Victim, Prey

The result of someone's crime.
But, for what reason?

"Uahh...Koujirou-san *sniff*...ahh..."

On a wheelchair, a woman with delicate features was crying softly over the unfortunate event that had traumatised her. She clutched firmly on her Rosario that was bonded around her neck, so hard that her hand had started to bleed. The vampire hunter, Koujirou, took her trembling fingers into his own, wiping away the blood and wrapped a bandage around her wound.

"Terumi... I'm sorry." He hugged her lightly in his apology, allowing Terumi to burrow her head into his broad shoulder. Her small hands clutched onto his back.

He shifted his eyes towards her wrapped neck. What it was covering was...the remains of a vampire bite. Just last week, Terumi had barely managed to stay alive when he found her body stumbled at the shrine's doorstep. With most of her blood drained out of her, Koujirou had to result to his power to keep her heart from stopping. She continued crying into his shoulder, her beautiful dark blue hair covering her face.

"I should stop crying...now that we know the vampire's identity, we can take immediate action." Determined, she swiftly rolled her wheelchair away from Koujirou, tossing him a handkerchief to wipe his soaked shoulder. "Mukami Ruki, 18 years of age, 3rd year in high school."

The man smiled at his childhood friend's strong will. He knew well that she despised half-vampires, even much more than he did. How broken she was to realise she was bitten by a horrible, sadistic one at that. At first she tried to understand and empathise with them for they were once human, but after several years she gave up trying- all the half-blooded ones she met never spared humans a thought. They were completely devoured by their new nature, devoid of their previous feelings, as if they were vampires ever since they were born.

Koujirou wasn't surprised that she decided to be his partner in this line of work after all her past experiences. The Rito family was not to be underestimated when it came to finding information. In fact, all the details he received on her attacker was none other than Terumi herself. Apparently they were currently trying to stop their business, though. They concluded it was too dangerous for them to continue, therefore hiding their true work from their youngest son. Terumi would always bite her lip whenever her younger brother was brought up. It was conflicting for her when it came to telling him the truth.

"I've asked my favourite mercenary to help us, but it seems that she is affiliated with the target. She goes to the same school as him." He remembered how the girl reacted to his offer. It was clear that she had zero intention to kill this vampire at all.

"You can't just a high school girl who is friends with the target to just kill him, you know." Terumi sighed at his views. "She may be a mercenary, but she is still a young girl. If she rejected you offer harshly it means that she has close bonds with him. But why, I wonder?"

"She has a cold hard face and kills people without a single thought for the sake of her rewards. As a mercenary, she knows that forming close ties to those around you is the last thing you should do, even if the person is your family." Koujirou folded his arms, confused. "She's not even human."

"Hmm. Then...he may have already employed her."

This was the closest answer she could get. It made sense. The target is her client and her reward must be plentiful if she put off Koujirou's offer, even though she knew that she could get much out of him.

"That is most likely. She already know I'm going to kill her..." The vampire hunter's voice trailed off when he saw the young woman throw him a piercing stare.

"Koujirou, how many times do I have to tell you to stop killing non-vampires like that?!" He flinched slightly at her stern voice. "That girl...who is she?"

"Are you planning to talk her out of it? It's no use, she's dedicated to her job, just as I am. So... there's no need for that." He mumbled once again, looking away from her. "See...you must rest as well. You're in no condition to move so much like that."

Terumi was about to protest when a sharp pain jabbed at her neck. Cringing slightly, she placed a hand over her wound. A flashback of a handsome man with lonely greyish blue eyes stared into hers, before a smirk flashed onto his face. Her screams... no matter how loud they were, nobody heard them. When she had awaken, Terumi found herself in an underground cellar, seemingly deserted. She knew she needed to know where it was.

"I understand...I won't obstruct your plans." Her voice was calm and clear. "But reassure me that you will return safely."

"I'm sorry but I cannot reinforce that." An obvious and true answer. "Just like you, she is a woman of steel."

With that, Koujirou left the room, leaving Terumi to her own thoughts. Although her experience was frightening, she must remember as much as she can to support her friend. Their efforts will not be wasted.

...

Kimi ga tsutaetai kotoba

Kimi ga todoketai oto wa

Ikutsumono sen wa en ni natte

Subete tsunageteiku

Doko ni datte ah...

"Wahh...don't you think Maeno-san's voice has more emotion today?" Takano's green hair was flowing along with the wind, as if it were a plain of grass.

"Really." With her usual nonchalant voice, Fuyuki replied to him. She was busy paying attention to his grass-like hair that had an ahoge that looked like a budding seed. For some apparent reason, it made her feel hungry. "I wanna eat."

"Wh-what?!" The boy jumped backwards as his senior continued staring at his hair, as if it was what she wanted to eat. "Is there something wrong with you today?"

"Why would I want to eat your grass, dumb ass." She drifted by him, opening the fridge to spot for some snacks. "Oh, lemon grass jelly."

Takano shifted with annoyance as he watched her eat with a relaxed expression on her face. It felt as if she didn't take his compliment seriously- like all the other girls are like.

"I just complimented you, you know." He huffed, upset by her lack of reaction.

"I know." She threw him a bottle of orange juice. "You just thought that I was just like other females who will never accept positive remarks and remorse over how they don't get complimented. Right?"

His face grew red in embarrassment since she hit the mark. Turning around stiffly, he sat beside Momoka on the couch, regaining his composure with her radiating energy.

"You'll never beat Fuyuki-senpai in a verbal match and you know that well enough, Taka." Momoka handed him some checkered cookies.

"But Momo... I can't remain defeated like that..." He brought his knees to his face, sulking in defeat and embarrassment. "I still can't believe how easily she saw me through."

"Same here, but what made you think of her like that?" The brown-headed girl watched her friend twirl his hair.

"Because there's only one girl that strikes to him as unique." Fuyuki snickered as she continued devouring her dessert. "And that one person on his mind is-"

"Censored." Kouji interrupted her speech for his trembling junior's sake. He knew Fuyuki would've stopped there on her own for the presumably dense Momoka to start questioning Takano. He sighed, though, at himself for co-operating with the prankster.

"Kouji-senpai...thanks..." Takano mumbled. Unfortunately for him, the expected question came from Momoka.

"Ooh, you like someone? A unique person who differs from all the other girls...hey, who is it?" Momoka snickered as she elbowed the sorrowful boy.

Although she did ask that question, it felt as if she already knew the answer. The two 2nd years whisper to each other about how Takano doesn't realise Momoka's ability to perceive situations easily. She isn't as dense as he made her out to be.

"Shy? Never mind then. Confess when you're ready, okay?"

"Wait. What?"

Seems like Takano got the message.

"My sister got seriously injured in an accident. She already is crippled enough and here she is being reckless again..." Kouji muttered as Fuyuki stared at him curiously.

"Your sister is handicap?" This inquiry was necessary since it relates to Ruki's case. The accident he mentioned may be the injures Ruki has dealt his victim.

"Yes, she's been on a wheelchair since she got into high-school. She's 25 now." He looked down into his notebook, scribbling answers down. "She was coming home from school and she saw an old woman that was about to be hit by a car, so she got her out of the way and took the fall. Heroic, right?"

Kouji's eyes beamed with pride as he mentioned his sisters acts. What processed in Fuyuki's mind was a direct translation of what he had just told her. This woman was handicapped because she saved someone important to her from a half-vampire's attack, most likely Sasaki Koujirou. The man has developed a strong hate for half-vampires ever since and the recent attack has made him snap. This woman probably loathes such vampires as well. How did she fix this all up? Her encounter with the shrine's hunter and information about the victim was enough for her to deduce this.

Fuyuki soured up as she realised that her best friend, Kouji, would be warped up in this if she did not proceed carefully. She must avoid the death of his sister and cover up Koujirou's death to the cleanest she can. Either that, or he will be exposed to the horrid world beyond him. Since his sister is aware of the existence of vampires, she must be hiding it from Kouji. But...the truth must be revealed sooner or later. She gazed at the blue haired male, who gave her a sweet smile, making her relieved and at the same time, sunken. He wasn't ready for this news. Not yet.

"Something's been on your mind since this morning. What's wrong?" Still smiling, he gently pulled her cheek. "Woah, you're really cold."

"Family stuff." Honestly replying, Fuyuki rolled her head on the table, her hair covering everything on it.

Kouji knew it was serious, so he didn't ask for details. Although he was usually rough with her, during times like these he would be soft and gentle. Just like how Fuyuki, who usually gave silly remarks, would give earnest advice to her troubled friends.

"I'll have to become mentally stronger to have you open yourself up to me. That's what you always say, right?"

"Yeah... receive things with an open-mind. Until then, this information is enclosed."

Although she said this coldly, she held firmly onto his hand, as if seeking for warmth. Kouji naturally responded by placing his head by hers, grasping back onto her hand. A feeling of regret was radiating from her.

"I'll have you sleep this study session." He closed his eyes, concious of the fact that her face was only a few inches away from his. "Good night."

At the classroom's door, looking over them both were a group was curious individuals. They were fervently discussing what they just saw.

"Uwahh...they're so cute together! Shuu-san, don't you think so?" Yui exclaimed softly as her eyes sparkled.

"...This eavesdropping event has been occurring as of late, hasn't it." Shuu lazily replied as he looked into the classroom window once again to see to two sleeping figures close together.

"Ehhh, so they're Bitch-chan's friends? Fufu. I can see why she likes them so much." Laito gave a small chuckle as he stood by Yui. "The girl doesn't smell very good, but she is indeed a beauty. I overheard that Reiji doesn't like her?"

"He said that she's similar to Shuu because she's so lazy even though she has talents." Yui whispered to Laito to avoid the blond male from listening. "Best not to mention her name in front of him unless..."

"Unless I want to aggravate him. Right." Laito took another look inside the room. "Doesn't smell delicious...but I feel that her actual smell is being hidden by something. Does she have a charm of some sort?"

"No, but she does have a watch pendant around her neck." Yui answered. She sniffed to air to try confirm what he was saying. "I don't think it's because of it though. Sometimes she removes it and she smells the same."

"Getting used to being a vampire, Bitch-chan?"

"Unfortunately..." Yui's voice trailed off. Her newly found abilities would help in the safety of her friends, so she didn't find it as awful as before. She had to see the positive side of things- one of her guiding principles in life. That way she could move on.

"Let's go home, it's getting late. Looks like there won't be club activities tomorrow because of the teachers' meeting, so Reiji expects you to be back on time." Shuu quickly mentioned this before heading off.

The other two followed suit. I may be the only one thinking of this, but it's possible that she isn't human.

Authors Note: The song above is "Tell Your World", composed by livetune and sung by Hatsune Miku.

Sorry if the Sakamakis aren't appearing as much as you'd preferred (Subaru and Kanato have not been mentioned so far). They aren't the focus family so... (=v=") my bad. Don't worry, they'll have to need a considerable amount of screen time since Yui is a main character (duhhh this is revolved around MORE BLOOD).

I haven't thought of who to put Fuyuki together with (romantically). Kouji may have to most romantic moments with her but who knows, it may be platonic. Basically, there are no canon pairings yet except for Yui x Ayato (apologies if you wanted someone else to be paired with her).