(Told you I would update more frequently.)

This is a pretty significant chapter, where things really start to pick up, so prepare yourselves...

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The next day, we met with Cloud again, in our office, and he suggested we spent the day out looking for Sephiroth. "Just looking anywhere?" said Donald.

"We can't do a whole lot," said Cloud. "However, I do have some technicians behind the scenes who will be monitoring whatever they can get their hands on. They will guide us." He handed me an earpiece. "Here. We can split up into two groups. I will search one area, you three another."

I took the earpiece. "Is this for your technicians?"

He nodded. "That earpiece will put you in contact with Yuffie. She's talkative, but she's good at her work. If she finds something, she'll let you know."

I turned the earpiece on and fixed it to my head. "Tifa, he's connected," said Cloud, talking through his own earpiece.

A second later, I heard a voice through mine. "Hello? Hello? This is Ground Control to Major Sora. Do you read me?"

I blinked. "Is this Yuffie?"

"Sure is!" The voice was female, and cheerful-sounding.

"You know my name?"

"Oh, yeah. I did a whole background check on you for Cloud."

I blinked again. "Uh-huh."

"Sorry if that sounded creepy. But, hey, it's what I do."

"Has she gotten down to business yet?" asked Cloud, sounding a little impatient.

"Uh…"

"Hey! I heard that!" came Yuffie's voice.

I flinched. "A little loud, Yuffie."

"Oh. Sorry." Her voice became quieter, and it sounded like she was speaking to someone else in the room with her. "Hey, Tifa, could you tell Cloud to cool down for once in his life?"

After a moment, Cloud's eyes narrowed. "Tifa, tell Yuffie that time is of the utmost essence here, and wasting it could very well mean our downfall."

Another pause. "Tell Cloud that I'm trying to be friendly, and get to know better the people who we'll be working with."

"Tell Yuffie that she can get to know them while we work. We need to get started as soon as possible."

Over my headset, I heard another woman's voice, saying faintly, "How about I tell you both that standing here arguing is wasting more time than we can afford? Now shut up and let's get going."

Cloud nodded. "Right." He turned his attention back to me. "I'll start from here and go north. You, south. If you see anything, tell Yuffie, and she'll get the information to me. If she or Tifa sees anything, they'll tell us. Got it?"

I nodded. "Got it."

"Good. Then let's go."

However, as we had proven when looking for Kairi, indiscriminately searching New York City for a single individual was far from efficient. We spent the entire day going around, and nothing yielded results. That is, concerning Sephiroth. Yuffie, true to Cloud's word, kept up a fairly constant stream of chatter, at least for the first couple of hours. As she explained, she liked knowing things about people, and so I was treated to an inquisition of my likes, dislikes, career, and family. (That last one I didn't share much information about, not considering myself close enough to Yuffie to divulge my private information.) I ended up telling her a modified version of how I got into the business of hunting supernatural creatures, which she seemed to take a fair interest in. She even had me give the earpiece to Donald and Goofy so she could talk to them and learn about them, too.

Around mid-afternoon, though, she began to run out of things to say, as we continued our search with no results. "Still nothing, Yuffie?" I asked as the afternoon began to wane.

"No. I've hacked into people's accounts to see if they've posted any pictures or videos that have him in the background, or something. I've even hacked into a few security cameras around the city, but nothing has picked up any sign of him."

I gritted my teeth. "And there's no way we can do this any easier?"

"We're extremely lucky to have found him when we did, Sora. But we may not be able to pinpoint his exact location. It's happened before."

Great. So there might be a vampiraga in New York City, but we had no idea where he was, or if we would even find him. "But keep your chin up," Yuffie continued. "At least if we don't find him, you guys won't have to have an encounter with a perfect vampire."

I sighed. "But other people will."

She fell silent, the meaning of those words heavy on our mood.

Eventually after afternoon had transitioned into evening and the sun had nearly sunk, we decided to call it a day. Cloud didn't want to stop, and tried to get us to continue, but the three of us were spent, and, as we argued, wouldn't be very much use against a vampiraga in this state. Finally, he relented, though grudgingly, and told us to be prepared for the same thing the next day.

We made our way back to our homes. I nodded hello to Roxas as I came to my apartment. "Everything holding up okay?" he asked.

I shrugged. "A little tough right now."

"Hm. Well, hope things get better."

"Thanks."

I went in and headed up to my apartment, looking forward to seeing Kairi (I had called the apartment to let her know I would be late) and spending a relaxing evening with her. "Hi," I called as I entered.

"Hi, Sora," she said, walking up to me with a bright smile. "How'd work go today?"

"Tiring," I said. "We looked all over the damn city for that vampire. And we might not even find him."

She put her arms around me. "Well, if you don't find him, then you won't have to face him, right?"

"Yeah…but we won't be able to stop him, either."

"Mm." She kissed me. "That help at all?"

I smiled. "It did."

"How about I help you some more, then?" She kissed me again, but was interrupted by my ringing phone. "Ugh, bad timing," I said, digging it out of my pocket.

"Who is it?" asked Kairi.

I shook my head. "I don't know. I don't recognize the number." I sighed. "It had better not be a solicitor…" I answered. "Hello?"

"Sora?"

I frowned. That voice… "Yuffie?"

"Sora, I found him."

My eyes widened. "What?"

"He was going in to your apartment building."

I froze. "The vampiraga's here?"

"I think so. I found a picture of him online, posted just a second ago. He was talking to your doorman, it looks like."

My blood went cold. "Roxas…"

"Sora, stay calm. Cloud has heard, and he'll be there in a moment."

"I don't have a moment! He could kill Roxas!"

"Sora, don't—"

I hung up and strode towards the door, gripping my gun. "You're going to try and face the vampiraga all alone?" said Kairi incredulously.

"I can't just leave him!" I said. I tossed her my phone. "Here. Call Donald and Goofy and let them know."

"And leave you to do things by yourself?"

"It's too dangerous, and you're not armed."

"Your gun will barely do a thing!"

My face set into a determined expression. "I have to try." And, not wanting to waste any more time on words, I ran out.

Too impatient to wait for the elevator, I bolted down the stairs, catching the looks of a couple that was climbing them. "Sorry," I said quickly as I descended, not slowing down. As I did so, I became very irritated at my living situation. Why did I have to be all the way on the eighth floor?

Finally, I reached the bottom, and raced out into the lobby, my face turned to the front door. To my horror, Roxas was nowhere to be seen. Nor was anyone else, for that matter. I was just about to run outside, hoping that they hadn't gone too far, when something caught my eye, and I turned sideways to the front desk.

I gasped. Standing behind it, looking directly at me, was Sephiroth.

He was exceptionally intimidating in person. Standing tall, with broad shoulders and chest, he would have been formidable even if he had been just a human. But complementing his figure were his eyes, burning red, and filled with triumph.

For a moment, I stood still, unable to move. Look away! I thought. He could hypnotize you! I regretted for an instant not putting on my contacts, then remembered that they would not protect against the powerful hypnotizing powers of a perfect vampire.

"Well," said Sephiroth, speaking at last, "we meet at last, Sora Parker."

I blinked. "How do you know my name?"

He smiled. "I've been keeping an eye on you for a few days. But, more importantly, your little friend in your apartment."

My heart rose to my mouth. He knew about Kairi? "Wh…what do you want with her?"

"I need to save her."

"Save her?"

He nodded. "From you. You're a self-righteous fool who thinks of himself as a romantic hero, and you think that your relationship with her is going to work out. I am here to bring you back to reality. I will show her that she cannot live with humans. She must embrace her destiny as a creature of the night."

"She has no destiny!" I argued. "She was given her lot unfairly, and she's been struggling with it her whole life!"

"Is that because she doesn't want to be separate from human society? She wants to be accepted?" He glared at me. "Even loved?"

"What's wrong with that?" I demanded.

"She wants to be human. She is not human. She is a vampire, a deadly being of darkness, and she must learn to act like one." He indicated himself. "And I am here to teach her to do so."

"Oh? And how are you going to do that?"

He grinned. "Simple. I am going to wait for her to come down and join you, and then, I will take her away."

I raised my gun at him. "You stay away from her."

He laughed, a cold, hard laugh. "And you honestly think you can stop me? You have no power over me, little human." His smiled broadened. "You all are simply pawns in my game. Even your hunter friend and his technicians."

I froze. "What?"

"That's right, I know about them. I was listening, just this morning, when you met in your office." He smirked. "You were looking for me, but you had no idea how close I really was."

What…? How much had he overheard? "What did you hear?" I asked, thinking of something: if I could stall for time, maybe Cloud could get here, and do something. He was the expert in dealing with vampires, after all.

"A good deal," said Sephiroth. "And I used it to my advantage." He gestured outside of the building. "It was a simple matter of getting someone to take a picture of this building, with me talking to your doorman, and place it online. I knew your technician friends would pick it up fairly quickly." He smiled again, baring his sharp teeth. "And I knew, once you saw the danger your friend was in, that you would come running down to save him, and she would follow."

Roxas… "What have you done with Roxas?" I said.

"With whom?"

"The doorman! Where is he?"

"Oh, yes, him." He glanced at the floor to his left. "He's just taking a little nap."

I followed his gaze, and saw a form slumped against the wall behind the desk. "Roxas!"

Sephiroth snorted. "Don't tell me you think you can wake him up like that. He will not wake unless I tell him to."

I glared at him. "He's served his purpose for you. Now let him go!"

"But why? He is a young, healthy male…" His smile broadened. "Full of blood…"

No… He couldn't kill Roxas. I had to stop him. But, before I could think of anything, I heard footsteps behind me, and "Sora!"

Sephiroth raised his head as I turned. "Kairi! Get out of here!"

"Well, well, well," said Sephiroth, an unmistakable hint of triumph in his voice. "Took you long enough."

Kairi stopped, glaring at him defiantly. "What are you talking about?"

"Why, we've been waiting for you," he said.

"Kairi, run!" I yelled. "He wants to turn you into a killer, like him!"

"I want to help you realize what your true place in life is," said the vampiraga. "And it is not with him."

Kairi looked at me, then shook her head at him. "No, it's not going to work. I'm staying with Sora."

He raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And, pray tell, what makes you think you can stop me?"

"You'll never convince me," said Kairi fiercely. "I went through that hell already. Sora's taught me that just because some vile asshole made me what I am, it doesn't mean I have to be a terror to humans!"

Sephiroth blinked. "You know, Kairi, if we're going to get along, you really shouldn't insult me like that."

Kairi frowned. "What, by saying that your plan won't work?"

"Well, that is an insult, but it's not what I was referring to. No, I was referring to your classification of me as a 'vile asshole.'"

Kairi blinked. "Wait…" A look of horror crossed her face, just as I registered what Sephiroth had meant. "No…it can't be…"

He nodded. "Yes. I was the one who made you a vampire."

Kairi stood, shocked, staring at the mysterious person from her past who was no longer mysterious. "No way…" she said.

"Indeed. It was St. Paul, Minnesota, wasn't it? 1999? You were a bit too much of an easy target, so I decided, on a whim, to transform you, instead of just killing you. I kept track of you for a while, but then had my attentions diverted elsewhere.

"And imagine my surprise when I come here, take an interest in an accused criminal, and find you taking an interest in him, as well." His face soured. "And then I find you consorting with a human, and knew I had to do something."

"Consorting?" Kairi's brows furrowed. "What do you know about us?"

The vampiraga made a face. "More than I would like to."

"You've been spying on us?"

"Yes. It was quite easy; your apartment doors aren't very thick and don't keep out sound well enough. Of course, there was the one time when I was interrupted…but that was quickly dealt with."

I frowned. "Interrupted?"

"A young man spotted me, and I didn't want anyone to know of my presence." He smiled. "So I took care of him."

A young man… A thought struck me. Was this the young man that had gone missing, Will Turner? "What did he look like?"

Sephiroth shrugged. "Young, short dark hair, a small beard. What does it matter?"

I glowered at him. He was embodying the very same principles for which I had once lashed out at Kairi: not thinking about or caring about his victims. "It matters because you took away a person's life!"

"I have been doing that for years. It is nothing new to me." He turned back to Kairi. "But enough of this talk. Shall we go?"

"I'm not going with you."

"No?" He raised an eyebrow. "Tell me something. Do you honestly believe that this human truly cares for you? Do you think that he will ever see you as an equal?"

She frowned. "Of course."

"You think that he can keep up his condition of seeing past your vampirism? You think that he will never, even in the deepest recesses of his mind, think of you as a predator? Of a threat to him?" He shook his head. "He will never be able to get over that. He will never lose that perception of you." He gestured towards the silver necklace that hung around Kairi's neck. "Look at that. He makes you wear such things because, deep down, he fears you. And fear will eventually lead to hatred."

Kairi shook her head. "You're wrong."

"Don't try to contradict me, girl. I have seen human civilizations rise and fall throughout the ages, and it is always the case that what humans fear, they come to hate."

She clutched the necklace. "Sora didn't make me wear this. I do it of my own accord." It was true; after our admission of feelings, I had not asked that Kairi wear my mother's silver necklace anymore, but she did it anyway.

"Why do you do it?" He peered at her. "I think it is because you secretly know that he is afraid of you. You want to dispel his fears." He shook his head. "They will never go away. He will cling onto them until his last days. He will never truly accept you." His eyes lit up. "But I will show you the way of the true vampire. I will acknowledge and accept your vampirism. I alone can give you what you truly need."

Kairi shook her head again. "No. Sora trusts me."

"Does he, now?" Sephiroth turned to me. "Well, let us find out. Tell me, human, have you managed to entirely shake the perception of her as a dangerous killer? Is there no part of your mind that secretly fears and hates her?"

I furrowed my brows. Had every part of my mind accepted and trusted Kairi? Did it even matter? "What does it matter?" I said angrily. "I, as a whole, accept her and love her. If there is a part of me that doesn't, I ignore it."

He grinned triumphantly. "But who's to say that one part of your mind won't become stronger?"

I shook my head. "You're just grasping at straws. You're trying to separate her from me."

"Of course," he said. "I am trying to prove that your relationship is detrimental for her."

"Well, you're not."

"Aren't I?" He turned to Kairi. "So, what think you now? You know some part of him doesn't trust you. Will you come with me?"

Kairi looked troubled, but shook her head. "No. I won't."

He stooped, picked up Roxas, then straightened back up. "I think you will."

I aimed my gun at his head. "Put him down."

He ignored me. "One last chance, Kairi," he said. "Come with me." He hefted Roxas's limp form. "We can enjoy a meal together."

That was the last straw. I pulled the trigger, shooting a bullet directly into the vampiraga's forehead.

He didn't even flinch. He just turned towards me, slowly. "Is that all?"

I fired two more shots, but neither had any more effect than the first. "You're lucky these aren't silver," I said, cursing myself for not having any beforehand.

"No, you're lucky they're not silver," he said. "If they were silver, I'd be angry. And if I was angry, it would mean that you would survive for much a shorter period of time."

I stood facing him, breathing heavily. Was there nothing I could do to save Roxas? Maybe, if I stalled for time a little longer, Cloud would arrive, and be able to help…

"Wait."

I turned to Kairi, who had spoken. "I'll make a deal with you," she said, facing Sephiroth.

He raised an eyebrow. "A deal?"

She nodded. "If you leave him behind," she indicated Roxas, "and leave him alone," she pointed at me, "then I'll come with you."

I stared at her. "What?"

Sephiroth snorted. "Why should I do that? I can take you with me whether you agree to come or not."

"But it will be much less of a hassle if I come quietly," she said. "And is he really worth that?" She indicated Roxas again. "He's just one human of many. If all you want is blood, couldn't you just pick up another one?"

I looked back and forth between the two, my brain processing the fact that Kairi had just grouped Roxas with all other humans, as food. But she was doing that just to convince Sephiroth, right?

Then I realized that, if her plan worked, she would end up going off with him. "Kairi, no," I said. "Don't give yourself up." She didn't think that I would end up distrusting her, did she?

She turned to me. I stared at her imploringly, hoping that Cloud would come soon, and prevent her from feeling like she had to make this sacrifice. Then, she heaved a sigh, and closed her eyes. When she opened them, they were filled with sadness. "Just let it happen, Sora," she said. "I mean, let's be honest: where was this relationship going? It was great, sure, but impractical." She shook her head. "I need to get back to reality. And…" She trailed off, and looked away.

I stared at her, disbelieving. Did she really mean that? Had she given up on everything we had worked for? "What…you're just going to give up on us? On me? Kairi, just because you're a vampire doesn't mean we can't maintain a relationship. Even if it ends up just being friends." I gestured to Sephiroth. "If you go with him, you'll return to your state of despair, of loneliness and isolation. Kairi, you don't have to put yourself through that again."

For an instant, she did nothing, and I could only stare at her and hope that my words had gotten through. But then, she moved. Still not looking at me, she unclasped her necklace and laid it on the front desk. Then, she turned to Sephiroth. "We should go."

I felt numb. No…then this was it? But…it seemed we had only just begun our relationship…

Sephiroth smiled. "Well chosen, my dear."

Kairi nodded at Roxas. "What about him?"

He shrugged. "It makes little difference to me. If you want me to leave him…" With one hand, he lifted Roxas and tossed him, sending the blond doorman flying and crashing into a wall, where he slid to the floor.

The sound jerked me out of my reverie, and I ran over to him. "Roxas?"

A groan escaped the doorman, and I felt a small surge of relief. At least he was alive, and it sounded as though he would wake soon. But Kairi…

I turned back around…but the room was empty. They were gone.

She was gone.

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So...thoughts? Reactions? I'll try not to keep you guys hanging for too long.