Beyond her office door Ria could hear her underlings scrambling to get away. All the workers on this floor knew the truth about their masters and so wasted no time running when told them she wanted this space cleared.

Ria gave them barely a thought. All her attention was focused on her visitor. He was filled with rage and barely contained violence. For once he seemed every inch the vampire despite being contained by the rosario at his wrist.

It was very attractive.

When it was clear he had no intention of hugging her she let her arms drop to her side.

"Well this is an unexpected pleasure brother dear. I hadn't thought I'd get to see you again until after your graduation." She looked past him. "Is Moka with you? Or did you come to see me on your own?" She gave him an inviting grin. "Have you finally gotten bored with her? Are you here for some of my special attention?"

"Shut up," he growled and took a step towards her. "I came here to talk to my father. He was afraid that what he'd done might ruin things between me and Moka and finally decided he had to tell me what was going on."

"Did he?" A single coal black eyebrow quirked up. "Well that was surprisingly honest of him. I wouldn't have expected it. He's so ordinary and weak I never would have thought he'd find the courage to come to you about our little affair. He's a very weak man you know."

"Don't talk about my father! You don't even know him!"

"Oh but I do Tsukune dear," she teased. "I know him quite… intimately." She let one hand slide slowly over her breasts. "I think it's you who do not know him. Do you think I forced him into having sex with me? I admit I had to trick him the first time and he tried to talk me out of it for the next couple of them, but that was months ago. He's been quite willing to be my little play thing since. He enjoys our sessions. I can't mark him up too badly as he has to go home to your mother. I'm much more gentle with him then I was with you." She let out a weary sigh. "He gave in too easily, I'd hoped he might be more of a challenge."

Tsukune growled. It was absolutely sickening to hear this from her. "He was afraid of what would happen if the truth came out. You threatened to ruin him if he didn't sleep with you."

She laughed. "Yes I did, but do you really think he hated every second of it? Getting to have sex with me and my body." She rocked her hips slowly back and forth as though swaying to some breeze. "How much did he tell you? Did he mention how much he loves having me on top?"

"Shut up!" He shouted. He walked up to her. "I don't want to hear any more of this!"

She ignored him and continued as though talking about the weather or about the latest gossip.

"Did he tell you how much he likes it when I suck him and lick him? I'm quite skilled at fellatio, but then you know that. I have to go slow or he comes immediately." She lowered her voice as though sharing a secret with him. "He's pretty small you know, nothing like you at all down there. You must get it from your mother's side of the family."

"SHUT UP!" He grabbed her by her shoulders and squeezed with inhuman might. "Shut your filthy mouth!"

She stopped and stared up into his eyes. They were filled with rage. His fingers were digging painfully into her. His hands were starting to crush like a steel vice.

"You're hurting me," she told him. Her breath shuddered and she licked her lips. "Do it more."

He shoved her away with a look of revulsion on his face. "Don't you have any shame at all?"

"Shame?" She shook her head slightly. "I have pride to overflowing, but not a drop of shame. What need does a vampire have of that? When you are entitled to take whatever you want there is never any reason to feel shame."

"You're not entitled to my father!"

"Oh but I am," she told him in a serene and caring tone. "He's entertaining, and I have to take my pleasures where I can. I've been ever so bored since you and little sister ran away back to school. I thought I might have a little fun with him until I could see you again."

"You only used him to hurt me," he told her accusingly.

"Well of course," she nodded. "That was part of the fun. Every time I fucked him I secretly hoped you would show up unexpectedly and walk in on us." She shut her eyes and hugged herself. "Thinking about that was the only way I could get off some times, your father having that tiny penis if his."

Tsukune stared at her. She was still treating all of this as just one huge joke. She didn't seem to care at all that he was on the verge of losing all self control.

"I can stand what you do to me but I won't let you hurt the people I love. I want you to leave Moka and my family alone."

She tilted her head slightly, her brown eyes glistening with amusement. "Or what brother dear? Tell me, what will you do?"

"I'll kill you," he ground out and placed a hand to the rosario at his wrist. He's had to fight a lot of battles since coming to Youkai and becoming a vampire, but he had never once uttered those words. Speaking them now he meant them. He was ready to kill he to protect his parents.

His words filled her with delight and she smiled radiantly. "Oh Tsukune darling you have no idea how long I have waited to hear you say that to me!" She put both arms behind her back and leaned forward playfully. "You? Kill me? Now that is an amusing thought."

Clink.

He pulled off his rosario and let it drop to the floor. instantly he was surrounded by demonic energy and his body transformed into that of a vampire. Now when he looked at her it was with red slitted eyes. They emanated even greater menace and hate. Those eyes held not a scrap of human feeling.

Seeing them made Ria shiver with pleasure. Ah, I knew playing with Taka would lead to this! All those mundane rendezvous were all worth it!

"I am not playing with you Ria," he spoke with a deeper richer voice than he had just a moment before. "I want you to agree to leave my family alone from now on or I really am going to kill you."

Clink.

Ria removed the rosario from around her neck and let it too fall to the ground. As Tsukune had she was transformed into a monster.

A beautiful, sensual monster that radiated desire along with an aura of raw power. "Oh me, oh my it really has been too long Tsukune darling." She invited him forward with a beckoning hand. "Come brother dear, I'll dance with you for a bit."

"That's IT!" She'd finally pushed him past his limits with her teasing manner and refusal to take any of this seriously. To her his father was nothing but a toy. She had used him merely to amuse herself and to hurt him. He couldn't forgive that.

With all his might he reared back and punched her in the jaw.

She made no effort to dodge or block. She stood her ground and waited for him as patiently as a lover awaiting a rendezvous. His fist connected with her face and sent her through the office wall. Wood and plaster filled the air and through the newly made hole Tsukune saw her crash into the outer office. Desks, chairs, computers, and all manner of equipment and office supplies went flying as Ria crashed into and through a dozen cubicles before at last coming to a stop and being buried under flimsy cubicle walls and a mound of broken furniture and equipment.

Stepping through the ragged hole in the wall Tsukune looked at the wreckage and nodded to himself with grim satisfaction. He's had to fight trolls, orcs, golems and other frightening monsters. None of them ever got up if he hit them like that.

The pile of wreckage was tossed aside and Ria stood up to casually brush off her dress. She looked over at him grinning. "Are you done already or is there more brother dear? Please don't disappoint me, I have waited so long for this. Let me feel it. Pour all of your rage and hate into me Tsukune darling." She once more beckoned him with her finger. "Show me that you care."

"Stop playing with me and take this seriously!"

He ran up to her and punched her again.

Once more she made no effort to dodge. More cubicle walls and desks were sent crashing as she went through them. Tsukune chased after her to give her no chance to recover. Obviously one punch would not be enough.

Before she could even land he was there delivering a lightning fast combination with inhuman might. Left, right, uppercut, cross punch. He sent her through yet another wall. Plaster dust filled the air and he coughed as he went through the newly made opening to continue the beating.

"Are you taking this seriously now Ria?" He demanded.

He had sent her into the break room. There were bags of chips and snacks and lunches all over the floor surrounding a flipped over fridge and four smashed vending machines. casting his eyes about he saw no sign of Ria though.

"Looking for me darling?" A feminine voice asked from behind.

He instantly jumped about to see her nonchalantly standing there still grinning at him. There were a couple tears in her dress and some stains, but otherwise she looked just fine. she certainly didn't look, like someone that had just taken a vicious beating.

"You have no idea how happy you've made me Tsukune darling," she told him sweetly. "Our time apart has only increased your passionate feelings for me. I am glad."

"The only feelings I have for you are hate!" His fist lashed out aiming for her mouth.

This time though he failed to connect. There was only air as he swung for her. She stepped to her right dodging him with ease.

"Didn't I tell you before? Love, hate, it's all the same. What counts is that you have strong feelings for me. Passion is what counts, and you are absolutely consumed with feelings for me."

She lifted her leg to slam a kick into the side of his chest. her long skirt was pulled back and he got just a flash of her shapely legs in black garters just before he was sent through the wall.

"It makes me happy to know you care," she told him.

Desks and cheap cubicle walls broke as he landed and went tumbling. He cried out in pain and he landed on the side she'd kicked him. The sudden sharp flashes of pain told him that ribs were broken. He put that aside and quickly scrambled to get back to his feet.

He saw her striding towards him across the office floor, hands at her side and not looking hurried or concerned.

"This is the final proof you know," she told him pleasantly. "You never fought back before, this proves how much you truly care about me."

"You think my wanting to kill you is proof that I care?" He asked incredulously. He watched cautiously as she approached and fell into a fighting stance.

"No, the fact you want to hurt me is proof that you care. Killing someone is nothing. It's an impersonal act most of the time," she said with a shrug. "That you want to beat me to death with your fists and make me suffer though is what counts."

As he watched she suddenly vanished with a blur.

He felt punches and kicks rain down on him from all directions. He could neither see nor sense them coming and had no hope of blocking or evading.

He tasted blood filling his mouth as he was knocked from one end of the floor to the other. Each punch, each kick, was like being hit by iron. He was being beaten bloody with no chance to fight back.

Before he knew it he was lying on the floor his clothes torn apart and every part of him hurting.

Looking up he noticed Ria coming out of her office with something in her hand.

It took him a few seconds to realize what it was.

"A gun?" He asked weakly. "Since when do vampires use guns?"

"Oh they're useful from time to time," she told him with a grin. She stood over him and pointed it at the spot between his eyes. To him the thing looked like a cannon. "This is a Smith and Wesson Model 500, it fires a 50 caliber round and is the most powerful handgun available. If I pull this trigger there won't be much left of your head, and even for a vampire that means death." She cocked the trigger with a loud 'click.' "Now then, I would like an apology from you for barging in and being so rude to me."

Despite the pain he grinned up at her. "Go screw yourself Ria."

She shook her head sadly. "Wrong answer Tsukune darling. Have a pleasant journey down to Hell."

She pulled the trigger.

Squirt.

"Ahhhhh!" He cried out as a stream of water hit him between the eyes. "It burns!"

She howled with laughter at his sudden pain.

He desperately wiped the water from his face as he glared at her. "A water gun?"

"Oh come now did you really think I was going to kill you?" She teased. "You are under my father's protection after all. You are also very precious to me, I certainly wouldn't kill you."

Squirt, squirt, squirt.

"Ahhhhhh! It's like acid!"

"Hurting you is another matter though," she laughed. "And some people say I have no sense of humor."

When it ran out of water she tossed it aside.

Ria looked about the ruined office floor. Walls had been knocked down, doors shattered, and she didn't think there was single desk or computer left intact anywhere. "It'll be a few days getting everything fixed. That will be really inconvenient. To say nothing of the expense." She smiled down at the bleeding and badly wounded Tsukune. "But that's all right, you are worth it after all. Honestly I haven't had this much fun since you and Moka ran off. It really is wonderful seeing you again."

Still defiant he tried to get up again.

"Oof." He grunted out as Ria stepped on his chest and pushed him back down.

"Now, now don't be greedy. Save some for later."

Coughing up blood he still tried to sit up but she had no trouble keeping him pinned to the floor.

"Let me share a secret with you brother dear," Ria said to him. "Vampires, unlike humans, grow stronger with age. Why do you suppose we are ruled by the Elders? Because they are wise and thoughtful?" She shook her head. "It's because they are the most powerful among us. My father is over a thousand years old and is one of the most powerful beings walking this earth. I am over two hundred and eighty years old. While you on the other hand have been a second born vampire for a little over a year. Think about it Tsukune."

"I have been training with Moka," he told her defiantly. "And I've had more than my share of fights."

"Yes, I am sure among all the weaker trash at that school of yours you're an absolute terror. You are a vampire after all. But to me that's equivalent to saying you can beat the hell out of a whole bunch of five year olds. As for training with Moka," she gave a rude snort. "Why would that impress me?"

"Moka's the best! She's amazing!"

"Is that so?" Ria asked sweetly. "Could she beat the snot out of you like I just did?"

Tsukune blinked and hesitated to answer that. Moka regularly beat him up during their spars, especially at the beginning. But he had to admit she had never annihilated him the way Ria just had. Whether that was because she was holding back or because of a difference in raw skill he couldn't know.

"Don't kid yourself brother dear," she removed her foot and stepped back. "Moka is no match for me and you're even less of one. Just be glad you are under my father's protection so I took it easy on you."

She took it easy on me? He grunted in pain as he slowly got back to his feet. "This… this isn't over."

"I'll dance with you any time you like Tsukune dear, but honestly shouldn't you stop now while you're still mobile?"

Her clothes looked only slightly disheveled and she didn't seem to have a scratch on her. He was having to take shallow breaths because he had broken ribs. He was still bleeding from his mouth, his clothes had been shredded, and he was one huge bruise. It was clear to him there was no point in trying to fight her any more.

"I want you to leave my father alone."

"Or what? You will bleed on me some more?"

He looked at her sullenly. "If I have to I will go to your father about this. I don't want to but I will."

"Oh, by all means," she answered sounding amused. "We can bring Taka with us to Castle Akashiya. You can explain how your human parent needs protection. My father despises humans I very much doubt he'll be allowed to leave alive."

"Lord Akashiya has accepted me as his son."

Once more Ria nodded. "True, and my father is a man of honor, he will never go against that even if he discovers you were originally human. However only you are under his protection. If you go to him with the truth all you will do is put your family in greater danger."

That was true. That was the reason Ria had been able to blackmail him into sleeping with her in the first place.

"You know speaking of the truth why don't you go to your mother and tell her what's going on? She's completely oblivious you know, she actually believes everything is just fine. Why not tell her that Taka has been having an affair with me that I forced him into? I'm sure that would help things." She grinned wickedly. "If you like I can help you with that. I can also provide her with free legal counsel for when she divorces him."

He imagined his mother's reaction to hearing that. She loved his dad dearly. They had always gotten along and he couldn't even remember them ever getting into any serious fights. He was sure finding this out would completely destroy her.

He cast his eyes down, completely defeated. "What do you want?"

Ria tilted her head slightly. "What makes you think I want anything brother dear?"

"Because I know you!" He said sharply. "Whenever you play your nasty games it's always to get something. Tell me what you want. If it'll make you leave my parents alone I'll give it to you if I can."

She brought her hands together to applaud him silently. "Oh me, oh my you really have gotten to know me Tsukune. Yes you're right of course, there is something I want from you. If you'll give it to me I'll not only end the affair with your father I'll give you my word to protect your family and never interfere with them again."

"Then what is it?" He asked her certain he would not like her reply.

Her monstrous eyes shined with amusement and cruel glee. "Become my mate."

"Huh?"

She smiled to see his confusion. "Well, in more human terms; marry me."