A/N: Jackie, Nick, and Collin are real people in my life, they are not characters, so please don't ask to use them.
Her Return
Chapter Three
It's been about a week since Areiko had returned to everyone. And she was now again enrolled in Orange Star County High, finishing her year with her friends, Aya, Britnay, and Scott. Well, with Aya that is. Britnay and Scott didn't know if they wanted to be friends with her considering how much she has changed when she had arrived. Areiko had such an attitude problem, that she had started a fight with Vegeta the other day. But since Aya and Goku were there, no fists were thrown.
Areiko was in drama class with Aya. She was introduced to Aya's new friends in the class, Jackie, Nick, and Collin. Jackie and Nick were freshmen and Collin was a junior. So out of the new group of friends Aya had in the class, she and Areiko were the only ones that were seniors (besides Britnay and Scott).
"Alright everyone," Ms. Randall – the drama teacher – shouted to everyone in the auditorium. "We're doing monologues today, and Areiko."
Areiko sat upright turning her head to look at Ms. Randall. "You're up first."
Areiko stood up and walked up to the stage. She turned and faced the small drama class. She then closed her eyes; once they were opened again she started to explain her monologue.
"I wrote this myself," Areiko began to explain. "If you don't get it, then fine. Because a lot of it you won't understand anyway."
Aya crossed her legs as she sat in between Jackie and Nick who had their eyes locked on Areiko. She then started:
"A lot of you people don't understand…" Areiko started as she began to pace on stage fiddling with her fingers. "None of them do. They all claim that they do. But in actual reality… they just don't. They don't know what its like to lose control. And they sure as hell don't know what its like to have your life ripped from your grip… twice. They claim that everyone will be all right. They claim that they can help me. But they can't."
As Areiko continued, Aya felt like this monologue was directed to her, Vegeta, and Goku. They all just wanted to help her really. She listened closely as Areiko continued.
"It's too late for me now. I'm so far down this road that I don't know if I want to stay here anymore. I may be better off alone. The only thing that can help me keep my sanity is my best friend… which is a silver little blade that cuts across my skin…"
Aya's eyes widened realizing that she had learned a lot from Areiko. She did write this herself. So it all must be true. Everyone in the class was either in tears or clapping because Areiko was that good. Areiko stepped off of the stage taking her seat in back of the auditorium. Aya looked back at her as she stood up and seated herself down next to her. Areiko kept her eyes locked on Jackie, who was up next.
"Areiko… what was that?" Aya asked her.
"What was what?" Areiko questioned afterwards turning her eyes onto Aya.
"Your monologue," Aya replied to her glancing at Jackie. "What was that all about?"
"I kinda figured that you would be the one to understand, since it was directed at you." Areiko said standing up. "I'm going to the nurse." Areiko turned walking away from Aya as she then approached Ms. Randall. Aya then watched her leave the class. Aya sighed annoyed as she leaned back into her chair. She placed her hand onto her face sighing once more shaking her head.
Soon school was over, and Areiko went over Aya's house since she was invited. They were seated in Aya's room with Britnay and Scott as they talked. But Areiko stayed silent. She then suddenly stood up and walked out of the room. Ata watched her as she then turned to Britnay and Scott.
"What the fuck?" Britnay said looking at Aya's bedroom door kind of funny.
"I'm going to go see where she went," Aya stated to her friends as she stood up off of the bed and left the room as well.
Areiko entered the bathroom. She closed the door and locked it behind her. She pressed the palm of her hand onto her forehead growling. She gripped the side of the sink as she looked up into the mirror. She opened her mouth spotting her fangs. She then looked down at her nails seeing her claws. Areiko then looked behind her at her tail to see it changing colors; it was going from brown to black.
"Shit!" Areiko swore gripping the sink even harder. Her head started to pound as she stood there. She clenched her eyes shut tightly trying to keep herself in control of the pain that was shooting through her skull at the moment.
"Areiko?"
Areiko's eyes snapped opened as she turned her head towards the door. "Reiko, you alright?"
"Yeah," Areiko answered. "I'm fine… just… leave me alone."
Aya blinked as she heard Areiko stumble around from within the bathroom. Aya shrugged her shoulders as she turned and walked away. Areiko clenched her eyes shut. She opened the medicine cabinet pulling out a pack of razors. She then ripped open the plastic cover dropping the rest of them into the sink or onto the floor. She went to seat herself onto the toilet, but she ended up falling onto the floor. Areiko pulled herself weakly towards the tub leaning against it.
Areiko looked at the razor. She really didn't want to do it. But she had too. She clenched her eyes shut placing the razor lightly onto her wrist. She breathed a few times before she begun. She pressed the blade into her skin, and with a quick movement, she slit her wrist open. Areiko breathed in through her gritted teeth allowed the pain to shoot through her arm.
The pain in her head started to disappear once she smelt the aura of her blood. Areiko closed her eyes and leaned her arm against the floor. She turned her eyes down onto her wrist and watched the blood trickle down the side of her wrist onto the floor.
"I can't feed it… not now…" Areiko said to herself slowly. She lifted her wrist up and parted her lips to feel her fangs with her fingers. She then started to suck on her wrist sinking her fangs into her flesh as she if was some type of vampire. Her body shuddered in delight as the blood entered her mouth slipping down her throat.
Aya returned to her bedroom to see Britnay and Scott sitting there still. Scott looked at Aya as she shut her door and seated herself back onto her bed.
"Did you find her?" Scott asked. Aya nodded her head.
"Yeah, I did. She's in the bathroom." Aya answered. Britnay looked to the side a little bit.
"Aya," Britnay started turning her head to look back at Aya, "I feel like something bad is about to happen."
"What?" Scott said looking at her. Britnay turned looked at her boyfriend grabbing onto his hand.
"I feel like something's wrong, or something bad is about to happen." Britnay stated again looking at her boyfriend and then at Aya.
"I feel it too." Aya said looking at her bedroom door. "And we all know that your feelings always end up being right."
Britnay nodded. Aya then stood up and looked at her friends. "I'll be right back, I'm going to go talk to Vegeta, see if he senses anything wrong."
Britnay and Scott nodded their heads as they watched Aya walk out of the room. Aya proceeded down the hallway, but she stopped right by the bathroom door to see that the light was still on and the door was still shut tightly. She didn't think anything of it. She then walked down the steps skipping the last five. She headed towards the backdoor and opening it. There she spotted little Bull and Pan playing with each other. Bulma, Chichi, and Videl were seated at the patio set talking and sipping coffee or whatever it was that they were drinking. Bulma looked passed Videl to see Aya standing at the doorway. She then placed a smile onto her face.
"Hey there Aya," Bulma greeted causing Chichi and Videl to look over. Aya smiled and nodded their heads towards them.
"Something wrong?" Videl asked turning in her chair to look at the eighteen year old fully. Bulla and Pan turned their heads looking at her. Aya then shook her head looking at Gohan's wife.
"No, I'm alright." Aya answered. "Bulma, is Vegeta still training?"
Chichi smirked leaning back into her seat. "When is he not?"
"When he's with his family or sleeping." Bulma answered. She then turned and looked at Aya again. "Yeah, he's still training."
Bulla and Pan stood up from their seats on the porch. They then ran towards Aya. Aya got down onto her knees opening her arms allowing Bulla and Pan ran full force into her arms. Aya obviously wasn't knocked over since she scooped up the two little girls and spun them.
Once she was freed from the little ones' grips, she walked down the back porch steps and came to the gravity room. Aya stopped by the door and knocked.
"Vegeta?" she called.
She waited a few minutes till someone came to the door. There stood Vegeta with a towel wrapped around his neck like always. He smirked looking down at Aya, but his smirk quickly disappeared once she saw how stressed she looked.
"What's wrong?"
"I just have a question." Aya said to him, "do you sense anything… wrong?"
Vegeta blinked, then he took a few minutes to open his sense. He stood there looking around a little bit. He then turned his eyes onto Aya shaking his head.
"No, why?" Vegeta asked her. Aya shrugged her shoulders. Even though she knew better then to shrug them at him. Because she knew that he doesn't take the gesture of shrugged shoulders as an answer.
"Aya," he started, "you know that's not an answer for me."
"Well, I was just curious." Aya answered looking at him.
"You sense that there's something wrong… don't you?"
Aya nodded, "a little." She then placed a grin onto her face. "But I'm sure it's nothing to be concerned with. If I get this feeling again, I'll let you know okay, Veggie?"
Vegeta just folded his arms across his chest nodding. He watched as Aya turned around and walked away entering the house. Right there and then he knew that she was keeping something from him. He would ask her about, but he decided that is this was truly bothering her, she would come to him about it.
Aya entered the house going back to her room where Britnay and Scott were seated waiting for her. They looked at her as she seated herself onto a beanbag in the corner of the room. Britnay turned her body looking at the short eighteen year old with curious looking eyes.
"So," Britnay started as Aya looked up at her. "Did he sense anything?"
Aya shook her head sighing. "Nope." She then turned her attention to the window. "Nothing at all."
"You serious?" Scott asked. Aya turned her head looking at him weirdly.
"I'm serious. Why would I lie to you guys anyway?" Aya asked him. Britnay turned her head looking at her boyfriend.
"She's got a point." Britnay stated getting his attention. "Aya's not one to like to us."
"But…" Scott was hesitant about saying this, but he said it anyway. "What about Reiko?
Aya and Britnay fell silent. Scott had asked them the right question. No one knew Areiko anymore. She was completely different. It was as if she wanted nothing to do with them. Like she wanted nothing to do with her past life before the situation with Orx had happened. The once cheerful and happy-go-lucky girl that they knew disappeared. Areiko was no longer that girl that shared her secrets with everyone. Areiko also, a few times during the week she's been back, has told everyone that if they could, she would want to be known as Lekira. Not as Areiko. And that wasn't her at all.
"Well," Aya started giving Scott an answer. "She might… considering we don't know her anymore."
"What do you mean by that?" Britnay asked looking at her. Aya sighed pushing herself up. She moved towards her dresser picking up a picture frame.
Inside the picture frame was herself, Areiko, Trunks, and Vegeta – who was forced into the picture – all of them with smiling faces, but Vegeta of course; he just did his usual smirk. Aya placed the picture down onto the top of the dresser turning her look at them.
"She's different now…" Aya said approaching her long-term friends. "She's no longer that happy-go-lucky kid that we used to know."
Britnay placed her hand onto Aya's shoulder. Aya looked at her when Britnay suddenly pulled her best friend into a hug. Scott then got off of the bed and approached them wrapped his own arms around the girls that he held so dear.
Areiko sat there on the bathroom floor staring at her wrist that continued to bleed. She sighed shakily looking at the fangs marks on the side of her wrist from her biting into her skin. She lifted up her other hand touching her teeth lightly. The fangs were gone, this pleased Areiko. This meant that she didn't have to go feed, like the other times.
"Good…" Areiko said to herself softly as she stood up. She walked to the medicine cabinet pulling it open once again. There she pulled out some bandages after she placed the razors back onto the shelf. She then began to wrap up her wrists as she looked at her clothing to see traces of blood on her shirt. But they were just little marks, something that couldn't be seen unless you were looking for it.
She didn't worry to much about her clothing, but her wrist… that was a different matter. Everyone would ask her what happened. Sp she decided not to care. She then unlocked the door and turn off the light. Once she had entered the hallway, she heard someone calling her from down the hall.
"Yo Reiko!" Came Trunks's voice. Areiko turned around holding her hands behind her back to hide her wrist. "What's up?"
"Nothing." Areiko answered sternly. "What do you want?"
Trunks blinked, wondering why Areiko was so hostile towards him. "I was just going to ask if you could teleport me to your house."
Areiko growled mentally. She didn't have the time to be teleported people around. Trunks sensed something coming from her. He backed away raising his hands into the air defensively.
"But if you don't want too… I understand." Trunks quickly added to his question.
Areiko rolled her eyes. "No, it's fine." She said to him. "Grab on." Areiko held out her arms, the one that wasn't slit. Trunks was hesitant at first. "Are you going to take my hand or what!"
Trunks jumped. He then took her hand. Areiko then teleported off reappearing in the living room of the Son House, where she lived. Standing in the kitchen doing dishes (for once) was Goku. He blinked sensing two people in the house other then himself and his youngest son Goten. He turned his head to see Areiko and Trunks standing there in the living room, he grinned.
"Hey there guys," he greeted with a smile on his face. Trunks smiled back entering the kitchen.
"He Goku, is Goten around?"
Areiko pushed herself passed Trunks and Goku entering her room. She shut the door and locked it, gaining the attention of both the saiyans in the kitchen.
Goku then slowly turned his head and eyes onto Trunks and nodded, "yeah, he's in his room playing video games like always."
Trunks smiled. "Thanks." Trunks then disappeared up the stairs. Goku blinked approaching Areiko's bedroom door. He wiped his wet hands on his pants and then knocked on the door.
"Reiko?"
"Go away!" Areiko bellowed from the other side of her door. Goku lowered his eyebrows sensing the hostility in her voice. Goku then placed his ear onto the door and began speaking again.
"Reiko you okay?"
The door shook, as if Areiko punched it knowing Goku was listening on the other side. "I said go away!"
Goku jumped backing away from the door. Goku glanced to the side turning around. "Must be that time of the month…" he then walked away entering the kitchen once more.
Areiko was standing on the other side of her door. She was clenching her fists and breathing hard. She didn't punch the door actually, she knew that for a fact since she wasn't standing anywhere near it. Suddenly, she began to get frightened. She turned around making her back face the door. She looked down at her wrist to see that blood seeped through the bandages that were covering her self-inflicted wound.
Areiko shook her head, "this can't be happening… damnmit!" She seated herself onto her bed gripping her hair. "Not now… I just fed you not that long ago…" Areiko's gasping began to turn into a low growl. "Shit!" She shouted quickly turning to open her bedroom window.
"Reiko?" Came Goku's voice again.
Areiko snapped her head towards the door. "You alright?"
"I'm fine! Leave me along for the last goddamn time!" Areiko leapt out the window and ran off entering the woods hoping that Goku wouldn't find a way to unlock her door and enter her room to find her missing.