Chapter sixteen: Hostile behavior

Silent shadow stalking

Sly slithering serpent

Skeptical straying spirit

Shivering sick skeletons

Sadistic smiling scelerat

Survive sinister surprises

Suppress sorcery

Each line represents something I have to overcome and everything in the end ties together.

I am going to go madly insane.

Okay, okay, think.

I groaned, feeling my brain fume as I overworked it.

Oh this is going to be a bitch.

What could "Silent shadow stalking" mean? What are normally shadows? Does he mean vampires? Vampires aren't necessarily silent though…Okay, umm…sly slithering serpent…well that's definitely evil. Serpent has always meant evil. Skeptical straying spirit…skeptical means distrust and straying…betrayal?

"Great news Serena-chan!" Kiren barged into my room, nearly taking out the door and I jumped at the sudden noise.

Kiren released a small, apologetic gasp and held her hand over her mouth. "I am so sorry! I didn't mean to scare you!"

I sighed lightly, a bit annoyed but forced myself to smile to cover up my irritation. "It's fine Kiren. It's not like it takes much to scare me anyway."

"So what's the big news?" I asked curiously, closing yet another book.

"Well, Chairman Cross found—is something the matter Serena-chan?" She blinked, concerned.

I frowned, knowing that she had caught my scowl when she said 'Chairman Cross' but I shrugged indifferently in response. "No, go on. What did he find?"

She stared at me for a few seconds, probably debating upon whether to press me for more information or let it be, and then said, "He found a man—well, a boy…near one of the school's stables. The boy was unconscious but they think you know him."

One of my eyebrows perked up. "I know him?"

"He has a patch of skin missing from his arm, and according to Yagari-sama, they found a patch of skin where they found you," she explained slowly and I held up one finger to put her on pause.

"Did the guy have dark hair and other tattoos?" I asked, my tone skeptical and my voice was shaky.

I was trying not to sound too hopeful.

"Oh so you do know him!" she smiled, her eyes twinkling, but seconds later they widened in shock. "Serena-chan—what's wrong?"

She took a hold of my hand as I started to weep in relief.

Jade was alive.

I bickered with everyone who came in to see me. Anyone who was brave enough to see me.

I was a walking, talking bomb.

And with good reason.

They weren't permitting me to visit Jade because I wasn't in the best condition to move around and because they were treating him carefully. The logical side of me told me to calm down, be reasonable and allow him some rest. The other, screaming, part of me wanted to see him pronto. It wasn't till three days later did the Chairman finally agreed to let me see him, and when I heard the news I almost—almost—forgave the Chairman and called him father.

So here I am…with Yuuki Cross.

The prefect stood centimeters in front of me, suddenly very quiet and tentative, and she was walking at a snail's pace, which irritated me beyond belief. I was so accustomed to her bubbly behavior and hyperactive cheerfulness that her quiet, cautious behavior was getting on my nerves. I frowned, narrowing my eyes in annoyance at her back and folded my arms over my chest as I followed her to the room where Jade was being held. After ten minutes of the awkward and tense silence, I stopped walking and continued to glare at her. She, hearing the abrupt silence of my steps, paused and hunched her shoulders.

"You know, I don't hate you," I mumbled brashly, loud enough so she could hear me.

She turned to face me, an apprehensive expression on her face and I sighed loudly.

"Honest," I said, staring at the floor as if the pattern had finally captured my attention. "I don't hate you. I mean, yeah, he gave me up and adopted you instead, but I don't hate you."

A small, hesitant smile gradually welcomed me and she surprised me with a bow. "Thank you."

I felt myself twitch uncomfortably, feeling odd that she bowed and began walking past her.

I quietly, maybe even boorishly, muttered. "For what? It's not like you told him to leave me behind."

"Oh, so…you don't resent me, but you resent him."

"I have a lot to resent him for," I replied coldly, not appreciating her soft voice.

"He's not a bad father, Serena…a little strange and on the childish side, but a good father," she whispered, as if she didn't know whether or not it would have been a good idea for me to hear her, but I did hear her.

Courtesy of the heightened senses.

I stopped walking to shoot her a scornful smirk. "Maybe, but I wouldn't know that, now would I?"

She made no response but began walking again, leading me to Jade's room and she paused right in front of the door.

I wasn't ready to go in yet so I stalled.

"Say Yuuki, do you know that Zero is a vampire?" I questioned quietly so Jade wouldn't hear me, but I already knew the answer.

If Takuma had been telling the truth, which he was, then Zero would have told Yuuki that he was a vampire because of his feelings towards her.

"Yes…I do…" she answered slowly.

"So why aren't you afraid of him?" I asked, facing her now with curiosity. "And why are you engaged already? Aren't you a bit young?"

I was asking her personal questions on purpose. I wanted to see how much I could get away with asking and how guilty she felt. Normally, if a person felt guilty and was in her position, they would answer every question I blurted just because they felt like they owed me, but I was expecting something different from the female guardian of the school.

She sighed, appearing slightly nervous and switched her weight to her other leg.

"It's a rather long, complicated story that I do not wish to talk about right now…maybe a rain check?" Her voice sounded hopeful and a small smile was on her face.

I smiled back, approving of her answer. "Sure thing."

When I reached his door, I paused in front of it with one hand on top of the doorknob, feeling anguished.

Was I ready to face him?

Seeing him didn't just mean becoming certain he was all right-- it meant that I could get the facts straight.

How did it happen? I knew they were killed, but how were they taken…were they kidnapped from their own houses? When did it happen? Were there any last words? Did she hate me in the end? Did they hate me in the end? Did she regret being my friend, seeing how in the end it only led to her demise? How did he escape? How did he get here?

It was enough to trigger another panic attack.

It was, after all, my fault he was injured in the first place.

"Are you okay?" she inquired, interrupting my thoughts and placed one hand on my shoulder.

I sighed heavily, shrugging her hand off. "Yea…I think so…"

She opened the door for me since I was taking too long and I forced my legs to cooperate with me.

The guest room that Jade was staying in was completely dark. I could only see the navy blue curtains that were pulled over the windows and the blinds that were closed tightly because a tiny ray of sunlight was warming them. It was stuffy in the room to the point I wondered if he was able to breathe. I could smell blood and it was fresh, and it was driving my nose up the frickin' wall.

"Yuuki…how bad is he?" I asked, assuming that the blood belonged to him.

"They amputated his arm," she explained, her voice heavy. "The wound got infected so they had to remove it to save his life."

I bit deeply into my bottom lip to keep my tears in check; guilt rushing into my veins again and I could taste my own blood in my mouth. "Is he asleep?"

"Yes."

I sighed in relief, not feeling brave enough to talk to him right now. Especially in his condition. I took my time getting closer to the bed where an IV bag was hooked up to his left arm. His body was covered in bandages, caked with dirt and blood. I couldn't see his face. In fact, I probably wouldn't have recognized him at all if it weren't for his other tattooes. The more I observed him and his injuries the more I wanted to touch him just to convince myself that he was really in the room.

Saying that I cried would have been an understatement.

I bawled so much that moment that I put an infant's tears to shame.

Touching his greasy hair and his rough bumpy skin caused my body to shake with remorse but it lifted a weight off of my shoulders at the same time.

"I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…"

I heard the door close gently behind me and I couldn't resist anymore. Once Yuuki was gone, I rested my ear on top of Jade's chest to hear his beating heart, but I did it carefully so I wouldn't cause him additional pain.

Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba-dump.

It was a steady beat—the most beautiful sound I've ever heard.

He was real.

He was here.

And he was alive.

The sun's light didn't pour into my current residence like it poured into the room I had with Kiren. It stayed at one side of the room as if it didn't want to touch my skin until evening came crawling to me, slowly settling onto me. I stared out the window, watching the Night Class students head out for the 'exchange' period. Mr. Bunny had paused once before leaving and glanced behind him to wave at me, as if he had known that I was watching.

A part of me was disturbed that he, in fact, had known that I was watching, however, the other part of me was comforted by this fact. It was nice to have someone on your side who somewhat understood you…even if it was a guy.

I knew that in the months to come I was going to become distant with Kiren, who knew nothing of vampires and therefore I wouldn't be able to talk to her about certain things that I knew would occur. And I knew that my bond with Jade was going to be very, intensely complicated.

So even though Mr. Bunny was a vampire and that we argued a lot, it was still a relief to have someone who I could talk to.

It made me feel—strangely--connected to him. If not even the slightest dependent on him too.

So I waved back, half frowning and half delighted, and he joined with the rest of his classmates.

"Fontana, have you finished your homework?" Zero's voice interrupted my gazing. He stood impatiently at the door with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Yea, it's all there," I answered, giving him my entire make up work and the new work that the teachers assigned to me.

He shot me a surprised look, completed with an arched eyebrow. "You managed to complete everything?"

I nodded solemnly, not wanting to explain to him for the sudden workaholic phase.

Jade's presence had tinkered my nerves, and to keep myself from worrying about him and thinking about all of the stressful questions that came along with him, I occupied myself with schoolwork, which did great wonders for me since I got the teachers off my ass.

"Shouldn't you be out there with Yuuki?" I asked, watching the other prefect scold the fan girls for pushing.

"She can take care of them herself," he reasoned.

I frowned, tapping my fingers on the window frame and I avoided Zero's face because I knew what he was doing. He was watching me silently, as if he was trying to analyze my behavior and peek into my eyes to see what was truly bothering me.

"This is your last night here," he spoke suddenly.

"Oh?" I said, sounding uninterested.

"The chairman wants you to return to your room tomorrow," he explained, keeping his tone lethargic.

"That's fine," I replied soberly.

"Any luck on the riddle?"

"I'm still working on it," I said.

Zero didn't say anything. He didn't have to. I could almost feel the waves of concern radiating off of him, but he left me alone with my thoughts and anxieties, returning to his prefect duties.

I was cleaning out the room and packing my medications when Mom showed up, and without a word she pulled me into a hug.

"Have much did you drink?" I frowned, though I didn't smell anything.

She playfully whacked me on the head. "I just wanted to hug you."

"I know and that's why I asked," I sneered and I turned to face her. "So what else do you want? 'Cause I highly doubt you came by just to molest me."

She frowned at me, offended. "I would never molest you."

"You just did."

She gave me a pointed glare.

"Okay, okay, so what's up? You usually have a lecture to go along with those few seconds of molestation."

"Serena," she said warningly.

"Am I allowed to joke?" I stuck out my tongue at her.

"I wanted to say thank you," she said quietly, giving me a lovingly stare and she gently removed the stray hairs out of my eyes.

"For what?" I questioned without looking. I suddenly became more focused on cleaning my room since I didn't want to accidentally leave anything behind. There was no way in hell I would come back to the Moon dorms just to get it.

"It's better to die in the arms of a loved one rather than in the arms of a stranger," she answered.

That definitely struck an extremely sensitive chord in me and that alone forced me to stop moving. We stared at each other until she finally gathered enough courage to continue her little speech.

"I'm glad that it'll be you," she said with a sad smile. "It will-"

"I'm going to kill him too, you know that right?" I interrupted coldly. "I honestly don't understand why you hired him in the first place. You should have just asked the Chairman."

Mom cleared her throat. "Serena, your Dad secretly provided me with…blood pills…for a number of years…however, my body began rejecting them…so I-"

"So Mr. Tampon has been giving you his blood instead?" I made a disgusted face. "Isn't that taboo?"

"It is, but it's working…but it'll be a matter of time before I'll no longer have any control over myself," she explained.

"So that's why you hired him? He was your lover at first and then he became your hunter…" I tried to reason.

"I hired him because he didn't want anyone else to do it," she said.

"Funny, the last time he and I chatted he didn't sound like he gave a damn about you," I snorted. "Just loved to fuck you."

She stared at me in disbelief, her face glowing with shame. "You…you know?"

"That you're sleeping with him?" I sarcastically laughed at her. "I had doubts at first, but he sure cleared that up."

She remained silent, which gave me the opportunity to take out all of the emotions that I had kept bottled up inside on her.

"Damn it Mom! Why are you with him? That asshole doesn't care about you! He just wants someone to fuck!" I yelled. "And you're like the perfect play thing he can have because as soon as he gets tired of you he won't even have to break up! Just slit your throat!"

WHACK

I'm starting to think I'm slightly masochist—what with all these slaps I've been receiving lately.

"You wouldn't understand," she cried, tears rolling down her cheeks and her face became puffy.

"Try me," I sniffed, massaging my left cheek.

"I was…lonely…okay?" she sobbed.

"Lonely? You had me!" I argued.

"It's different!" she snapped.

"How the hell is that different? I'm your fucking family! The only one you have left!"

She shook her head violently and mumbled, "It's different."

"How so?" I growled.

"You wouldn't understand. You never dated. You don't know what it's like to have a man---and that's what I wanted!"

"So you're saying that because I don't have a penis—that I didn't matter?" I retorted.

"What are you talking about? Of course you matter!"

"You just said that you needed a man! And I'm not a man! Which is the Chairman's fault because his stupid sperm said I was going to be a girl! I'M SO SORRY THAT I DON'T HAVE A PENIS AND THAT MY COMPANY WASN'T GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOU!" I screamed hysterically.

"Did I come in at the wrong time?" Yagari-sama stood at the doorway, a hesitant expression on his face.

We glared at him and shouted at the same time, "LEAVE!"

We didn't have to tell him twice, but before he managed to scram I heard him mutter something about 'women and their monthly dues'. It was a good thing he was out of range because I would have shouted at him that my ridiculous argument with my mother had nothing to do with our 'monthly dues'.

We just needed a dumb reason to explode.

"I'M GOING BACK TO MY OLD ROOM!" I yelled at her and she stood up quickly, getting in my face.

"AND I'M GOING TO ADAM!"

"YEA! GO AHEAD AND CRY TO HIM!" I screamed at her as she practically ran down the hall.

"I'M NOT GOING TO CRY! I'M GOING TO SCREW HIM WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT!" She screamed back.

"THAT'S RIGHT! TELL THE WHOLE FUCKING WORLD WHO YOU'RE SCREWING WITH! THAT'LL TEACH ME!" I screamed again, causing the halls of the dorm to echo with my words and a group of Night Class students stepped out into the hallway to see the commotion.

Their eyes landed on me.

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU STARING AT!" I screeched and most the students returned to their rooms while others narrowed their eyes at me as if they wanted a challenge.

"Serena, are you ready to return to your dorm?" A polite, gentle voice questioned me and I turned to face Takuma, which explained why the vampires weren't attacking me.

I didn't even bother to smile at him and continued to glare. "Almost."

"Is there anything you want to do before leaving?" he inquired.

"Why the fuck do you care?" I snapped.

To my surprise, Takuma didn't show any signs at all of reprimanding me and kept his gentle smile. "Bad day?"

I felt a wave of calm come over me and I exhaled. "You have no idea."

"Would you like to talk about it?"

"No," I grumbled. "Now if you'll excuse me I have to go find a Pope."

He gave me a puzzled look. "Why?"

"Because I need him to exorcise my mind," I answered shortly.

He stared at me for a few seconds before asking, "Do I want to know why you want to exorcise your mind?"

"I have unholy images in my head, okay? Leave me alone," I growled, picking up the pace as I shoved my belongings into a plastic bag.

"…Unholy images…?"

"Mom. Adam. Plus a bed. Without clothes…need I say more?" I snapped, my eyes narrowing into dangerous slits.

Takuma chuckled, holding his hands up in defeat. "No ma'am."

"I'm not letting you leave until I see you eat something," Kiren frowned. "This isn't like you…at all."

"I know," I groaned, not bothering to remove my forehead from the cool cafeteria table.

"You need to eat," she insisted, picking up my fork. "Come on, lift your head up. I'll force feed you if I have to."

I slowly shook my head from side to side and rejected the food. "No Kiren. Just...drop it."

"Serena-chan…" Kiren pouted and then she sighed. "Should I get you some juice?"

"No."

"Chocolate?"

"No."

"Ice cream?"

Kiren suddenly stood up, causing the chair to roll on its side. "All right! Who are you and what have you done to my Serena-chan? The Serena-chan I know would never refuse ice cream!"

"Relax Darako, just provide her with a knife and let her kill herself. She'll be doing the world a favor." I heard Asura's voice cut in, her tone spiteful.

Before anyone could blink I slammed my tray of food sideways so that when I did hit her, I got her entire face.

Blood began to spurt out of her nostrils, causing her to choke in shock and she glanced at me in horror. I was ready to hit her again when Zero caught my arm in mid-swing and dragged me away from my victim, but even though I was far away from Asura I could still hear her ridiculous shrieks.

"Don't fucking touch me!" I snapped, snatching back my arm.

"Fontana! Learn to control your temper!" he grunted, stalking after me as I tried to get away from him. "Are you listening to me?"

Truthfully, I wasn't.

I just wanted to get away.

I heard a sound. I'm not exactly positive of what it was, but it sounded akin to a baby's cry. I followed the noise, trusting my new ears and found myself staring at an enormous pile of trash. It was if the whole city had dumped their unwanted belongings into one area, judging by the piles upon piles upon piles of garbage, and it reeked.

Forcing myself to focus, I ignored the horrible stench of garbage and finally discovered what I was looking for.

It was a baby girl wrapped up in a trash bag and she was covered in blood, clearly indicating that she was newborn. She was wailing for someone to pick her up, arms just waving around everywhere and kicking her legs furiously to free herself of the trash bag.

"Oh my God," I said under my breath, wanting to pick up the child but too afraid to do so.

But I couldn't just leave her there.

I sighed in frustration, memories of my freshmen year pouring into my head. I was walking back home from school and a strange girl I never met before nearly knocked me over. After I yelled at her for being so rude, she took off running like she was about to be charged as a criminal. Ironically, after she left and I turned around, I found a trashcan on its side and there was a dead baby in it. Apparently the girl had left it there a week ago and came back to check on it to see if it was still alive. When she realized the baby had died, she took off running and she was probably afraid I would report her, which I did but she was never found.

The baby was buried soon after.

I cried bitter tears at the burial.

The stupid girl could have at least given the child to an adoption center. I mean what the hell was her problem? What did the baby ever do to her? She should have faced her damn responsibilities and consequences of having sex.

Stupid, stupid girl.

I shook my head to clear my mind, sighed and stared at the little baby in front of me.

What the hell was I going to do? Should I take her with me? Or should I just take pity on her and end her life here?

"You're having issues again," Damon's voice brought me out of my pondering.

I found him standing next to me, looking at the wailing baby girl with a kind, protective expression.

"You have the weirdest dreams when your mind is exhausted," he said with a hint of humor.

I stared at the baby and then back at him. "You mean to say that I'm just dreaming about this baby because I'm exhausted?"

"Sorta---the baby girl represents you." He poked me.

I stared at him in bewilderment. "Me?"

"Yes you, didn't I just say that?" he explained, frowning.

"Oh, I see what you're saying. I feel powerless to help, so I'm in baby form 'cause babies are useless and powerless," I muttered and the baby girl vanished, not to my surprise. "You know, sometimes I hate being logical."

My brother eyeballed me. "Why?"

" 'Cause I'm always right."

He rolled his eyes and pretended to sniff the air. "I smell ego."

"Good for you. I smell trash. Can you make it go away?" I frowned in disgust, pinching my nose with my fingers.

"It's your dream weirdo."

"Oh. Yea. Forgot about that," I mumbled and shook my head viciously.

With that, the entire scene became like a watercolor painting and I was sitting in a whole new area. I stood up and dusted my rear off, recognizing my location immediately and sighed sadly. I could hear the laughter of the deceased children behind me as I stared at him, seeing a younger, male version of my mother. He stared back at me, his pale, transparent body sat on an old wooden bench and he swung his legs playfully.

He was concerned.

"I'm fine," I told him, but I didn't sound too convincing.

"You're upset about Jade, you're angry with Mom, I can definitely tell you want to kill Mr. Tampon and you haven't forgiven Dad yet," he said. "I think that's far from fine."

"Stay OUT of my HEAD," I growled.

"I could help," he offered after a period of silence.

"Help me how?" I looked at him with a frown. "Jade's a mess because of me-"

"Oh I didn't mean I could help Jade. You're on your own for that one."

But I continued on as if I didn't hear him. "Mom's...not going to go there...Mr. Tampon is going to die. No ifs, ands or buts there. And-,"

"I wasn't arguing," he chuckled, cutting in again. "Mr. Tampon definitely deserves to be tormented."

"And I'm not going to forgive the Chairman until he comes to talk to me! For crying fuck's sake! He has yet to come talk to me!" I shouted.

"I live in your head, Serena, you don't have to yell. It echoes in your head, did you know that?" Damon scowled.

There was a deafening pause of silence.

"Lots on your plate," he said.

I groaned, entirely frustrated and I felt like hitting something.

Hard.

And then all of his comments hit me.

"What do you mean I'm on my own when it comes to Jade?" I snapped.

He shrugged coolly. "I've never had a friend Serena. I wouldn't know what to do with him. Besides, what exactly do you have in mind?"

I sighed, throwing my hands into the air. "I don't know! Protect him?"

"Protect him from what? Who? How?"

I paused thoughtfully and then said, "Me."

Damon eyed me curiously. "Yourself?"

"I'm the one who got him into trouble," I answered sourly.

"It's not as if you ordered those vampires to attack him," he reasoned.

"Yea? Well I might as well have. I mean---God!"

He stared at me blankly. "Continue…"

"Well they attacked him because of me. ME! If he didn't know me he'd be fine! He wouldn't be a target!" I began venting, my hands waving in every direction.

He sat silently, patiently waiting for me to finish.

"But he does know me! And they are after him! And I can't protect him from vampires by myself," I cried, my voice turned into a pathetic wail. "I'm not strong enough."

"So what do you plan on doing?"

I bit my bottom lip, sniffing. "Tell him we're not friends anymore…?"

Damon laughed at me and patted me on the head. "Ah…good luck with that."

I snapped. "What do you suppose I do then?"

"How about solving that riddle so you can start your training?" he replied with a grin. "Or did you forget you had that option?"

I sighed in frustration, flopping myself back onto the ground and I sprawled myself out. "Forget it. The riddle is too complicated."

"That's what I meant when I said I could help you."

I snorted scornfully. "No, Yagari-sama said no help."

He tilted his head to the right playfully. "Yagari-sama? That's the first time I heard you call someone by a respectful name."

"The man saved me twice… I can show him some respect," I rationed and repeated to myself a line from the riddle, "Sadistic smiling scelerat."

"Well, that definitely means villain."

"Shut up!" I shouted, suddenly on my feet. "You're not supposed to be helping!"

"He said you couldn't get help from your parents or friends," he stated calmly. "Nothing about a dead brother."

I felt temptation squeezing my hand but I firmly shook my head. "NO! I'm not getting help!"

"But scelerat really does mean villain. So a sadistic smiling villain…that you have to overcome," he explained.

"DAMN IT! SHUT UP!"

"And a silent shadow stalking…" he continued, ignoring me.

"DAMON! STOP IT!" I shouted, covering his mouth with my hand, forgetting that the living people can't touch the dead.

"Why not? Think of me as a part of your conscious, which I am anyway."

"LALALA I'M NOT LISTENING! LALALALALA!" I screamed, covering my ears.

Damon, if it was actually possible, turned red in the face. "ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME? I SAID I'M A PART OF YOUR CONSCIOUS!"

I paused in my childish rant and stared at him, completely caught unaware. "I thought you were just a ghost?"

A vein appeared on his forehead. "Well, no, you see…if you were to see a psychologist, which I think would be a great idea right now, they would tell you that the people in your dreams are actually a part of you."

"So you're basically inside my head?" I summarized, ignoring the therapy-needing comment.

"Yes, Serena, I live in your head."

And it's off to the psych ward I go!

Yet I couldn't help myself. "Scary place isn't it?"

"Nah," he smirked humorously. "Most of the time it's void."

"Smart ass," I retorted with a pout and sighed, giving in. "Okay, explain everything."

Okay! Thank God! I finally finished this chapter! I figured that even though I'm pro-choice, Serena would definitely be pro-life 'cause of her father's actions.

And yes, in psychology we are taught that the people in your dreams are actually a part of you and they're trying to teach you something or alert you to something.

The fight Serena had with her Mom was...childish and immature, but I'm pretty sure everyone has had one of those fights with their parents. And Serena's hostile behavior is influenced by her guilt and 'powerless' feeling.

I really don't like this website's new layout. It took me a while to figure it out.