he saw value in that then I was sure he would come around eventually.

My only concern was that if and when he chose to continue our relationship, I had the danger of becoming his new Teddy. I liked Kanato but not enough to become his toy. I wanted to be treated as his friend. As his equal.

I entered my room and walked over to my bed. Kanato's blanket lay folded up next to my pillow. I'd been so distracted that I'd taken the thing with me. Perhaps my subconscious hadn't let me leave it behind.

I picked it up and brought it to my face. It still smelled just like Kanato. I smiled as I hugged the blanket to myself. Somehow the object felt like proof that Kanato was better than he often appeared to be. If he had the decency to cover me with a blanket then I was sure he was capable of so much more.

I wrapped the blanket around myself and fell onto my bed. Or perhaps I was only hoping he was more decent than he really was because I wanted us to be more than friends...

A/N: Okay, so I know this chapter isn't as fluffy as the other two but I felt like we had to see more of Kanato's typical cruel side before we jump straight in. Sorry, I just like a bit of built up in a story. But lemons are coming soon. I promise.

Anyway thanks for reading and please leave a review to let me know how you like Kanato in this chapter. He can always go back to being cute if you guys don't like him like this. :)