Yay, I'm back! With a nice, action-filled chapter to boot!
This one came along surprisingly fast; I wrote this in only three days.

Soul stirred in his sleep, a small whine escaping his throat. A pale sheet of moonlight illuminated the flicker of pain the crossed his features. He clenched his fingers, gripping onto the sheets, and he whined again, eyes opening.

Oh, Death... Fireworks exploded in his vision, agonizing, bright illuminations. He sucked in a ragged breath and clenched his teeth. Rolling over onto his side and curling up, his pale, shaking hands clutching his middle. Soul panted. The seconds seem to go on impossibly long, dragging on forever, never wanting their brief time of existence to end. Oh, but he wanted them to end.

Them, and the pain.

His stomach felt like it was caving in on itself, and his chest heaved with short, shallow breaths. His eyes rolled underneath his eyelids, darting back and forth between imaginary demons, and one very real one.

Oh, Death... Soul's body felt like it was on fire. Every tiny bit of him burned. The weapon's fevered, agonized mind couldn't even come up with a comparison that would encompass what he felt. Even the cut from Crona, that mind-fracturing agony, didn't come close to what he was feeling. That was sharp pain, slowing to a slightly duller pain. This was constant agony, something he couldn't forget, something that ignited with every heartbeat. He could feel the muscle in his chest beating, but he could also feel the tempo of his pulse playing sick, tormented music in his skull.

Thinking, ha, his thoughts were brief pieces of sanity. Miniscule moments in time where he could remember he was a sentient being, not simply a mass of flesh that knew only agony.

Pain.

Pain.

Pain.

Ah,

fuck.

Move his arms. Yes. Not hold the stomach. Shelter it. Close eyes. Breathe in. Out. Grit teeth. No. Hurts more. Open mouth. Jaw hurts. Teeth hurt. Pain. More pain. Always more. Shiver. Cold. Move back. Feel warm. Maka. Heat. Pain.

Soul subconsciously leaned closer to his partner. Warmth, ah, the warmth. The heat felt so nice, soaking into him, warming him, soothing at least some of the pain, and somehow, loosening the vise that curled around his stomach, and he could breathe easier. Have you ever thought about just how amazing it feels to breathe? Soul certainly did now, and he couldn't appreciate it more. He felt like a starving man given his first meal in a week. He felt like an impoverished child being given a toy. He felt amazing.

It was incredible, and the heat felt so good that he just melted into it, curling his body closer to his meister's. The vise lifted once more, and while a few dull aches still bit at him, he felt so much better.

Maka's scent comforted him, her blonde-haired form gently rising with the intake of breath. The snowy-haired weapon wiggled closer until his skin pressed against her. He began to breathe a sigh of relief, until he realized what that terrible, hollow pain around his stomach was.

Hunger.

He was hungry. No, not hungry, starving. It was so unrecognizable to him. Sure, he'd been hungry often, but never to the point of pain. Ah, but this was pain. Excruciating pain.

Any relief he'd found from Maka dissolved like dew in the morning. A pang of hunger hit him, and he trembled. Breathing shakily, he turned away from his partner.

In.

Out.

In.

Out.

Soul breathed short, shallow breaths, telling himself that he needed to calm down. Calm. It seemed so out of reach, an impossible goal, with waves of starvation rocking his mind and body. Deeper breaths. Deeper breaths.

In...

…

Out...

…

In...-

Oh, what was that? Soul's nose twitched. Something smelled good. Not like any food he knew, but certainly edible, and pallatable. He breathed in again, as deep as he could, for more of that delicious scent. Oh~

Soul opened his mouth. He didn't know why, it just felt right. He breathed in and out again. Oh, oh. It was so much better with his mouth open. It seemed so much more concentrated, pure. Sweet Shinigami, what he would give to taste that! Soul continued to breathe deeper, feeling the hunger flare bigger in his stomach, igniting a small fire, and his eyes shone with a redder hue. He licked his teeth with his tongue, and his mouth curled up into a grin, his eyes losing that clear, lucid look, being replaced by a glazed, distant look. Shadows fell on his face as he turned to face his partner. Soul knew that the source of that scent was his meister.

Maka lay peacefully curled up, a serene expression on her face with just the faintest ghost of a smile. Her hands were wrapped around each other and held to her chest, and long graceful legs sloped down to the end of his bed. The sheets only just barely covered her waist; the rest of them lay wrinkled around her.

Soul sat up slowly, his movements graceful and precise, a many-fanged grin glinting briefly under the light of the bleeding moon. His eyes never left his partner. They started at her feet, traveling up her slender calves to her muscled thighs, and then from her slim hips to tiny waist. He continued to gaze at her with glazed and hungry eyes. He went from her waist to her chest, to her collarbones, pausing at her neck, to land on her peaceful sleeping face. He stalked towards her, watching her eyes, her eyelashes, and the tiny movements below her eyelids. Soul placed a hand on either side of her, and leaned down.

He placed a gentle, chaste kiss on her forehead and gently caressed her hair. He paused, checking her face for any reaction. Maka's smile only grew a little, but nothing more. Soul leaned down again, leaving a gentle trail of kisses from her forehead to her jawbone. He paused once more, and inspected his partner again. Still no reaction. He placed a hand on her chin, and tilted her head back, pressing a few fingers to her pulse point.

When he felt the strong, steady beat under his fingers, his pupils dilated until just a red ring encircled the black holes that were now his eyes. A string of drool dripped from his lip as another manic grin split his face. He leaned forward, his eyes locking onto that little spot on Maka's skin that moved, if just barely. Soul slipped his tongue out and gave Maka's neck a long, languorous lick. This time, she squirmed underneath him. Soul growled, a low rumbling sound from his chest, and he grabbed his partner's shoulders. Maka's eyes snapped open and she yelped.

"Soul! Wha-...?" She trailed off as her partner licked her skin again, this time his breath billowing out and cooling the wet patch on her skin. She shuddered and goosebumps rose on her neck, traveling down her body.

Soul snarled and straddled her, a knee on either side of her waist and each hand holding an arm to keep her pinned. Maka stared, shocked, at her partner. Something was off about him; he was obviously not in his right mind. His teeth were bared, and Maka noticed with a bit of fear that each of his teeth were longer and sharper; his incisors were very needle-like, as well. His messy white hair obscured one eye, but Maka could clearly see the other. Soul's pupil was massive, and it took up almost his entire iris. The color of his eyes was different, too. Instead of the usual handsome rose red, they now burned with a dangerous fiery crimson.

Soul leaned forward and Maka was torn from her inspection of his appearance, and harshly reminded that she was pinned down with Soul's impressive strength. She wiggled under him, but stopped when Soul rumbled another threatening growl. Her heart beat faster and her breathing became shallow and fast. Soul licked and nibbled her throat again, and she remembered back to the thing that had attacked them.

Did Soul... was Soul...?

Maka's breath hitched in her throat as Soul rested those very sharp, very dangerous, teeth on her neck. Her heart skipped a beat and her chest rose and fell rapidly. Her green eyes dropped to the boy at her throat, whose chest rumbled a contented purr. She wiggled one of her hands, hoping that if she could just free it...

"So-UL!"

Maka's voice rose an octave as her weapon tore into her veins. His fangs broke through the skin so suddenly, and Maka gasped. It hurt, oh, Death, it hurt! Her back arched up into his embrace, and he circled an arm underneath her to keep her there. Soul's teeth moved out of the punctures they'd made, and Maka's neck felt unnaturally warm.

Soul's mouth latched onto the wound and he sucked, pulling the delicious blood out of Maka's veins. He held her close and cradled her head in the hand that wasn't holding her up. Oh, Death, he felt better, much better. The pain that had gripped so tightly in its hands reluctantly released its grip with every swallow of his partner's crimson lifeblood.

Maka gasped again, her mouth opening and closing. Along with the fire in her veins, a pleasurable feeling began to radiate out from the bite. Dark arms of bliss held her close, and she moaned, throwing her head back.

Soul's suckling slowed when he heard his partner's moan. It wasn't a sound or complaint of pain. No, it was an erotic sound of pleasure. One that made his sense of self return a little. Oh, of course he'd wanted to hear her moan like that for a long time. But it had to be his doing.

Him.

Soul Eater Evans.

Demon Scythe.

Weapon to Maka Albarn.

Student at Shibusen Academy.

Friend of Black*Star.

Friend of Death the Kid, Liz, Patti, and Tsubaki.

Bane of Spirit Albarn.

Soul's eyes widened. He slowly leaned up, a trickle of blood dribbling down his chin. Maka's face and neck were flushed. Her green eyes were half-lidded, and she gazed out into space. Her mouth was just slightly parted; a breathy gasp escaping her lips. His frightened gaze dropped down to the wound he'd made. A lazy stream of crimson leaked down the side of Maka's neck.

Maka whined and looked at Soul. Where had that delicious, addictive, pleasure gone? She reached up a pale hand and gently stroked his hair, pushing him towards her neck. More, she wanted more. She panted and stretched out her neck, inviting him in.

The weapon blinked at his partner. Oh shit. Oh shit. Ohshitohshitohshitohshit! She was bleeding! Heavily! Soul's mind reeled, searching for how to stop the bleeding, even as his body leaned forward on autopilot. He instinctively licked Maka's twin punctures, coating the area with his saliva. He gently cleared away the streams of cooling blood down her neck and chest, and watched, mesmerized, as her wounds healed. Her eyes flickered open and closed, adjusting on his worried, bloodstained form.

"Soul?" she asked weakly. "W-what was t-that?" she panted and raised a hand to her forehead. Soul gently rested her on the bed. "D-did you bite me?" she breathed, "Like that thing in the alley?"

Soul promptly got off of his meister and to his own respected space. "Y-yeah," he replied in a shaky tone. "I-I don't really remember why, though. I just remember being in a lot of pain and realizing that I was just really hungry."

"So you bit me?" Maka deadpanned, shooting him a glare.

Soul swallowed, tasting the traces of her blood and bit back a moan. Death, it was delicious. "I don't really know what came over me," he admitted, looking her in the eyes, "I think it was some kind of instinct. I kinda went on autopilot."

Maka huffed and looked away. She needed time to think. "Well, can you go get me some food at least? If you're going to snack on me, you better provide refreshments," she said, trying to make a weak joke. She shifted around, pulling the sheets up to her neck. "I would Maka-Chop you, but I can't reach any books." Her face took on a steely look. "But, that doesn't mean I won't chop your ass to hell later."

Soul smiled, accidentally displaying his new fangs.

Same old bookworm.

Maka giggled and told him to get his shark-toothed ass moving and get her some soup, as she was more than a little bit lightheaded. Soul obediently hurried out of the doorway, and sprinted to the kitchen. Maka smiled weakly as his shadow disappeared, but the smile dropped as soon as he was out of sight.

Ah, yeah. This was a problem.

A major one.

Maka narrowed her eyes and thought hard. What would happen now? If he couldn't stop from biting her of all people, someone whom he actually put up with, what the hell would happen if felt "hungry," as he had put it, around someone whom he did not particularly like, such as Hiro or her father?

Ah, but if that person was still stronger than Soul, they shouldn't have much problem, right? Despite her best efforts, Spirit was still leagues ahead of her partner. So, he was safe. But what if someone who was much weaker than Soul pissed him off? Maybe a normal person, someone with no protective training?

Would he kill them?

No, of course not. This was Soul, after all. He wouldn't do something like that, would he? He wasn't a loose cannon, well, usually. He could control himself if he wasn't hungry, right?

But, fighting off Soul's new hunger required blood, and if her current condition was any hint, a lot of it. How often would he need to feed off of her? It would be her, no one else. For whatever strange reason, Maka felt ill when she thought about Soul feeding off of someone else. If he needed to eat every day, er, night, she wouldn't be able to keep up. And besides, who else would give their blood to be eaten by a hungry weapon?

Ha.

Maka actually laughed a little bit there. Maybe it was the blood loss, but suddenly, Soul being a weapon that literally craved blood was very funny. Hehe. Ha.

But back to more serious matters, what exactly was Soul now? A vampire? Or could he be something even more frightening and dark?

Were all myths about vampires true? Would Soul be allergic to sunlight now? Were wooden stakes, silver, and fire the only things that could kill him now. Could he eat normal food? What was that druggy feeling? Was it...

"Maka?" Soul appeared in the doorway, holding a steaming bowl, and jolting Maka out of her musings. "Here's your soup. Chicken Noodle's all we had."

"That's fine," she answered absentmindedly, accepting the soup from him and noting that it smelled amazing. Yeah, Soul always was a better cook than she was, even with from-the-can anything. But, any time he baked, it was awful. Maka blew on a spoonful and swallowed it, the tasty salty liquid refreshing.

Yup, she was feeling much better already.

Soul awkwardly went to the side of his bed and sat down, keeping a respectful distance from his partner. Maka ignored him and continued to scarf down her soup at a rate that would have shocked even Black*Star. The white-haired boy kept his gaze to the floor, idly noting that it was time for him to do laundry; socks were everywhere. A clink of the metal spoon hitting the edge of the bowl as Maka put it down alerted him that she was down. A long silence followed.

"What did it taste like?" Maka was the one to break the silence between them.

"Huh?" was Soul's intelligent response.

Maka rolled her eyes. "The blood, dumbass. You certainly seemed like you were enjoying yourself. I'm not a buffet, by the way."

Soul growled softly at her. "Y'know, I wasn't the only one enjoying themselves," he groused.

Maka gaped. Well, yeah, she kind of had been enjoying herself for quite a bit there. Maybe a little more than she should have, if the situation between her legs was anything to judge by. "Yeah, but I wasn't eating you."

"Point taken."

"But you're avoiding the question." Maka narrowed his eyes, and Soul swallowed nervously. "What did it taste like, Soul?"

Soul closed his eyes briefly and looked at her apprehensively. "You won't like the answer," he warned.

"I assure you, I'm prepared."

Soul took a deep breath and sighed; he was stalling, and he knew it. He looked her in the eyes as he began, "Maka, it was indescribable, but I'll try." He leaned forward, getting in front of her to look in her green orbs. "The taste was what blood normally tastes like. It wasn't sweet, more salty, but there was something so much deeper to it. It was rich, and almost spicy, but not, at the same time." He leaned closer, their faces just barely apart now, his breath mixing with hers. "It was like looking at the stars on a warm night, with just a cool breeze to keep you company. It was like knowing you're in a lover's thoughts. It was like listening to a perfect piece of music, every second inspiring."

He stared into her eyes, never breaking eye contact, and he whispered, quietly, so softly, so gently, that she almost missed it. His breath gently breezed over her face, rustling the few blonde flyaway hairs. It smelled coppery.

"It was like knowing that the person you love, loves you back."

Maka's eyes widened, and she opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by Soul's pale lips softly touching hers. Her eyes widened further as Soul pressed against her gently, softly, waiting for her approval; it was a soft, caring, kiss, one that Soul poured all of his love for her into. His eyes were closed, not watching to see her reaction.

Instead, he felt it.

Maka kissed back, softly at first, but quickly growing more demanding. She felt her eyes get warm and wet, and she blinked, trying, and failing, to keep the tears from flowing.

Soul, he loved her.

Loved her back.

Soul was the one to break the kiss, pulling away from Maka's soft lips. He looked at her, and embraced his meister, carefully kissing away the few stray tears. He smiled, and she smiled back, hiccuping softly.

"You idiot."

"What? Me?" Soul laughed and poked Maka's nose. Maka growled. "Ah, yeah." He sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. Maka glowered some more, and then her expression got too innocent.

"Maka?" Soul asked, quickly growing wary.

"Uh... Maka?"

"MAKA-CHOP!"

A book decided to collide with Soul's skull with surprising force.

"Ouch! Dammit..." he sighed, rubbing his head. "I guess I deserved that one..."

"Ya think?" Maka quipped.

"Yeah..." Soul looked at her, and she glared at him for a while, the two of the them having a staring contest. They held each other's glare for a while, neither willing to give ground, until the corners of Maka's lips twitched, before she broke off into a beaming grin and clear, crystalline laugh.

"I think I've loved you for longer than I think."

"Me too." Soul smiled back at her. Maka beamed at him and pulled him down to her. She yawned, waving a hand in front of her mouth.

"As fun as all this has been," she paused, and yawned again, "we have school tomorrow, and we need to get your dumb ass checked out, too. Not to mention, your midnight snack isn't the best reason to wake up in the middle of the night."

Soul briefly frowned. She hadn't meant it to hurt, but it did all the same, he winced inside, but hugged her back. "Yeah, let's sleep." He hugged her closer.

And she hugged him back.

You guys can blame Ed Sheeran for the fluff.