Hey folks, Naintarlow here, with a new chapter.
What's this? Me posting an update not after a whole year but just barely a month later? Is that a miracle? Well, consider it one. I am trying to update more frequently but I make no promises for that. Let's hope for the best, I say.
I don't have much else to say. It's a Moka centric chapter, which was a bit of a challenge nad in the end, still have a few weaker points but overall it was fun to play with per perspective, show a bit of a changing dynamic, hint a few things that will come up in the future and most importantly, we also have best boi, Itadaki. He is the real MVP of the chapter, I tell you.
On a more serious note, one more chapter to wrap up the Mizore introduction 'arc' and finally we are ready to jump to the really meaty part of the story. The thing I have been preparing for, well for over three years actually. Damn, time flies like nothing else. Meanwhile I realized that this year this story will be four years old….which is not something I was ready to notice.
Well my approaching midlife crisis aside, hope you guys enjoy this chapter. I will try to update soonish but I make no promises. As usual your comments and opinions are welcome, so feel free to share them.
Nain out.
Chapter 23 Standing on her own
Cover: Omote Moka, dressed in a baseball uniform holding up a shiny, metal bat, with a focused look on her face as she prepares to bat. In front of her, Ura Moka, in a similar uniform stands with a ball in her hand, in the middle of a throwing motion. Behind Omote, Tsuna, dressed in a catcher's clothes getting ready to catch the ball. Tsukune, Kurumu, Yukari, Lambo and Itadaki standing among the spectators with Gin running away from Haiji in a security uniform
She is not going to get a break, is she?
"Good Morning, Moka-Chan."
Moka let out a quiet yelp at the sudden greeting, more to disguise the shiver that ran up her back than due to any kind of surprise. After all, Inui Junya didn't make any effort to hide his presence. Rather, with his loud footsteps, the smugness practically radiating from him and his smile that screamed sleazy, he tended to generate attention around himself.
It wasn't the positive kind, not that he showed any sort of problem with it. He was just one of those people that loved all kinds of attention, lapping it up and feeding it to their ego, no matter the source or intent behind it.
The students around her didn't help things though. It was clear to her what they thought of him, the disgust and repulsion clear on their faces but only when he wasn't looking. Whenever Inui's turned toward, the glares and half-hearted grimaces faded away, eyes on the floor, faces carefully blank. No one dared to say anything to his face, not even behind his back in fear of retaliation.
Such was the fear and terror that the name vampire awoke.
The fearsome reputation of her species was not at all uncalled for. She would know firsthand how prideful and arrogant most vampires could be, even if she was less true in that respect. It was something that followed her all through life, even here at school, though at least it was less noticeable thanks to the friends she found, who saw her as Moka first and vampire second.
The very same friends, that she would go to great lengths to keep safe from harm. Well safe from more harm than what they already were on a daily basis.
"Good morning to you too, Inui-san," she replied with an uneasy smile, fingers entangled together to stop herself from forming a fist as she felt a wave of so far unprecedented anger as her fellow vampire approached her.
He, of course, hasn't noticed the barely hidden malice in her voice, or at least hasn't reacted to it at all. Instead, he approached her, coming far too close to her liking, his smile only widening and raising more and more of the shackles inside her she didn't even know existed before meeting him. After all, he had 'nothing' to fear from her, as her only fellow peer as a vampire.
How she hated that pretentiousness. A vampire should be high above common folks, a vampire is judged by their strength, by their underlings, by their deeds, and by the company they keep. A vampire should not show weakness, and should not allow others to think they are their equal. A vampire shouldn't have lesser people as friends, at most stepping stones or pawns. At least that's what she was taught back home, by her father, by that woman if she felt like acknowledging her existence and her family as a whole.
She genuinely hated it. That's why she was glad to be at school away from them, so glad to be away from the judging eyes, away from that ridiculously high standard that barely even mattered. Here, she could be herself, she could be with people she wanted to be, not with whom she expected to be. Here she could be Akashiya Moka, both parts of herself, rather than 'a vampire.
Well, at least it was the case, before Inui's sudden appearance and the remainder of those stupid, outdated rules.
"Now, now. You don't have to be so formal with me Moka-chan, just call me Junya. We are friends after all." the bastard said with a smile that showed too many teeth, along with his elongated fangs, as if to further show off his identity or rather to remind her, especially what he was, while also snaking his arm around his shoulders.
It had the unintentional effect of pulling her out of her thoughts and reminding her where she was.
It told a lot of how little she cared or even thought of him, that she could forget his very existence, even if he was standing next to her. The muted laugh in her ears told her Ura thought roughly the same.
It was rather nice when the two of them were on the same page. Rare as it was, she felt closer to Ura at times like these.
"I will try my best to remember that Inui-san," she responded when it looked like he was waiting for an answer, the smile on her face straining from the effort of keeping it up.
It became harder to keep it on as the arm around her tightened, as a warning of once again calling him by his last name but she could hardly care less. It took all of her willpower not to push him away in pure disgust, her entire body, no, her entire existence wanting nothing but to get away from him as far as she could.
She was slightly off-guard by her own rather violent reaction to him. After all, while not a pleasant fellow, he has yet to do anything to her, other than implying things and using her friends as leverage against her. Not even around Gin, who sometimes weirded her out, and made her feel a bit apprehensive, never felt such a reaction.
Suddenly, as if snapping out of a trance, she found that they veered off the main path, stepping into one of the less frequented ones, coincidentally leaving behind the chattering student body and finding themselves alone.
It was both a good and a bad thing. Good because she didn't want everyone to watch her with rapid eyes to see what happened next, bad because her newfound resolve shook at the sudden change. She wanted a bit more time.
"Get hold of yourself." Ura reprimanded her, giving her a much-needed grounding. She didn't know what she would do without her.
Probably would be in this exact situation but without friends to go back to and a resolve to make that happen. She shuddered to think what it would mean to her. Which only made it easier for her to realize, it was time to act.
"Let me go." the words came out more of a growl as her eyes dared at that infuriating grin, trying to look the most intimidating that she could pull off.
She hoped that it came out better, compared to when she was practicing in front of her mirror. Her other self definitely enjoyed pointing out that rather than scary, she looked rather adorable with cheeks puffed up as a chipmunk. The commentary was not appreciated at all.
Well, it either worked or her standing up for herself was surprising enough that Inui's hold on her loosened, enough to allow her to wrench herself from him, taking several steps away from the male. Her arms instinctively wrapping around herself, she decided to take it as a win either way.
She still kept up with the glare, lest Inui tries to get close to her once again, something which she would rather avoid. His sheer presence and the leer at her body, which he barely even tried to hide, made her extremely uncomfortable.
"What's the problem, Moka-chan? Don't tell me you are shy." Inui joked, his smile still in its place even as he jokingly raised his hands in an attempt to show he didn't mean any harm."It's just the two of us, no need to be embarrassed."
As if. It was because they were alone that she wanted to be as far from him as possible.
He seemed to sense that there was no point keeping up with the charade because his face soured as he lowered his hands. He stepped closer to her, face set in a rather annoyed line but stopped after only one step, apparently her glare still enough to give him pause.
Guess those hours trying to practice it was worth it, after all, Ura's amusement notwithstanding.
"Don't you dare touch me ever again." she practically growled, the vehemence shocking her so much that she almost snapped out of her rage. Out of the two of them, she was the least likely to straight up growl or act on any physical violence.
There was a mirroring look of shock on the other vampire's face before all of it was pushed below a scowl as he looked at her, something told her that Inui was starting to finally take her seriously. Not that she wanted to deal with him at all but some sacrifices were needed.
"Don't you think you are being unreasonable, Moka-chan?" he asked, voice low and dangerous, and maybe a day or two ago, it would have made her reconsider herself but not now. She was done with this.
"I can be as reasonable as I want to be, thank you very much." she snapped back, continuing to feel surprisingly brave and outspoken for herself.
"Oh, come on, don't be like that." Inui tried to act reasonable, his arms waving around himself to express his agitation."You know as well as I do, that only other vampires can be worthy of the company of a vampire such as us. You don't want the older families to get word of you consorting with people of less worthy blood. Make it easier for both of us and stop resisting."
Instead of scaring her, the words all but exploded her already simmering anger. Moka found herself outright growling, her fangs on full display and a moment away from simply jumping on Inui and biting into his throat like a simple-minded animal. Couldn't even find herself disgusted with the strange instinct that all but demanded satisfaction.
Vampires, vampires, vampires. It was always stupid vampires. All her life, that one word always followed her, and while she was proud and happy to be a vampire at times, just as many times she wanted to be anything but that.
Their stupid traditions made her family all that much colder, and her childhood lonely after the death of her mother. It was because she was a vampire that a seal was placed on her, making her as close to defenseless unless Tsuna was around to free Ura. It was because of vampires and their stupid reputation that she always feared her friends, both human, and youkai would leave her one day. And now she was forced to all but sever all contact with them because of stupid vampires and their stupid vampire traditions?
She finally had enough.
"I. Don't. Care. About. Any. Of. This." she growled out, body tensing and a small surge of power running through her. Something that should have been impossible with the rosary and its seal was intact but she didn't pay that any more mind.
Inui fearfully stepped back, unable to meet her gaze properly, acting thoroughly intimidated by her. That might have been another important thing to note since any proper vampire worth their salt should have realized she was supposed to be all but powerless with her seal on, not someone of any real threat.
But she was too far angry and even Ura stayed surprisingly silent, not uttering even a word as Outer uncharacteristically exploded.
If she took the time to calm down a little or managed to get her hands on a mirror, she would have noticed the rosary twitching in agitation, wretched in purple, chaotic, and wild flames that somehow did not burn her, rather it seemed to seep into her body. She would have noticed the purer, calmer orange hues on the edges of the flames that slowly but surely disappeared, the ends of her hair turning slightly silver and her eyes flashing in angry, vampire red.
If anyone other than Inui was there to witness this, they would have had questions, theories, and other ideas. But with Moka none the wiser and the rest of her friend group otherwise occupied, this event would fade away unnoticed.
Yet it still opened, opening a door that otherwise would have been closed for a long while.
"Now, now Moka-chan. Try to be reasonable." clearly nervous, Inui tried to talk to her with a shaky smile on his face, even as he unconsciously continued to back away. It was clear who was in power between them.
But unfortunately for him, Moka was past the point of talking. The melancholy caused by this new situation, the pain of not being able to meet her friends as well as old scars brought up by the whole situation was more than the cheerful vampire could take.
Hands balled into a fist, she took another step, ready to make Inui back off, by force if necessary. If her mind was clearer, she would have tried harder to talk about it, make Inui see reason or at least put the fear of god into him through words instead of fists but alas her patience was too frayed right now.
"Excuse me. I'm sorry for making you wait." a cheerful voice suddenly cried out, right next to them, instantly destroying the rather tense air.
Moka let out a high-pitched yelp in surprise, almost falling on her face at the interruption, her concentration lost. Consequently, her rosary, eyes, and hair returned to normal at the same moment. Similarly, Inui was also in a state of shock, jaw slack and eyes comically wide, destroying the handsome air about him that he always tried to project.
Standing just to the side, with a big smile on his face and customary man-sized box resting next to him, was Itadaki of the Post Office club. Despite the rather early hour, he seemed awake and even had a small sheet of sweat on his forehead, evidence of Itadaki starting his club activities early.
Moka absentmindedly wondered if he was ever not doing deliveries or if he was going to class in the postman uniform too. Maybe he was doing his homework on his way to deliveries too.
"Itadaki-san." A moment later she remembered her manners, sending a wave to her fellow first-year, even though came out more distracted than cheerful. From the corner of her eyes, she saw Inui gape at her, a wariness filling him as he eyed Itadaki.
"What is a member of the Post Office doing here?" he asked in a low voice, body unnaturally tense. If Moka's earlier anger made him tense, he looked outright terrified at the appearance of Itadaki for some reason.
Apparently oblivious to the wary tone and the whole tense situation altogether, Itadaki answered with a cheerful wave as he tried to get his breath back. He must have been pushing himself a bit, his otherwise immaculate appearance was much more haphazard, hair sticking out at places and sweat covering his entire face.
"Sorry Moka-chan, today's deliveries ran a little long and there was a case of a few misplaced packages, so there was enough chaos that I only now picked up your order." He rambled apologetically, even as he started hopping from one leg to the other, not staying still for a moment."Please forgive me. I can take a detour and drop them down at your room if you would like." He offered.
Despite Tsuna's recent exploits to abuse the ever-so-diligent Post Office for hidden surprises for his plans, Moka was introduced to them much more early, on the very first day of school. It was because of her own needs as a vampire, the herbs and minerals necessary for her to enjoy a quick bath as well as delivering a few of her things from home, that would have been harder to move by herself.
Because of that, it didn't take too long to convince herself to enable their help in her little plan, she just only needed lucky timing for it to work. It was something she learned from Tsuna, to be prepared to turn the tables in her favor whenever it was possible.
"No worries, Itadaki-san." she replied a beat later, a more genuine smile on her face." in fact, you just came at the perfect moment….what are you doing?" she asked suddenly, trailing off with a tilt of her head.
Itadaki didn't stop at all, continuing to hop in one place, even as he seemed to be on the verge of falling over, clearly exhausted. At a closer look, she also noticed weights on both his wrist and ankles, weights that suspiciously looked like those Tsuna used to train their group, as well as a large and bulky collar on the young man's neck, which she was certain was no fashion statement.
"Ah, about that…" he said with a sheepish laugh raising his hand to scratch the back of his head but the weights seemed to have messed up with the finesse of his movements.
In short, he ended up punching himself in the face, the shock of it enough for him to lose his balance midjump and promptly fall on his back.
"Itadaki-kun," she called out worriedly, stepping toward him to check on him when she got another surprise.
Electricity sparked in the collar the young man wore, and a moment later visible arcs of it ran through his body, causing spasms and from the pained look on his face, not a small amount of pain. With a simple groan, he pulled himself up in record time, acting as if he did not just punch himself, and then got shocked by an amount Moka was pretty sure was harmful. And then he started hopping in one place again.
"I'm alright," he said cheerily, even as his face was still fixed in a grimace of pain and his hands occasionally spasmed.
Moka frowned, clearly he was anything but alright. But he also knows boys and their stupid pride, forbidding them to give any show of weakness even when their bodies were at their limit already. God knows she had seen Tsuna and Tsukune do that more than enough times. Because of that, she knew she had to try another angle.
"What's with that collar on your neck?" she asked instead, though part of her already dreaded the answer because she had a really good suspicion of the source.
"This? Tusna-san gave it to me when I asked for help in my training." he confirmed with a bright smile, even as he started jogging in one place."Along with the weights, the collar is set in a way that if I stop moving even for a second, it will give me a large jolt of electricity to remind me to continue moving. It is an ingenious idea and I have to thank Tsuna-san for lending me when I voiced doubts about my stamina being able to keep up with my upperclassmen." he helpfully explained, missing the small frown on the girl's face."It was really nice of him."
Of course, it was, she thought a tad sarcastically, not at all fazed by Tsuna or the extreme training methods he employed. Extreme, even by monster standards she meant, but at least he always seemed to know just how far he can push somebody.
She was honestly afraid of what his own training must have been like, considering Tsuna by his own admission started out as a normal human just like Tsukune, and his training regimens were heavily inspired by his mentor. The only solace she had was that he seemed to take it easier on her compared to her others.
If that was because he had a soft spot for her, in regards to her rosary or his view of her capabilities was another matter entirely that she didn't feel like pondering.
"Well as long as you are okay with it," she replied in the end, the smile on her face a bit shaky but the enthusiastic nod Itdakai answered told her he was perfectly okay with it.
Just then a rather pitiful voice spoke up, reminding her that they were not alone and with it, the peaceful if incredulous moment ended much to her sadness.
"Are you guys completely insane?" Inui asked from a safe distance, giving both Moka and Itadaki wary and downright fearful looks.
The formerly confident-looking man was pale as a ghost, using his hand to support himself on a nearby tree. He gaped at them with wide eyes, and if she saw it right, even his knees seemed to be shaking. His 'roguish' windswept hair lost its form, looking more like a very bad case of bed hair with hair sticking into various directions.
His previous composure seemed to go right outside the window.
Straightening up, Moka fought against the frown on her face as she observed her so-called vampire brethren. Looking at him now, compared to before was like day and night but most importantly, the way she regarded him was so much different. This time, she barely even managed to drag a small part of her earlier rage, despite nothing having been resolved.
Honestly, she forgot about him.
It was quite eye-opening, honestly. Earlier all she could think of was him and the predicament he put her in, threatening her friends with his mere presence. She honestly resented him, the underhanded way he forced her to interact with him, under the pretense of tradition.
Yet it only took the arrival of Itadaki, the remainder of Tsuna and all the constant trouble her group of friends attracted on a daily basis, as well as the secrets Tsuna hoarded, the dangers it involved, and how deep her own involvement was already, for her to completely switch priorities. And with those priorities, she came to a startling realization.
Inui simply didn't even register as something worth paying attention to.
Sure, his threat that older, prouder vampires might target her friends for simply being around was not without merit. But unless she was up to their face about it, it wouldn't be anything too big. Maybe a few upperclassmen connected to said vampires sent after them, or worse a lower-level assassin or two. Not strong enough to pose any real backlash on the one sent to them, especially since they wouldn't believe she and her friends would be worth the trouble.
But the thing was, they were already dealing with these things. With strange assassins after Tsuna, Tsukune's ability to seemingly pick fights with stronger and stronger people without meaning to, and all the weird shenanigans her friends caused, it wouldn't be anything out of the norm. It was something she didn't consider before.
She was so focused on not being the cause of trouble for her friends, that she simply didn't consider the most obvious things. That her friends were the sort of people who wouldn't look at her differently for it, nor would they care about the extra trouble. Heck, knowing Tsuna, he would use the situation as extra training for them.
The laughable threat of a forgettable, lukewarm worm of a wanna-be vampire was not something any of them would have concerned themselves with. It was not something she should have treated as anything worth worrying about it.
She absently noted that her thoughts were strangely mirroring the things she imagined Ura would say about it.
"I'm not a forgettable worm." Inui suddenly snapped back, face reddening in anger but he still hadn't let go of the tree, making it a somewhat comical sight. That and his knees were clearly trembling.
Moka offered a slow blink in bewilderment after a moment, realization hitting her. She didn't mean saying her thoughts out loud, no matter how true they were.
"Right." was all she said in response. Giving a small shake of her head to clear it, she turned back to Itadaki."Itadaki-kun, do you have my packages with you?"
"Of course. Here they are." the young man answered cheerily, even as he started squatting with great vigor, not stopping even as he opened the massive container he tended to take with him everywhere, pulling out one item at a time.
Moka was used to such weirdness, and even worse, didn't even blink at this. Meanwhile, Inui gaped at them, though if it was because of being ignored so easily or the ridiculousness of the situation, was anybody's guess.
"Here are your weekly set of herbal salts, the imported tea leaves as well of your magazines, and, um, your hygiene products." Itadaki blushed heartily at the last one as he put the small boxes on the ground, along with the few magazines Moka had ordered.
It was quite impressive that he didn't pause his exercises the whole time, nor did he juggle or drop anything.
"You don't know how easy you guys are making my life," Moka said with clear relief in her voice. The reliable service of the Post Office Club was the sole reason she could bathe every day without having to worry about the water weakening or even killing her, ever since school started. "What about my special order?" she asked, both anxious and eager at the same time.
"It was a bit trickier but never underestimate our club. 'There is no package we cannot deliver.' says our motto." Itadaki replied rather proudly, managing to pull out a long, and large misshapen package from the depth of his massive box, which seemed even deeper than its outside would suggest, even as he switched to a one-handed stand and started doing push-ups with the same vigor he always displayed.
"I'm so glad. I knew my order was a bit last minute so I wasn't sure it would arrive on time." Moka took the package with a bright smile, almost unconsciously testing its weight and finding it just right. Not like she expected anything else.
Ripping away the wrapping around it, Moka eagerly opened her package revealing a metal baseball bat of all things. It had a silvery, reflective surface and a red, possibly metal grip. As Moka pulled it out and made a few half-hearted practice swings with it, it seemed to have made for her height in mind, complimenting her perfectly.
"It seems perfect. Thank you Itadaki-kun." she thanked him with a sincere smile, clutching the object close to her chest in an affectionate manner.
"We at the Post Office are here to serve," Itadaki replied earnestly. if a tad practiced before his smile turned a bit shier. "It was a pleasure, Moka-san. It is always a nice break when I have to deliver to you and your friends. Keeps me pretty entertained too." he admitted without a shred of shame.
"Well, I am glad we can entertain you." Moka playfully rolled her eyes, not at all insulted by the words.
After all, she also had the most fun, whenever the newspaper club hung out together. There was never a dull moment with them.
"Now, then." her smile disappeared as she straightened up and turned her eyes to the side. While her glare lacked its earlier strength, it was quite frosty as far as the usually bubbly girl was concerned. "I seem to remember we had an unresolved conversation, just now." her voice was deceptively neutral as she regarded Inui, though it was impossible to miss how her hands tightened on her newly acquired weapon.
While Inui did gulp loudly at the attention, it seemed the little byplay was enough for him to gather his courage back. He stepped away from his support, trying to puff his chest out and act as if he wasn't shaken by the previous few minutes but his pale face and slightly trembling hands betrayed him.
Still, a part of Moka begrudgingly could admire how he still smiled at her, as if he was still in complete control of the situation and her just a dumb damsel, ready to be told what to do.
Naive, incredibly foolish, and just a tad sexist. But still, if he would get scored for his acting, he would get a few pity points for at least trying.
"Now, now, don't be hasty, Moka-chan. We do not want you to do anything you might regret," he said, trying to put on a handsome smile but clearly failing. If she was honest with herself, she didn't find him particularly handsome in the first place.
Run of the mill, ordinary, easily forgettable. Those descriptions seemed to suit him better in her mind.
"I mean, it would be awful if information about your little… riff-raff group of friends got out, right?" he asked, a definitive edge in his voice, or at least he tried to make it sound intimidating. With her now clearer mind, Moka had to hold back a snort."I wouldn't think the noble houses of vampires would allow you to taint our species' great name like that. So why don't we help each other out? Unless you want something to happen to them?"
It might have worked on her a few minutes ago. To Moka, who felt guilty about causing trouble for her friends, who secretly feared them leaving her, of ostracizing her, just like people did in middle school. Her mind knew they would not do that, but it was a completely different thing to convince her heart.
Her sudden clarity, while welcome, was also something surprising and confusing at the same time. Moka felt like something changed with her, as if something that was repressed, or maybe sealed away came to the front, and with it, her perception changed slightly. It allowed her to look at this whole situation and just see how stupid she was being. How little faith she had in her friends.
It also showed how utterly pathetic Inui and his attempts were.
That was why, instead of cowing like the boy expected or at least hoped, Moka sent him an unimpressed glare as she lazily swung her newly acquired hammer in front of her.
"I. Do. Not Fucking. Care." she growled out, the low voice coming out of her throat taking even herself back a little, before she simply shrugged to herself and discarded it.
From the side, she missed Itadaki gaping at her slightly. It was a universally known fact that Akashiya Moka, at least her more reserved and kinder personality, simply did not swear. People would sooner think her vampire self would do it than her but she didn't particularly care about that right now.
To tell the truth, even though she should have been a bit more weirded out by these changes but as much as she felt different, it was also not a bad difference. She felt as if she was more than before, as if she belonged to herself even more than before. She felt small drops of power, a power that the seal should have sealed away, slowly filling her, and it took all of her to keep herself on task and not get lost in the feeling.
It was intoxicating.
"Moka-chan? Please be careful about the consequences of your actions." Inui looked pale, hands twitching as she stared at him, slowly realizing how little his threat seemed to work.
It was amusing how easily his confidence shattered, time and time again and still, he tried to act as if he was still her better. Something deep inside surged forward in Moka, demanding her to crush the insect before him, showing him true might as life left his eyes. For daring to stand up to her, the voice whispered, nothing but total destruction and agony should be rewarded.
Denying that voice, and keeping the newly discovered bloodlust of hers in check was a bit harder than she would have liked to admit but she managed it in the end. Itadaki's presence was likely a huge factor.
"Oh, I am thinking carefully," she responded, a bit slowly. Thankfully it didn't seem her internal struggle showed on her face, hence why Inui was still rooted in place."And the only thing I care that I will never again allow a worm like you to threaten my friends. Especially not so you could just use me as some kind of trophy to show around."
Because in the end, that was all it was. Inui wanted her, or at the very least wanted her image, and was ready to threaten her into submission. But, he seemed to forget one core aspect of their culture.
The only thing Yokai respected was strength. If he wanted her to submit, he had to prove his strength, something she realized he utterly lacked.
Moka knew she was by no means strong. Not with her seal still on, not with her naive and shy disposition. But now she realized that what she lacked, Inui lacked just as much. Otherwise, why was he simply standing there, his body all but screaming he wanted to run away? Why, when he was supposed to be a vampire just like her, one without even a seal hindering him?
She knew she was weak. That's why she decided to do something against it. By taking on Tsuna's training, she could never be defenseless until Tsuna could get there to take her rosary off. By ordering her custom bat, made of metal only known to some really isolationist youkai, which allowed her to channel her meager amount of youkai energy to it and release it.
It was something she learned from her younger sister, who by her age alone was weaker than the rest of her siblings and compensated with the use of weaponry. It's something she learned from Tsuna, who as a human was already at a disadvantage, to use any tool available to her. To come out and win.
She knew it wouldn't be enough to bridge the gap between herself and Ura. She knew she would still need to rely on her vampire self and her friends for the most part. Strangely she was alright with that.
Because while that gap still existed, for the first time since she could remember, she made a move to close it. She no longer wanted to be the powerless and naive part of their personality that had to be constantly protected and looked after. She wanted them to be equaled.
More than anything, she wanted to prove that she did matter. That she existed, for more than a damsel to be constantly saved. Someone who could stand on their own two feet.
And right now, she knew that she was stronger than Inui. If not in pure power, then in spirit. And she was done lying down and taking everything.
"M-Moka?" Inui called out to her as she stepped closer, the grip on her hammer tightening as she came to a decision. Or rather, she simply decided that she let him sweat enough and it was time to end it.
"I will only say this one time." She stated in a low voice, emboldened by her newfound courage and anger. It gave strength to her steps, never faltering as she closed the distance between them."Leave my friends alone!"
In response, Inui steadily retreated but eventually, his back hit one of the many trees around. Feeling cornered, his uneasy expression turned into one of anger.
"I won't be spoken like that by an air-headed bitch who thinks she is so much better," he growled, the wind slightly picking up as he released his power and transformation. "Women like you are only good to smile, and look good, while hanging on to me and for a quick fuck. Nothing more. Just because you think you are a hotshot vampire, don't you dare look down on me." he roared, raising his fist in anger. Despite that, he hadn't dared to make the first strike, even now.
'Misogynist much?' she thought a bit snidely, not at all intimated by the supposed show of power.
She saw many truly strong people release their power and had an approximate idea of her own, of Ura's, power and she held little doubt that Inui failed to come up to them. Heck, many times, even the weather turned slightly when a truly strong Youkai released their power, while all he managed to do was cause a bit of wind.
And she wouldn't fall over from just a little wind that managed to push her hair a little.
"Is that all?" she asked in a disinterested tone, in a perfect way she was sure Ura would have been proud of. Come to think of it, her other half was strangely silent through all of this.
Overall, Inui didn't change too much. His muscles bulked up, in a way that looked unnatural, shredding the clothes on his upper body, and his skin took a slightly gray tint. Spike-like bulges appeared around his neck and shoulder blades. His former slightly handsome face contorted, both in rage and due to the transportation, the skin stretching through his face in an ugly way, as if the skin dried up and was not enough to properly cover his face.
It was anything but impressive.
Inui aggressively flexed his hands, growling lowly in his throat at the casual dismissal. It seemed that anger and rage replaced his earlier fear and hesitation, his eyes showing no intent of hesitating anymore. Yet, it didn't change the fact that it failed to spark any sense of fear or anxiety in the young woman.
'Was this the man I was so afraid of?' she thought, fighting the small frown on her face. Looking back she could sort of understand why she did what she did, why she allowed him to dictate who she spent time with. She could understand yes. But for the life of her, she couldn't tell why she decided to bother with it in the first place.
After all, this world of theirs was built on strength and power, no matter how people liked to tell it differently.
"I will show you where you belong. With me." Inui yelled as he charged, or rather lumbered forward, arms outstretched as if he was meant to hug her or something. By the looks of it, he had enough of being on the back foot, especially after she 'refused' to be intimidated by his true form.
"As if." she snarled, her hackles rising at the thought of this pathetic waste trying to do anything to her body.
She put both of her hands on the handle of her bat, pouring what little power she had into the metal. Even though she expected it to be not a minuscule amount, since this weapon was specially designed to amplify the power put into it, she almost staggered as she felt the weapon literally cackling from the youkai energy put into it.
Unnoticed by her, her rosary once again started acting up. The eye in the center, which represented Ura watching the outside world dimmed, almost disappearing, and purple sparks started to fall from the point the rosary connected to the choker. She also failed to notice Itadaki freezing up for a fraction of a second, sending her seal a cautious look.
She saw none of it because she focused her attention on the charging man. She didn't feel scared or anxious, rather, she could almost say she was looking forward to it. To show she was not a weak girl, always to be saved, her statement to this cruel world.
"Know your place." she snarled, the iconic phrase of her other self without hesitation or given thought, swinging her baseball bat, just when Inui came close enough.
The weapon, filled with youkai energy, came swinging much faster than anyone would have thought. Inui barely had time to widen his eyes, before said bat caved his face in. With an explosive gust of wind, the larger man was sent flying backward just as quickly as he charged in.
Moka closed her eyes, wincing as the Inui-shaped projectile crashed into the tree at the edge of the treeline….and kept going. Three whole trees were felled, causing quite a bit of commotion and noise, before he stopped. Miraculously, none of the trees fell on him, as he lay pronely in the shade of one of the larger, still-standing trees.
Moka almost slumped down as her earlier burst of power disappeared without much fanfare. With the energy, her more negative emotions and bloodlust abated, leaving her strangely exhausted, but in a good way.
Then she looked over the destruction she caused and she felt the urge to rub the back of her head as a sheepish laugh escaped her.
"Oops. Guess I overdid it a little," she said, carefully lowering her bat, careful not to cause any more collateral damage. As unlikely as it was.
She looked at Itadaki, who remained silent during the whole exchange, yet also didn't leave either. While she didn't pay attention, he pulled out a jump rope from somewhere and started jumping without a care in the world.
Feeling slightly out of her breath, Moka soon looked away, uncertain of what to do. Finally, she steeled herself, raising her bat again and slowly approaching the prone Inui. It was to make sure he was okay, that he was only knocked out, she told herself.
Even to herself, it didn't ring as true as she would have liked.
She had to hide a wince as she properly looked at Inui. While she didn't harbor any positive feelings towards him due to Inui basically blackmailing her, she was also an inherently kind soul whose first response wasn't usually violence. Seeing her 'handy work' firsthand was a new and not entirely welcome experience.
Inui did indeed lose his consciousness, she affirmed to herself. Strangely enough, he returned to his human form for some reason but he was out cold. The entire left side of his face was a large, throbbing bruise, while his body was battered from his impromptu impersonation of a battering ram, his left leg periodically twitching for some reason.
That and he was mumbling something under his breath, that sounded suspiciously close to Mommy. Her face went blank as she decided to ignore the whole thing and not think about it in any manner.
Even so, Moka felt a weight fall down from her as she stepped away, a small smile playing on her lips. It was over. She won.
"It's over" she murmured happily. Part of her felt a bit cheated as if it was over too easily. But at the same time, she was thankful that one swing was all it took.
"Not bad." Ura's voice came grudgingly, a rare note of respect in it. She sounded a bit faint as if she was speaking from far away, which was a bit impossible. "But don't get too cocky, this guy was a small fry among small fry. You got lucky that he was this weak." there was no mistaking the disdain in her voice directed toward Inui.
"Ura-chan?" she found herself calling out to her other half, questioningly looking at her rosary. "You were silent for a long time." she noted, brows furrowing in thought.
She was right, her other self who usually didn't miss an opportunity to voice her opinions, was unusually silent during her confrontation with Inui. Even now, she sounded like she wasn't there completely, or at least wasn't paying her full attention to their conversation. Which was strange in itself.
What else could she have done in that seal of hers?
That line of thought, though, made Moka think a little. For her, whenever the seal was removed she just simply went to sleep, and the same was true for Ura until recently. But with more and more trouble happening around them, her other self slowly awakened little by bit.
Nowadays, she seemed much more attentive to their lives, outside when she was called forth by Tsuna removing the seal but what could she do when she simply got bored? Did she have something to occupy herself with, or was Ura simply alone with nothing to do? Maybe standing in a blank, white space with nothing and no one anywhere, save for the opening in the seal that allowed them to interact with each other.
The thought made Omote unusually guilty.
She herself knew she would be mad, if she had nothing to do, other than look outside, seeing her friends interacting with each other but having no way to communicate with them, save for one person. The more she thought about it the sadder she became, and the more she felt for her other self's plight.
At that moment, she decided to find a way to look into how that seal of hers worked and come up with a solution for either Ura to have more freedom or better 'accommodations' at least.
"You didn't notice it?" was her other self's incredulous response that snapped her out of her thoughts. She sounded tired, dare she say, weak. "How could you-? Never mind. Let's just say I had faith that you could deal with trash like that without me backseat driving." she responded in the end, a sort of resignation in her voice.
"What do you mean?" she asked back, inwardly giggling at the strange metaphor her other self used. Before meeting Tsuna and the others, she couldn't have imagined her proud and a bit stuck-up inner self using words like that.
At the glare coming from her rosary, she tried to look innocent. Apparently, Ura heard her last thought despite her effort not to think it too strongly.
"Sometimes you are strangely observant, yet completely airheaded at every other time." was what Ura said in the end, sounding as if she was lamenting her life choices. Her Omote's intelligence by the sound of it.
Before she could answer, Itadaki came over, or at least hopped over, still using the jumping rope. By this time his entire face was covered in sweat but he also looked like he couldn't be happier.
Boys were weird, Moka summarized with a cute tilt of her head. After all, Tsuna tended to do weird enough things when the mood struck him too, so she wasn't really surprised.
"That was a nice swing out there Moka-chan. Even I could barely keep track of it," he admitted sheepishly with a small laugh.
Moka wanted to argue about that, but he looked so sincere and honest as he said that she had no choice but to accept the praise. She still didn't think it was that impressive.
"Thank you, but it wasn't that great." she answered with a modest smile, looking down at the hammer uncertainty."I was surprised that one swing was all it took. I thought defeating a fellow vampire would be more difficult."
Though she used her own family as a reference, which in hindsight was maybe a bit of an overestimation of Inui's capabilities. After all, since coming to this school, she had to say, it looked like her own family were monsters even among monsters, at least as far as sheer power went. They were OP, as she once heard Yukari describe her vampire.
"That's because that trash wasn't a real vampire," Ura said, scoffing. If she had her body, Omote imagined she would be crossing her arms with a scowl on her face.
"That's because he wasn't a real vampire," Itadaki said at almost the same time, unknowingly echoing Ura, who let out an uncharacteristic snort at that, before smothering it.
"What do you mean?" she asked with a small frown. Apparently, she seemed to miss something pretty significant, something that Ura noticed as well.
"He is an Onimudoki." the Post office member stated plainly. Seeing her confusion, he decided to elaborate."They are a race whose main strength is in impersonating stronger monsters, such as werewolves, nine-tailed foxes, or even vampires. They are rather weak and usually could only fool weak monsters, to allow them to boss them around or appear too dangerous to approach."
"How-?" Moka asked, her frown growing.
While she was certainly naive, she wasn't as stupid to simply believe somebody because they walked up to her and told her they were a vampire. Of course, she was a little skeptical, when she heard the rumors about Inui herself and when finally meeting him, she was on high alert. She wasn't so trusting to believe everything they told her.
He might have been weak, weaker than most vampires she knew, though she was aware her family was powerful even among the vampire ranks. Still, he certainly felt the same kind as a vampire.
Even his actions, as well as behavior, simply screamed vampire to her, hence why she offered so little doubt when he declared himself a vampire.
Apparently, she was fooled easily enough. Worse, it looked like her other self did recognize the ruse, while she ignorantly went ahead with her stupid assumptions. Just another thing that she was so outclassed by her sealed self that it wasn't even funny.
As if sensing her thoughts, Itadaki's eyes softened as he continued to explain.
"That's what the Onimudoki excel at. They are experts at changing the flow of their aura, to show themselves as something else than what they truly are. I wasn't certain myself until he revealed his true form, when the jig was up so to speak and he gave up camouflaging himself." He told her in a gentle tone.
Realizing his intentions she sent him a shaky but appreciative smile. It was a welcome gesture but unfortunately, it wasn't as effective as either of them hoped.
She felt more than heard her other self sigh before she spoke up as well.
"I had my suspicions but nothing concrete until you knocked him out." Ura told her, still sounding as if she would be napping instead of consoling her."The most important thing is that his little trick can make you think he is a vampire but it doesn't change or hide the fact that he was weak. Hence my suspicions."
Omote's smile turned a touch more sincere. She knew that Ura wasn't necessarily good at 'small talk' or being conscious of the feelings of others, so she was touched by her words, even if she knew it was said more for her sake, that it was for the truth. Still, she was thankful, and she touched her rosary lightly, in a silent thank you.
Shaking her head slightly, deciding to simply accept the way things happened and get over it, she turned back to Itadaki, her smile this time coming out brighter.
"I will have to take your word for it, Itadaki-kun. But thank you anyway." she thanked him, even giving him a small bow.
She missed the small blush that appeared on the young man's face, as he almost tripped on his jumping rope but he composed himself by the time she raised her head back with a questioning tilt.
"Itadaki-kun? I don't want to sound rude but why are you still here? Don't you have more deliveries to do?" She asked innocently.
Itadaki made a nervous face as he froze for a single moment before momentum caught up with him and almost tripped on his jump rope. He was quick to abandon it, switching to hopping on one leg, but he couldn't hide his panic.
"No, no. I'm done for the day, Moka-san. And since I have ample time to get ready for school, I decided to take a breather. After all, one has to enjoy sunny days like that." He said, sounding unconvincing and unable to meet her eyes.
The fact that his sweating intensified was also rather telling.
She watched him with slightly narrowed eyes, not at all fooled. Finally, her eyes landed on the equipment strapped to him and an epiphany struck her.
"Tsuna put you up to this, didn't he?" It was more of a statement than a question and his wince was all so telling.
With a huff, Moka rolled her eyes but it was more good-natured than anything.
Over the last few months, she got to know the mysterious guy known as Tsuna. He was surprisingly straightforward, not fearing to stand up to people or share his most of the time blunt opinions if he wanted to. But at the same time, Tsuna was also very secretive, always keeping a few cards close to his chest, his eyes sharp as he took everything around him and his mind already working out how to turn everything to their advantage. He wasn't cruel, but kind in his own, sometimes detached way but most of all, Sawada Tsunayoshi was paranoid.
It wasn't an entirely bad thing. Tsuna was attentive, always had a backup plan up his sleeve, and felt in control of whatever was happening most of the time. The most important thing was though, that his paranoia came from his kindness. He looked out for all of his friends, and even if his methods weren't the most straightforward, he did his best to protect them.
It really shouldn't have been so surprising that Tsuna would have made certain that even if he was not around all the time, there would still be a last line of defense to fall back to, so to speak.
"Trust that crafty bastard to think of everything," Ura commented with a laugh, a touch impressed by Tsuna's foresight.
Omote numbly nodded, still trying to get over the shock of Tsuna apparently realizing something was wrong and making Itadaki do basically what? Spy on her? Or at the very least stay around in case of trouble.
Meanwhile, Itadaki was busy panicking, his arms waving wildly as he tried to explain himself. He was so frantic that he almost fell over, only to be caught by Moka, who suddenly couldn't help but laugh at the situation, finding herself calming down unexpectedly. It also had the added plus of Itadaki calming down.
He took a deep breath and his face turned serious as he switched to doing squats.
"Tsuna-san only requested that I look out for you if I have the time. He asked that I keep an eye out and help if you seemed to have trouble, nothing more. I truly have free time right now, only one delivery left, to a classmate of mine so I can easily deliver it just before class." He explained before a shy smile bloomed on his face.' and, well it might be a little forward of me but I like to think of you as a friend. Helping out a friend if I can, it should be natural, right?"
Hearing his earnest words, Moka couldn't help but soften her features, a fondness shining through. To a girl who felt so alone and isolated for the last few years, it never ceased to amaze her whenever someone honestly declared her their friend.
While it might have come as a surprise, she had to admit that she thought of Itadaki as a friend as well. Not as close as the members of the newspaper club, he integrated himself into their circle, mostly due to Tsuna's actions but he was a friend nonetheless.
"Thank you, Itadaki-kun. I appreciate your help." She responded in a sincere, bright voice as she smiled at him.
There was a reason why Moka undoubtedly became one of the most popular and beautiful girls in their school, right at the start of her first year. Her kind mindset and almost childish brightness gave her a cute, approachable air. All of that, combined with the almost alluring beauty that seemed to have been coded into vampires, it was no wonder that a simple smile from her could start a riot of lovesick young men, and or women in some cases.
Itadaki, as much as he focused on his job slash hobby, was certainly no exception to that rule.
The young postman went bright red, his eyes swimming as he nervously tried to look away from the bright smile that seemed to burn into his memory. For creatures of the night, for youkai, such brightness was close to what most would equate to a so-called holy attack from various fantasy games. Yet, as painful as it was, it was like a siren's song, still sucking the poor souls in, like moths to a flame.
They might even realize they were doomed to die from the start but for many, it was a price worth paying. And at that moment Itadaki could sympathize with those people.
Thankfully a small rumble distracted Moka from the blushing teen, a large cloud of dust rising in the distance, with a familiar cry echoing in the air.
"Seems like Tsukune-kun ran into some trouble again." She commented with an almost fond shake of her head.
Her bright and honest human friend seemed to be a magnet when it came to troublesome monsters. As much as she wanted to disagree with Tsuna, it really became an almost weekly occurrence, a part of their daily routine.
"I better check it out. The others are bound to be around there too," she said, turning back to Itadaki with an apologetic smile. "Thank you again for the help, Itadaki-kun. Have a nice day." with that, she swiftly turned around and hurried toward the possible battle, without even thinking about the dangers it could hold.
"S-see you." Itadaki, who started resembling a tomato stuttered out, sending an awkward wave to the vampire. "She is way too nice and cute for a place like this. Or just to casually chat with. I feel like a possible harem protagonist just by talking with her." he mumbled to himself, sending one last look to the retreating back of the girl before he picked up his backpack. "But I have a feeling Tsuna-san might actually hunt me down if I tried anything serious." he added, his smile turning nervous.
As if by some divine happenstance, Itadaki, who was so stunned by Moka's natural beauty that he forgot to continue his exercises, received a large jolt of electricity. Unfortunately for him, he was distracted and tired enough already that the jolt, while normally nothing serious, managed to travel through the entirety of his sweat-covered body, causing a kind of pain that was outside of his current level of tolerance.
The young postal office member passed out with a confused yelp, collapsing on a group. He was fortunate enough that instead of his backpack landing on him, he managed to fall back, said backpack cushioning his fall. And then he proceeded to continue sleeping as if there was nothing wrong, waking up a few hours later, sheepishly running to at least reach the last of his classes.
Meanwhile, Inui remained in an unconscious heap, only waking up close to midnight, pathetically slinking away with his tail between his legs. By the next morning, he would have sent in his resignation letter and ran away post haste, terrified of the 'scary' vampire he angered.
-0-
"Looks like his training is paying off:" Tsuna commented to himself offhandedly as he watched his student entering dying will mode with barely any strain.
The former mafioso stood at the edge of the forest line, beneath a large shade with a thoughtful look on his face.
His position gave him a rather decent angle to the cliffside a few dozen meters away, where Tsukune confronted the big bad monster of the week. Or as Tsuna liked to call Convenient Training Dummy Number 37.
His info was spot on, both regarding the teacher and his newest victim's most frequent isolated hangout place. While Kurumu instantly ran forward with her usual bullheadedness, Tsuna remained behind and observed the situation.
One thing he learned both with the mafia and at this school, was to always expect a hidden trump card and never take appearances and first impressions for granted. Plus he might need to use his dwindling number of special bullets if it came to it.
The case holding the rifle given to him by Lal rested next to him and popped up against a trunk. Bringing it with him was done mostly on a whim, and his decision to try and stay away from the thick of the fighting was due to his slowly worsening condition. There were days when he was moving more on autopilot than any conscious thought as the fevers worsened.
Some part of him urged him to push Tsukune even further, to push him to reach the point of Hyper Dying Will. It was as if some deadline was pushed on him, like an enemy it will be imperative to use it. But he also knew if he used it now on Tsukune, he would not be able to bear it. At all.
The point of no return, the chasm that laid before Tsukune, he must first overcome if there was any chance of him using the Rebuke Bullet. Still, Tsukune already progressed leaps and bounds faster than him, though the age and motivational difference might have been part of it. Only time will tell though if it was enough or not.
In the end, he just needed to have faith. Not something he was used to.