Sat. back and with a good vacation under the belt! I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving. I was just happy to be home! Which means I did nothing but sleep, clean, cook and eat! It was glorious. Plus I saw Twilight. Yes, just hell yes. That's all I can say right now: hell yes. Hey, I'm getting hits from places I can't pronounce…awesome! Anyway, time for another P.O.V. change! I own nothing familiar! 'Tis sad.
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Chapter six: Learn to Stay Away
Ana
What would people do without the weekend? Better question: How did people do without the weekend before it was made? Sarah left some time around ten and its twelve now. Yeah, I can sleep for a while. The good news is that I got all of my homework done, including Kaze's insane essay. This school has a few loonies in it, that's for sure. I'm not allowed to talk, but oh well. This means that I have today and Sunday to sleep in! My stomach begins to rumble as I lay on it. The vibrations shake the bed springs. Time to find some food.
I grab the first pair of jeans I find; faded black ones with ripped pant leg bottoms. All of my jeans are like this because only the regular size will fit my hips and thighs, but I'm too short. Henceforth, ripped pants. I grab a green t-shirt with a foamy mouthed tree that says, "Be friendly to trees or they'll attack" in English. Slipping my room key in my pocket and setting Ares Eyes' inside my belt loop; I'm off to the cafeteria.
The gray and silver cafeteria is pretty devoid of people, which makes it easier for me to get food and not get stares. Even after all this time, we still get stares. These people need to get out of their country more. I know that Kaitlin and Rena are working on the paper of doom from Kaze and that Sarah and Angelica are off running into town. Scouting for good shops is what they told me. Sitting down in a sunny corner, I begin to eat my apple first. I love apples, I really do. Glancing around the large and empty room, a though hits me. Where do Yuuki and Kiryuu eat on the weekends? Err, I shouldn't ask that. Kiryuu has been avoiding me more than Kuran as of late, and that's saying something. Monday and Wednesday weren't very good days at all.
I gather up my empty tray and turn it in. I guess I'll go back to my room and read some. Got nothing better to do. Once I snap my door shut, I flop uncaringly on the bed. Wait, I don't have a book to read. Brilliant. Well, I'm not trekking all the way to the library. That's Sarah's pastime. I guess Kiryuu is taking Kuran's advice. I never thought he would take it from Kuran or from anyone for that matter.
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"Thanks for being here, Kiryuu," I say with a smile.
"Those Night Class students shouldn't have been here," he mutters back with a glare.
"True," I reply with a half-assed shrug, "But we have you here and we could have stopped them if something did happen."
He grunts and walks out the door. I sigh and run out after him. I'm going to get it into that thick silver haired skull of his that even vampires have rights. I look around the darkened forested area. Man, this guy can move. Damn his long legs. My radar tugs me into the wooded patch. I jog through the semi-thick brush. Wait. Northwest, Level A. Shit, Kuran. Why is he here? Hiding behind a tree, I lean my back against it, staying very still and suppressing my energy to be nearly undetected. I can't make it go away completely.
"What do you want, Kuran-sempei?" Kiryuu asks, nearly spiting the question at him.
"I came to warn you."
What?
"Why?"
"You need to be around for Yuuki."
Yuuki? Is that his other reason for being here?
"What is your warning?"
"Stay away from Ana and her friends. They are very dangerous and always have trouble in their paths."
"And I'm supposed to take your advice?"
"If you want to keep your life and to protect Yuuki, yes, you will. Good evening Kiryuu-san and Ms. Rose."
Damn. He knows my energy too well. I listen to him walk away and come around the tree. The prefect looks a little annoyed that I followed him. Alright, very annoyed.
"I can never really hide from him," I comment, running my hand through my bangs, "He recognizes my energy too easily no matter how well I suppress it."
"Why did you follow me?"
"To be honest, I want you to understand that everything that's alive, or the undead in some cases, has some form of rights."
Seems this guy's getting some lectures all over the place.
"Heartless killers and monsters don't deserve rights," he snips back at me.
"I've been called that more than once. Does that apply to me too?" I respond with a stoic voice.
His face falters for a moment before he turns away from me. He doesn't leave. I sigh. That came out a little strongly.
"I'm sorry," I mummer, looking at the ground, "for what ever happened to you. But you need to understand that you're quarrel is with that one person, despite what they are. If you don't learn to direct hate to that lone person who deserves it, you'll kill yourself."
"And you would know something about that?" he growls at me.
I look up and nod. He narrows his eyes at me, either in a glare or a thoughtful look. I'm not sure.
"You should heed Kuran, though," I say, changing the subject, "It's not safe to be around us or to know us. That's part of the reason none of us has made friends here."
"Why should I avoid you?" he asks, some curiosity seeping in his voice.
"Do you think the Hunters have stopped looking for us?" I ask back leaning on a tree, "We're far too valuable to them and we know some things they don't want let out. We've got some pretty bounties on our heads and not only from the Hunters, but others as well."
He doesn't respond with anything but silence. I look at the darkening sky through the branches. It's time to leave, but first there is something I need to find out.
"What is Yuuki to Kuran?"
"She…" he trails off, glaring at the ground and clinching his fists, "was saved by him when she was around ten."
Saved? Kuran doesn't save anyone unless there is a good reason to. There must be more to this than Kiryuu's letting on. By his expression, I'm not going to nag the question on. He looks angry, confused and in pain. Angelica also said that Yuuki is on the top of important list in his mind. This doesn't make much sense, but it's useful. It'll help later.
"G'night, Kiryuu," I say and begin to walk away, "Take his advice and stay away from us. Not everyday that ass gives good advice to people he doesn't like."
WWWWWWWW(Wednesday)WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW
Sarah is off in the library. I swear that girl could live in that place. All you'd need is a kitchen and she'd be good. I braid my wet hair and ruffle my dripping bangs. Our meeting just let out and I was able to take a shower. Luckily, the only homework I have is science and that's just reading a few pages. Plopping on my bed, I begin to skim through the pages. My radar picks up a Level E walking down the corridor. Suddenly, someone knocks on my door. I snatch up a black t-shirt, since I'm wearing a white spaghetti string shirt and some blue sweat pants. I open the door to see Kiryuu.
"You don't listen very well, do you?" I ask, leaning on the doorframe, "Why are you here?"
"I need to talk to you," he says, ignoring my light insulting question.
"Come in, then," I say, moving aside.
"We need to talk some other place," he says, taking a tense step or two in.
"Fine, let me get some shoes and socks on."
I rummage in my closet and tug out a pair of tennis shoes. Sliding on a pair of red socks, I tie my shoes on. Walking to the bathroom, I take my hanging towel and grip my braid and bangs through it. Going to my desk, I rip a sheet out and scribble a quick note and grab my black jacket that has my two daggers in them. It would be a good idea that no one knows about our little arsenal that we have.
He opens the door and I follow after, locking it. We walk down the quiet hallway and down the stairs. Why is he insisting on talking to me? I never saw him yesterday, not during classes either. Why now? My radar picks up the other vampires in the classrooms and Yuuki around that area. We walk to the stables again. I choke a sigh welling in my stomach. He stops in the middle and looks at the soft dirt floor.
"Well," I start and cross my arms, "Let's hear it."
"What do you know about the Hunters?" I roll my eyes.
"They're a bunch of ruthless idiots that can't understand that the world is about balance that shifts all the time."
"Do you think that about all of them?" he asks in a low and almost threatening voice.
He's trying to call me a hypocrite.
"No, just the ones I was subjected to. I've actually met a few good ones with their heads in the right place, like Cross. There aren't that many of them left."
Silence lingers between us. The only sounds that fill the long stable are the bugs outside and, of course, the horses. I walk over to a black stallion and rub his ears. Sarah's right, he does make things tense. Glancing over to him, he just stares at me. The silver moonlight filters in, making his hair gleam and his lilac eyes shine. Vampire thing or trick of the light? He seems…celestial with that moonlight on him.
"Would you…really help the monsters in this school if it was attacked?"
"Would you help me if I was in a bad situation?"
I hear him choke on whatever he was about to say.
"Listen to me, moron," I say with sudden bubbled anger from my stomach, whirling to face him, "You don't know what it means to be a monster. Being a monster is doing things without the regard of consequences. You heard stories of what vampires did to humans and other hunters, but did you ever hear why they went after the vampires or what the vampire levels were in that couragous fight? Did you stop to consider that they were attacked by vampires just because they fired first at vampires? One is a monster when they kill for only one narrow minded reason, or when they don't care about the reason at all. They just…do as they're told."
"You know what I am—"
"Yeah, a guy that doesn't know anything about being a monster and that has a good heart."
He glares at me, but the look slowly lessens. Does that mean I'm getting through? I glance at the stallion and notice how unnerved he is. I slowly move away from him and towards the middle of the stable. The great black horse calms down some.
"There must be another reason you brought me out here," I say, crossing my arms.
"You know things that the Hunters don't want out," he states and I nod, "Do you know which vampires attacked hunters in the last decade or so?"
I know what he wants. He wants me to give him the name of his family's killer.
"You want me to tell you the name of the vampire that killed your family?"
"How did you…?"
Might as well tell him.
"We were in Spain at the time and looking for any good information and places to hide. I came across your file, but I didn't have time to read who the vampire was. Only that it was a she and a pureblood. Sorry."
He most likely already knows what I told him.
"You…know?"
"Only the stats, but yeah. There's a lot I know."
Silence lingers in the stables again. Even the horses are quiet. I glance around. I don't think I can come back here for a while. They most likely don't trust me much right now. I hear clothes rustle and the cock of a gun along with a jingle of chain. I look to see him holding a silver gun pointblank at my face. A rose is etched on the side of it.
"Go ahead. You're neither the first nor the last to try this."
He tightens his grip.
"May I ask why?" I say, not even glancing from his murderous look.
"You're wanted by the Hunters and I still work for them. You do know too much information, so I'm taking you in."
"Better get different ammunition," I say with a scoff, "You're using the wrong bullets for this species."
Common sense would tell me that he has anti-vampire bullets. I hadn't counted on him being a Hunter still or at all. Just my luck. Slowly he lowers his weapon along with his head. I walk towards him and place my hand on his shoulder. He tries to shrug it off, but I don't let him. He glares down at me and tries to punch my gut. I easily block his hand.
"You can turn me in if you like," I whisper, "But think of what else that might bring. Do you really want a bunch of trigger happy hunters here? You know Yuuki will try and stop the fighting. Hell, just by talking to her a few times, I know she'd jump in the crossfire." I let him go and start to walk out of the stable.
"You're manipulative," he mutters.
"I look at all the possibilities and avoid the most negitive ones."
"Tell me everything about your abilities," he demands with a low voice.
"Why? It wouldn't be beneficial to either of us. The more you know, the more likely you'll become a target along with everyone around you."
"Wait," he calls.
I turn around to look at him.
"You left the Hunters," he says, "Why?"
"A few people gave me a moral kick in the head and showed me the consequences of my previous actions," I respond, "The only problem is, is that the Hunters have a one-way membership. No one really leaves. Get some sleep. You look like hell."
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I came back to Sarah slumped on her pillow and already halfway through her book that night. Why am I telling him so much? Am I sympathizing too much with him? In fact, I should be pushing him away to keep him and everyone else here safe. Should I be so talkative, even if I'm not telling him all the really meaty details? If it was anyone else, I'd just walk away without as much as an insulting word to throw over my shoulder. My mouth just kind of loses control with him sometimes, even if it doesn't seem like it. Why him? This doesn't make much sense. I'm getting a headache.
Time to do the only thing that sorts my head of plaguing thoughts: practice. I change into an old pair of black shorts and a blue t-shirt. Walking into the bathroom, I brush out my blonde hair with red and black streaks. Only a few people know this, but the black is natural. I put the red in there. Sarah's blue is natural as well. We don't like to tell that bit of information very much.
I braid my hair up and wash my face out of old habit. Every time I would either practice or go on a mission, I'd wash my face quickly. I dab my face dry and look at my icy blue irises rimmed with black-blue. Time to go. My legs take me to the Fight Hall and I use my key to open it. Kaitlin has the other key. Heading towards the office, I pop the door open and slide my shoes and socks off. Not bothering with the mats, I stretch out my body, getting every last muscle. Some joints crack, sending tingles through the nerves that are close to it.
Taking my normal stance with half poised hands, I slowly bring my limbs into the basic sequence and pivot where it's needed. A song is stuck in my mind. Born Like This by Three Days Grace. My brain starts the song from the beginning as I keep my slow pace.
It's not what I took from you
It's not what I stole
We are born like this
Like this
My body begins to move a little fast with the beat of the song in my head while tension eases out of me.
The time has come to change this
To stretch the thought a mile
We've lost that kind of spirit
We want it back today
The time is right to change this
To make the life we know
They took what we were given
We'll get it back again
Somewhere someone's gun, someone's gun is laughing
How will we get away from the Hunters? We've been trying for years. These bastards are all over the place. They're difficult to hide from. My limbs move faster, jabbing more forcefully into the empty air.
It's not what I gave to you
It's not what I sold
We are born like this
It's not what I took from you
It's not what I stole
We are born like this
Like this
Who would help us get exemption? Who would be crazy enough to do that in the Hunters? Even Cross wouldn't do that. He knows how insane that is and how harmful it would be. Cross has too much to lose. The Hunters may be idiots, but they are still very dangerous. And what about Kuran?
You try your best to mock me
You're always in my way
You've lost what you've been given
You'll get it back today
The time is right to change this
To make the life we know
They took what we were given
We want it back again
Somewhere someone's gun, someone's gun is laughing
My energy flares and I barely contain it. I close my eyes and let my instincts take over, dropping my radar nearly to a zero radius. Kuran is a large root of my problems. He and the Hunters is number one. That bastard knows well that he could bend any of us into his will if he threatens to give the Hunters back the information his family took in the first place. Not only that, but he could hand us over in general and just keep that information. Either one is very valuable, but the bodies of the weapons are more important. Almost anyone can learn about our abilities by simply testing us in various ways. That's partially what's in the files anyway, and that part could be redone.
It's not what I gave to you
It's not what I sold
We are born like this
It's not what I took from you
It's not what I stole
We are born like this
Like this
He would turn us in. I know him too well when it comes to negotiations. He would do that as a last resort or use it against us. Even though he hates my guts in particular, he'd love me in on his little chess game. It's sad… that we used to be friends once, even though we betrayed each other at the same time. He did it for his family; I did it for the Hunters. I didn't care at the time, but a year later, I understood that what he did hurt and I hurt him.
Somewhere you're floating high
You're not living
We are
Somewhere someone's gun, someone's gun is laughing, laughing
I know why he is the way he is. I do pity him, but I also can't help but hate him. He was my first friend and the first contact with a kid my age. If I understood at the time that he wouldn't be my friend after or that what I did really hurt him, I would have hid in his family's house and dropped being a Hunter all together. We may still be friends, maybe even consider each other siblings instead of scorned enemies. I do miss his playful side and how we used to play in woods near his house. It tears my heart up.
It's not what I took from you
It's not what I stole
We are born like this
Like this
I don't hate him.
It's not what I took from you
It's not what I stole
We are born like this
Like this
I hate what he's become. An emotionless manipulator.
It's not what I took from you
It's not what I stole
We are born like this
I open my eyes to my dark bloody energy surrounding my whole body. I stop moving. An ultimate form of our power. It's very physical. The edges are in black wisps off my arms and hands like smoke or mist. I breath out and my breathe is bloody mist. I can form this into any object I want. This is something only the Hunters know about. This aura form of energy. The most efficient killing method. It seeps in and sucks out energy in living things faster than we can shift. It's like a beer poured directly in someone's veins; instant death.
The crimson smoke ripples on its own. Someone's here! Kiryuu?! I immediately let my energy go, hoping my irises aren't crimson and the whites aren't black.
"How long were you there?!" I nearly yell at him, stalking up to him.
"Not long," he says with slightly wide eyes and tries leave. I grab his white shirt collar and pull him down to my height.
"Listen really close," I growl in a low voice, "You can't tell anyone what you just saw, not even my girls, got it?" He nods. I let go.
"You're in deep shit now," I say, pushing him out the door, "What you just witnessed is the main thing the Hunters want back. Now that you know, you're nearly as valuable as me and the girls now. Congrats."
I shut and lock the door. Fuck! Why did I let my guard down so much?! That was a Class F mistake! I need to avoid him now, more than he already has. I walk back to my socks and shoes, tugging them on. Maybe what he saw scared him away from me. That has happened before, but that was during missions and they usually died. I lock the office door and head towards the dressing room. He may get even more curious and try to stop me on my way out. My radar says he's still at the front door, so I'm leaving through the window and leaving the lights on. He might think I'm still in there.
Landing on the grass softly, I sprint into the woods. He's following me now. It'll be easy to lose him. I easily jump over brush and fallen limbs, leaving a nearly invisible trail. Building some energy, I leap high into a tree and freeze my body stiff. He comes into the little area under the tree I'm in and stops. Not bad, for an inexperienced hunter. He has the instincts. He glances around, slowly taking in every direction. I form a small dagger out of my energy and shoot it off to the left. It hits a limb and sends it crashing, instantly withering it. He bolts for that direction. I count ten Mississippi's and jump out of the tree and back to the dorms. I shut the door, quietly and holding my breath. After slowly locking the door I release my breath and lean my head on the door.
"What happened to you?" Sarah asks behind me.
Now the question is: Do I tell the girls? Let's weigh the pros and cons. I ignore Sarah's questions as I take a seat on my bed. Pros: I'll have more help if something leaks out. It's the right thing to do and I won't feel guilty. Trust won't be questioned again like the last time I did something like this. Cons: It could leak out to other people, besides the girls. The more people who know, the bigger the chances are of the information leaking. Trust compromised. Kuran and/or Cross could get involved and there are a lot of things they could do. This could reach all the way to the Hunters and then all hell will break loose. Well, I already made a stupid mistake, let's make another.
"—etter stop ignoring me right now, damnit! Ana Luncia Rose!"
"Shut it," I say with a monotone voice in English.
She chokes on her lips.
"I did something really stupid," I start, leaning on the wall, "I was practicing with my energy and Kiryuu saw me."
She blinks at me a few times, her finger in midair from shaking it at me. She opens her mouth a few times, before sitting down on her bed. I glare at her surprised face. It's not that big of a deal. I may not be completely human, or at least a normal one, but I make mistakes too.
"Really?" she finally asks, "You're not pullin' my leg?"
"I wish."
"…How?"
"I went to go clear my head and dropped my radar to nearly nothing. I didn't expect anyone to come to the Hall today, with it being Saturday."
"Really?" she asks in a higher voice, "I mean really, really?"
"Yeah, really," I growl at her with a nasty glare.
"Want me to tell the others?"
"Through Angelica and ask her to pass it telepathically," I say, going to the bathroom, "I don't want it said in open air again."
"Got it," she says getting up, "Be back soon."
I feel like banging my head into the wall for this stupid mistake. I take a quick shower instead. The lights are still on in the Hall. While pulling on my jeans and tree shirt again, I extend my radar in that general direction. He's headed this way. Time to leave again. He's already up the stairs. I scribble a note and flick the lights off. The note for Sarah says that to keep him away or distract him if he's ever near. A knock sounds on the door. I gently open the window. At least it's only three floors. If it was four, this would hurt. I check around the area for people while Kiryuu bangs on the door. I jump. My surround energy around my legs and hands and let it absorb the impact.
I run to the Hall, noting that he'll be there a few minuets after I leave. He's smart for someone without a lot of training. I rush in, flip the lights off and rush back out. He'll be in here in two minuets. Man, he's running like hell. Guess he caught on that I'd come back when he was distracted. I bolt for the woods again and round about the whole campus. I stop in the stables. Not bad, he's still in the general direction I went. Jumping into the stall of the black stallion, I crouch in a corner and create a thin vale of energy.
He comes in and comes to a walk. He looks at each stall, ducking down a bit as he goes by. He looks directly at me and keeps walking. He didn't notice me. There was no recognition on his face. That doesn't mean I can leave any time soon. He walks out and lingers around for a bit. After about two hours of not moving, he leaves. By the way, I can't feel my legs. I wait until he's off campus to where, I guess, he lives to get up. My legs pop as I hold on to the wall as the blood rushes down.
"Thanks big guy," I say, patting the horse and jumping out of the stall.
If this guy wants to play chase mixed with hide and seek, he better find someone else to play with. He'll never find me and I can always out run him. I smirk as I head back towards the dorms. This may be a little entertaining.