Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

"My one regret in life is that I am not someone else." - Woody Allen

The smell of narcotics and chemicals stung her nose as she slipped inside the hospital room. Visiting hours were long over, so the well kept living area was shrouded in darkness. The visitor made her way to the closed curtain and opened it wide, revealing the full moon night.

Paramour brought her small bouquet of flowers, pathetically small compared to the other more grandeur ones, on the table next to the I.V. stand. She fondly looked down at the patient, a beautiful white-skinned woman with long black hair framing her hear-shaped face. She pushed some strands from the high forehead, her features painfully similar to the comatose vampire.

Yes, vampire. It was awfully strange for the undead to have one of their own within a human hospital. Even more strange for an undead to be in such a state. Nevertheless, money solved any problems and ensured that the female vampire comfort in her self-endued sleep. Along with elite Nosferatu guards kept any intruder from entering.

The only reason why Paramour was here in this room was due to a secret power, one that made her different from the rest of the vampires. Now, Naruto would be sharing that power, as soon as he awakens, that is.

The name of her teenage charge reminded her of the purpose for this visit. She smiled down at the lovely vampire and greeted softly in a whisper, "Good evening, Mikoto-san. It's me, Paramour-chan, your student."

If she recognized the name, or remember any of her past position as a teacher, Mikoto gave no sign. She continued to laid unmoving on the bed, the monitors attached to her keeping track of her vital signs with constant beeps.

Undeterred, however, the young woman continued the one sided conversation. "Well, it's been a long time. Sorry I couldn't visit as often as I promised, but it's been hell these past few years. Trying job after job, to raise money to finish the mortgage off the house you gave me. Gave us. Now that I've been cut off from the family and stuff." She gave a wry chuckle. "Well, anyway, enough about me and the past. Guess what? It looks like all of our fears were for nothing. Naruto is finally coming into his heritage as a vampire. That's right. Minato and Kushina's child has finally began his descent to our world. It has been albeit slow one but I know he'll be as great as his father was. Or maybe he'll take after his mother…?"

Paramour paused, looking down at her face for any reaction, for any contribution to the conversation. But there was not a word, nor a sign that she even heard. It made her eyes tingle with forbidden tears, bitter one brought by feelings of abandonment. She quickly wiped them away, determined to stay strong.

If Mikoto-san wished to stay in this state for all of eternity, so be it. Paramour was prepared to watch over her.

"Paramour, why are you here?'

She stiffened and instantly went cold. "What business is yours, Itachi-sama?" she asked a bit sourly, refusing to meet the other visitor's eyes.

"Everything. After all, this is my mother's room," the man, Itachi, pointed out.

That jolted her and a horrid feeling went through her body, but not enough to make her back down. Instead, she turned, face to face with the man most feared in their society. The cruelest vampire in existence, Itachi Uchiha. But for some reason, he refuse to show that side of himself to her, as though the cast off wasn't good enough to witness his true nature.

It irked her to no end.

"I know that," she responded, "and I know she was close to me as a mother as well."

His eyes narrowed at that. They were beautiful, a glowing red the exact color of blood, a beacon of light within their dark world.

Paramour flashed her own eyes, a darker shade of red that was dull in comparison, in defiance. But she got up to leave anyway, her task already had been completed whether Mikoto heard or not.

Itachi gave no reply, did not watch her pass by him to the exit. But it felt like he was staring at her all the same, waiting for a weakness, a chance to swoop down and finish what the elders started.

"It would be wise if you do not come again," he warned her when she reached the door. "Lest the next time it be one of them."

"And it would be wiser for you to keep your mouth shut," she snide in return, glaring at his back. "I'm not afraid of them. I'm no longer that little girl who was ways afraid of meeting those men. I'll be back, and the time after that, and the time after that. You cant keep my own mother from me, Itachi-sama, even if she wasn't the one who bore me, Itachi-sama. After all, we're in this business together."

"Ah yes," she heard him say as he left. "The Misery Business."

--

By the end of first period, Naruto was close to ditching school. To say he was nervous was an understatement. He was so damn close to jumping the new transfer student it was not even funny. And it was a fucking shame that he didn't know what his preference was. Paramour had said it would be much easier if they knew. That way, they could make sure he didn't go biting every person he got a reaction to.

It was a good plan, but it didn't include the crazed minds of his teachers. In revenge for running out of class yesterday, Ibiki had made Naruto partners with Shun, expecting him to keep the boy in par to what they were studying now.

Ba-dump… Ba-dump…

Come on, Naruto placed his hand over his erratic heart. Calm down. He's not even a hot girl! Okay, he has the looks of one but still!

"Ano, Naruto-san?" Shun placed the book in front of him. "Could you explain the equation again?"

"Uh, yeah." The blonde swallowed and read over the examples in the book, proceeding to teach it to the green haired boy. It was hard, but he managed, much to his relief. At least his fangs weren't too noticeable.

He hoped.

"Ah, thank you, Naruto-san," Shun told him with a smile.

"Uh, yeah. N-no problem," Naruto returned, eyebrow slightly twitching as he suppressed the urge once again.

He could feel it. With every beat of the boy's heart, he could literally feel the blood flowing, running through every vein in the boy's body. It made his mouth salivate and his fangs itch, wanting so badly to plunge his teeth in the pale neck, to drink that healthy blood of his.

But he couldn't. This was not seen in usual human society. Heck, he barely fit in it as it was. Though not a total loser, Naruto was no jock. He was more of the rebel, but less cooler than Gaara so to speak.

That reminded him that he had no knowledge of the vampire society. Besides the passing glances between him and that teme Sasuke.

Hopefully, Paramour would fill him later. She did lived with some higher ups before. And she did have some close relationships with his family after all.

"Oh! The book gave me a paper cut." Shun held up his finger, revealing the welt that began to pour blood.

Ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump!

"Teacher, may I go to the nurse's off-" He began to ask, being cut off as someone held his hand. He turned, seeing it was Naruto who had a strange look in his azure eyes. "Na…ruto…san?" Shun watched, oddly transfixed as the blonde boy open his mouth and leisurely began to lick the blood with his tongue.

The taste of it, the smell, jogged him back to reality. Naruto stared, horrified, into the dark eyes of Shun, who watched him with questions, questions he could not answer.

For the second time that week, he ran out of class, regardless of Ibiki's angry yelling.

--

"You're home early."

Paramour wiped the last flecks of water from her long dark hair, staring at the blonde boy in front of her who was currently wallowing in self pity.

Naruto gave a moan, confirming her suspicions on his state of mind.

"Ah gee. What happened now?" she asked him, crouching down before him. When he continue to make incomprehensible noises, she realized the worst. "Did you bite him?"

"Paper cut," he finally said. "I licked the blood off."

She sighed, then asked him, "What did he tasted like? Or at least, describe what did you felt?"

"I don't really know," Naruto admitted. "It was so… sweet. Yet it tasted so much like… we… like air I guess."

"Like air?" Paramour repeated.

"Yeah, it's just… hard to explain. I don't even know." He sighed, dropping his head between his knees. "I'm sorry, Paramour. I'm not much help."

"No. It is enough," she told him, smiling. She patted his head fondly. "I can get a somewhat accurate confirmation on your preference with that. For now, get dress. We're going somewhere."

As Naruto went to do as she asked, albeit at a really slooooow pace, Paramour finished drying her hair before running a comb through the tresses. Though extremely vague his description was, she was sure she could figure it out. She'll start on it later tonight, after this task was done,

For now, it was time to go hunting and to teach Naruto what was like to be one of their kind. Coming down, Naruto had changed from his school uniform to casual clothes consisting of denim jeans and a band's T-shirt.

"Okay, I'm ready," he said, slipping on his Converse shoes.

Paramour laughed. "As a human you are," she pointed out. "But you'll do."

"What do you mean as 'a human' ?" he asked when she passed by him.

She only smiled. "You'll see."

Meaning he had to wait when they got there. Naruto sighed, but followed the vampire out of the house and into the twilight.

The house was sloped on top of a hill, protected by Paramour's own magical barrier. They passed through it, the properties that formed it gave a tingling feeling. Though unseen on the outside, the contrast was striking. What had been twilight turned quickly into late afternoon. Paramour gave a visible wince as the sun touched her.

"Is this okay?" Naruto asked, looking at her in clear alarm. "I mean, isn't the sun suppose to burn you?"

She smiled and held up the umbrella he had seen her take. "This is your first lesson," she announced. "I was going to save it until later but now that you have had a taste of blood, it'll start showing soon."

"What?" the blonde wondered.

"Your vampire form," she replied. "The first rule I should have told you is this : once you have had your first drink - that is, blood from the neck - you will no longer be able to live within the land of day. You will finally become one of us. We're going to withdraw you from the school and your true tutorage would begin the following year. However, since you're only beginning the descent to being a bloodsucker, the sun will not harm you. Therefore, it is time to teach how to survive in it. Like so." She opened the umbrella and though she looked remarkably better, Naruto could tell it still was not enough.

"We can wear multiple clothing or use an umbrella like so. Or we could use magic to give a temporary shield against it. But when we do, well…"

Naruto watched as suddenly Paramour phased through him. It was like his eyes had become unfocused the moment he saw her, causing him to blink and rub them.

"It distracts the human from really focusing on us long enough. But it also makes them careless."

"Huh." He blinked his eyes one more time, satisfied that they were fine again. "So every time a human thinks they see something, it's a vampire?"

"Most of the time," she nodded. "Or they are just seeing things."

"Ah."

"Ready?" she asked, giving him more time to recuperate his eyes.

"To where?" Naruto looked at her, a bit confused. Was the lesson over?

"Shopping," Paramour replied and scolded his horrified expression. "Hey! Don't make that face. Or do you want to be out of ramen?"

"Okay, okay," the blonde said, defeated and followed her down the hill.