Hell froze over and you're a witness
Disclaimer: I do not own Rosario Vampire or any part of its franchise. I would also like to thank lord of the land of fire for giving me permission to write this.
This is a sequel to The Unsealed Vampire story by lord of the land of fire and The Unsealed Vampire: Moka's Revenge by yours truly.
I know, I know, it has been WAY over a week and I am sorry about that. I also should warn you that this story will be going on a little three week hiatus. I am sorry I didn't warn you beforehand and apologize if the quality of this chapter is disappointing compared to my usual work, I'm getting back into the swing of things bit by bit.
Now that I am done wasting your time with author's notes, let us move on to the main attraction.
Enjoy
Tensions were running high and Tsukune was still holding on to his knife for dear life, having two of his mortal enemies sitting on either side of him wasn't helping things at all. The Shuzen sisters were told to sit down and they did just that, there was no way they were going to disobey their father, no matter who sat in between them.
Kahlua was mentally thanking any deity that might have had a hand in this. Finding out Tsukune was alive was a giant relief to her, sitting next to him was more than she could have ever asked for. She had to be extremely careful with her emotions though, her mother was sitting right in front of her and would be sure to notice any change in behavior. Instead of beaming with happiness, she kept a look of utter neutrality in order to conceal her desires from all people presently in attendance. She would occasionally let a well placed smile escape whenever she would converse with one of her younger sisters but that was it.
Akua, on the other hand, wasn't even trying to hide her smile. She realized how awkward this situation was for the object of her secret affections. After all, he was still under the impression she wanted to finish him off and put him out of his misery. Perhaps she did, but in a completely different way than the one Tsukune expected. So she would speak with the rest of her family but was also sure to continually stare at Tsukune whenever she wasn't involved in a discussion. Whereas Kahlua was trying to ignore his existence altogether, she could see him holding onto that knife which only brought out her predatory nature. Vampires were very alike felines in that regard, they liked to play with whatever caught their interest and teasing him in this manner was indeed most pleasing, there was a chance he might act and that just made it all the more fun.
Moka was distressed at her sisters incessant teasing, she tried her best to distract her by engaging in conversation with her, to no avail. Her responses would either be extremely brief or she would feign not having heard her in order to focus her attention solely on Tsukune. Her Inner persona was screaming at her to do something before this got out of hand but, no matter how hard she tried, every attempt she made was met with failure. She turned to her mother for help but she seemed occupied trying to keep Gyokuro's attention off her sworn enemy.
Akasha was doing her best to keep things civil and was successful for now. Tsukune wasn't looking all that comfortable with what was going on but it was a necessary evil, she had to find a suitable pretext to venture back to Yokai Academy without the rest of the family watching her and this was the best moment she could think of. Sure, she was forced to bring Gyokuro along but she felt she had to act as soon as possible, she owed her daughter(s) that much.
After making sure Gyouro was turning all of her attention towards Issa, she decided now would be the best time to move. She excused herself and asked Moka to come with her, forcing her daughter to leave her lover alone at the mercy of her sisters. Her displeasure at the recent turn of events was all too evident once they had left the table and were now out of sight and earshot of any monster passerby. She was about to ask why they had to leave when Akasha spoke up and answered before she even had to ask.
"I need a strand of your hair." That was certainly an odd request, to be sure, what would she want, or do with it for that matter? Her furrowed brow elicited a smile from her mother who then went on to explain a bit more about what her plans were. "It's a surprise, one I'm sure you'll love. For now, I have to keep it a secret but you'll find out soon enough, I promise." With that, she quickly swiped off a bit of her daughter's pink hair before putting it into a plastic bag. She could have done that at any time if she really needed to. Instead, however, she wanted to let her daughter know what she was after. Maybe she just didn't like keeping secrets from her, or it could be possible she wanted her daughter to wonder about the surprise. In any case, Akasha's plan was progressing just as she hoped it would and the two returned to the table where Tsukune and the Shuzen clan was eating lunch.
Meanwhile, Akua decided to kick up the game a notch, staring was all well and good but talking may even prove to be more entertaining that this already was. Gyokuro was speaking with father, Kahlua was debating some unknown matter with Kokoa and both Moka and Akasha had just excused themselves, if there ever was a time to do it, it would be now. Without further incentive required, she put on a fake look of sadness on her face, making sure to overplay her pout and told him in a mock tone of hurt. "You don't look so happy to see me, Reaper."
At the mention of the taboo name, all Shuzen heads currently seated turned their attention to Akua and Tsukune. Previously mentioned brown haired boy squeezed his knife ever so slightly before releasing his grip and, for the first time since they sat, looked up from his plate to Akua who was smiling at him. It appears she was right to further her gamble, this should be fun. "Last we saw each other, you killed people, good people." There was no mistaking the anger and sadness in his voice. "My people." He added after a small pause.
Akua wasn't expecting him to answer like that, she expected him to say something witty and sarcastic just like back at the Hanging Gardens. Before she could say anything else, Gyokuro had taken the initiative. "Those monsters you murdered in cold blood were good men as well, fighting to rid the world of creatures such as yourself. The very fact that you are here is an insult to their memory." She replied with disgust though the last part was destined to the one who had ordered him to stay, her very own husband. Akua had then realized it would be best not to interrupt Gyokuro, she kept her mouth shut and allowed the argument run its course. If Tsukune was lucky, an argument would be the only thing to bother him today and she would certainly not jeopardize his safety beyond a measure she was comfortable with.
However, someone else decided to jump in, and who else but Moka would defend Tsukune in front of Gyokuro? Akasha stood behind her daughter and sighed before sitting back down without a word, her daughter, on the other hand, was much more vocal on her way back to her seat. "Please, don't be so harsh, he only ever did what he felt was..."
But Gyokuro wasn't done yet, quite the contrary. This was a perfect time to lecture the daughter of her most hated nemesis. In doing so, she might lower her esteem in Issa's eyes if she pointed out how idiotic she was in befriending him. "And you." She turned towards her step-daughter and pointed out an accusing finger before continuing. "You were irresponsible enough to befriend such an inferior creature. You also share a part of the blame."
Akasha was about to react to her co-wife's accusation of her daughter when something snapped inside Moka. She never was one to lose control, she usually was pretty calm and collected when she was in arguments, even when those arguments involved Tsukune. Perhaps she was a little too cranky because she didn't get to drink his blood for over 24 hours. Maybe she was tired of everyone always doubting Tsukune and what he stood for. Regardless, at that very moment, she uttered something that would prove to be a game changer and was sure to impact the rest of Tsukune's existence. If the Headmaster could be seen at that very moment, there would be no doubt he would be laughing at the hilarity of what was about to ensue. Moka lost control and went off against her step-mother and yelled out something that, luckily, no one apart from the Shuzen clan and Tsukune were able to hear since the cafeteria had long since been deserted for fear of annoying the superior monsters. No one, not even her Inner self, expected her to say the following. "You have no right to insult Tsukune like that. You wouldn't talk down to another vampire, would you? So what gives you the right to insult someone like Tsukune who ultimately will become a vampire?!"
The room went silent. The words had escaped her, when she realized what she had said, she desperately tried to cover her mouth in an effort to keep herself from revealing anymore secrets. Alas, the damage was already done. All she could do now was sink into her chair and suffer the endless blaming and scolding of her other persona yelling at her through the rosario.
Akua, Kahlua and Kokoa were flabbergasted, shock and joy was battling it out inside of their hearts and they weren't even sure which emotion was predominant on their faces. To be honest, they didn't really care at this point, they had just heard the most important bit of news they would ever hear in their entire immortal existence: Tsukune Aono was going to become a vampire. All three turned to look at Tsukune who was frozen in place at the revelation, that confirmed what they thought they heard. And so, each arrived to the same conclusion through different trains of thought. The underlying conclusion was that if Tsukune Aono was going to be a vampire, he would considered worthy of them by vampire law. If he was worthy by vampire law, they could marry him. If they could marry him, they had to make sure he chose them. In order to do so, they had to make sure he was forced to marry them. To force him to marry them, they had to defeat him in battle and announce their decision. If they fought him before he became a vampire, they were guaranteed to win.
Each of them began to plot as to when the would be the best time to challenge and defeat him, they would have to be careful, though. For as long as he was still somewhat human, their actions may be looked down upon by the rest of their species, they would have to make sure there were no witnesses. They had the choice to wait until he transformed but each believed that the easy path to the reward far outweighed any risk involved.
Gyokuro wasn't taking the news as well as her two daughters. She was outraged that this piece of trash was even allowed to be in her vicinity, for him to have a chance to ascend was beyond any insult she could ever suffer. Vampires were the pinnacle of monsters, it was the apex species. For someone so low to even phantom the idea could not be permitted. At least she knew she would have Issa's support on this one. All in all, this wasn't so bad, she finally had sufficient ammunition to take down her most hated nemesis' daughter.
When she looked over to judge Issa's reaction, he was completely calm. He looked disapprovingly at his daughter but that was it. No outrage, no anger at being so blatantly disgraced, nothing. How could this be? How? The answer was standing right next to her husband with her head bowed in embarrassment which gave a clear view of her pink hair.
She was very embarrassed at the situation, it seemed her daughter was just as bad as her at keeping secrets. Now the cat was out of the bag. Oh well, it didn't matter, really. No one had the right to oppose her on this, this was a project being conducted by the Three Dark Lords which officially put this out of any other monster's jurisdiction. She did her best to keep this quiet to avoid a fight but if it couldn't be avoided, then so be it. She considered herself lucky that Issa supported all her endeavors, this would have been a much messier situation if he hadn't.
Seeing how passive he was only served to increase Gyokuro's rage exponentially, there was no doubt about it, Akasha was responsible for this mess. The worst part was that if Issa didn't act, she knew full well she had no right to intervene, it was clearly understood that harming the integrity of this family by taking measures that were not sanctioned by the patriarch of the clan would be disapproved of, severely. So all she could do was sit down and shut up, she would inevitably find a way to get back at her rival, it was all just a matter of time now.
No, screw that, she was going to fix this outrage and restore this family's honor by killing Reaper right here and now. Issa might not like it but he would see the wisdom in her actions sooner or later, if it took a few centuries for him to see it then so be it. Both Issa and Akasha had sensed her intentions before she even finished her train of thought. She was suddenly submerged by an incredibly oppressive aura, no doubt Akasha's work. The others didn't seem to feel any change in atmosphere so she knew she was the sole target.
However, the release in energy made her focus in on the brown haired offender, the surge in energy had peeked her detection powers and she felt something different about the boy: It was a subtle shift in power that she would have been unable to detect had she been any less proficient with her abilities. When Akasha released the full power of her aura against Gyokuro to have her relent, something within the young boy responded to Akasha's power like some sort of an echo.
This was different from the last time she had sensed Reaper's power, yet it was quite familiar to her. The power she felt at that moment was presumed lost back at Fairy Tale with Alucard's death. Everyone assumed that Akasha had wiped Alucard from existence when she destroyed HQ, how did his power end up inside of that abomination? Maybe killing him wasn't the best course of action, she could feel the hunger that came with the blood. At long last, she finally had an ace up her sleeve.
So she calmed her aura and went back to observing the shocked expression on the boy's face, he may just be the answer to all her problems. She hated herself for admitting it but she now had a stake in Tsukune Aono's survival and well-being.
As for Tsukune, his mind was still trying to process something he thought was impossible: Him? A vampire? That can't be right, but there was no mistaking the look of shock on the Shuzen sisters. So... he was going to be a vampire... Excitement came to the forefront of the bloody battle his emotions were waging in order to win Tsukune's heart as he turned his head to his beloved, he would finally be worthy of her, it was truly a beautiful moment. Soon fear took over, what about his family? He wouldn't be human anymore so what about them? He couldn't phantom never seeing his parents or his cousin ever again.
The struggle went on until a clear winner was chosen and guilt came forward with many more thoughts: Did he really deserve to be with her? After all that he had done as Reaper, did he really have a right to be happy with Moka? What about all the men that had died for him? How would becoming the very thing that killed them honor their memory and sacrifice? He was worthy of being happy, he wasn't worthy of being with Moka, all he was worthy of was suffering.
At that moment, all Hell broke loose, literally. He saw bloody meat hooks falling from the ceiling right in front of him, pieces of flesh still stuck to them. The cafeteria walls were painted in blood. The smell was abundantly putrid and he could hear screams echoing the whole room regardless of the fact that no one was screaming.
This was it, he knew in the back of his mind that this would happen, he closed his eyes shut and started to tense up. No matter how much he may have known, he didn't look forward to going back one bit. And he would fight to stay, despite knowing he didn't deserve to be here. Instead, to his surprise, when he opened his eyes, the room was back to normal. There was no trace of what he had just witnessed. The sisters were still looking both at him and at Moka who was still squirming in her seat. Gyokuro was studying the boy's reaction with a renewed interest just as Akasha and Issa did, he was a strange one indeed.
Something else caught his attention, he realized that after tensing up like he did during his hellish hallucination, the knife he held on to had made a small cut in his palm. What he saw horrified him, blood was slowly leaking out. It didn't take long for him to do the math: He was bleeding and he was sitting at a lunch table with six vampires, there had to be more pleasant ways to die.
Maybe he could clean the cut before anyone noticed. He attempted to discreetly wipe his cut on his napkin. When he looked back at the crowd surrounding him, he noticed that all the female vampires in attendance had that very look he dreaded seeing on Moka's face. Their eyes glazed with an intense hunger and their lips were slightly parted. Both Gyokuro and Akasha appeared to still have some measure of control so that had to be a good sign. As for the patriarch of the Shuzen family, he chuckling to himself. That freaking bastard was laughing at him! It didn't take him long to realize why, the younger Shuzens were lost in contemplation of his bloodied palm and appraising his form like he was a piece of meat.
Survival instincts kicked in and made him get up ever so gently and back away as calmly as possible, he never allowed the predators out of his sight. Problem was that for every step he took back, they matched it. No sudden movements wasn't going to work a this point and he couldn't outrun a vampire for long, let alone four of them. He would worry about his hallucination later, this situation took precedence. Despite the shift in priorities, he couldn't think of a single safe place to go for now: they would catch him if he tried to make it off school grounds and there was little doubt that any monster that would see this grotesque chase would lend their support to help the vampires.
If he tried to head to the pool, he might have a fighting chance to make it out of this unscathed. Finally, his lover's gentle call brought his attention back from his planning to the vampires in front of him. "Tsukune..." Moka gently sang out, she was about to go for it. "Can I please suck your blood?" Why she even bothered to ask now was beyond him, she would attack regardless of the answer. And under normal circumstances he would have obliged her, having three other vampires wanting the exact same thing wasn't what he considered normal circumstances. And don't even get him started about two of them wanting him dead already.
"Sorry Moka, maybe later." He replied as he tried to slip away, they were coming closer and closer. "Moka. Moka! Snap out of it Moka!" His begging did nothing to bring her out of her trance so he did the only he could do now, he ran as fast as he could towards the pool with four hungry vampires chasing after him. His screams echoed the hallways and a bus driver with yellow eyes who just happened to be within earshot took the cigar out of his mouth to be able to properly chuckle at the hilarity of the situation. And to think that he was utterly clueless as to what three of his pursuers really felt, he was going to be in for a rude awakening and a painful beat down.
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Gyokuro was disgusted with herself, she had almost let her thirst get the better of her. It was natural for her to want his blood but that didn't excuse the fact that she came so close to lacking self-control, she had been around for longer than most and she still fell for rookie mistakes. Her only consolation was that the usually calm, composed and smiling Akasha had been just as close to ripping his throat out. Meager in value but it would have to be enough for now, she couldn't take out her anger on the boy after what she discovered. That alone calmed her down somewhat, she finally had an advantage. The only question that remained was how was she supposed to rope him into hating humanity enough to turn his power on them? It didn't really matter, she was eternal just as he would soon be, she would have all the time in the world to bring him over to her way of thinking. She would only need an instant of weakness on his part and she was a very patient woman. She had waited centuries for the Masked King to deliver Fairy Tale, she could wait for thousands of years for a sure bet like Alucard's power.
Akasha was under the wrong impression when it came to Gyokuro, she thought she had scared her into relenting. The two had an unspoken agreement, they both knew who the most powerful between them was. Sadly, that only drove Gyokuro into scheming. It was a shame, she bared no hatred towards Gyokuro. In fact, she was sure she could end up loving her like a sister if she'd just give it a chance. Unfortunately, she regarded her as a rival. But this was a good thing when it came down to it. If she could reconcile with Gyokuro, that meant she would be able to make her coexistence dream possible, this would be good training. She had been unable to deliver a peaceful world for Moka to grow up in but she would ensure that she would have a bright future away from her violent roots. First, she had to fix her family, then she could focus on the surrounding world. Good thing they recruited Tsukune, he would be the one to link both worlds and make their work much easier.
Issa was enjoying the cup of wine in his hands, his mind kept going over the events of the day. He had become quite aware of his daughters' hidden feelings. For that, he wanted to gut Tsukune on the spot, the fool had attracted way more attention that even someone as important to Akasha's plan should. On the other hand, he loved Akasha too much to destroy her best for her ideal future. And he could only imagine how his daughters would react to his death. If anything, it would divide the family further. Seeing him running away for dear life had sated his anger towards the boy enough. As promised, he would have nothing to fear from the head of the Shuzen clan, the same could not be said for the younger members though. He was no fool, he saw the wheels spin inside their heads after finding out he was going to be a vampire. He would be in for a world of hurt no matter what came from this.
A small smile escaped his lips as he brought the cup to his lips in order to savor the alternative red nectar, he also had a idea as to why Akasha lured her daughter away during lunch but he wouldn't say anything. If it was what he thought it was, it would be best if Gyokuro found out after the deed was done. She didn't seem to notice when her co-wife and step-daughter left the room, which was good, but he still felt uneasy. It was almost as though she was planning something, he has known her long enough to be able to tell. And whatever it was, it couldn't be good.
However, that was enough for today. He told both his wives that it would be best if they were off. The kids could have a little more fun before they were ordered back home but the elders no longer had any business left at the Academy. All three figures vanished from sight, leaving only a small breeze blowing through the room. No longer sensing their presence, other monsters finally dared to enter the cafeteria and they all endeavored to get something to eat before lunch period was over.
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Tsukune had failed miserably. His biggest mistake was going outside: the corridors, turns and stairs were the only thing preventing the vampires from using their full power. Even with that handicap, though, they still had him within their grasp during the whole chase, they simply liked to work up their appetite before feasting. He had made it five feet outside before he was tackled to the ground by a famished Kahlua who immediately dug her fangs into his right arm. Despite that, he still struggled to move forward. He was then pinned by Kokoa who dug into his other arm and drinking at her heart's content. In a show of supreme effort and will, he still tried to move. His resistance was met with a familiar black haired vampire and nemesis who dug into the left side of his neck. At this point, he was struggling to stay conscious. He could distantly hear whimpers coming from the vampires feeding on him, was his blood really that good? If he survived this, he idly considered selling his blood as a delicacy. Finally, pink hair came into view as Moka latch on to him and began to feed next to Akua.
Somehow, he stayed conscious until they finished eating. They still had that glazed over look with a very satisfied smile on their faces. Moka was the first to snap out of her trance and go to help Tsukune, he thanked her by sinking his teeth into her neck which elicited a yelp, then a shiver, followed by a moan. If Tsukune had been more aware of his surroundings, he could have witnessed what he would have sworn to be jealous looks directed at Moka by her three sisters.
Finally, he stopped feeding and automatically lick her wound clean before snapping back to reality. He looked back at his once unwilling victim and only saw a look of pure bliss plastered on her face, she had enjoyed this much more than he had. After making sure she could stand, he did the only he could do and went running to clear his head. The girls were disappointed but they supposed it was for the best, they had to make sure Moka was okay before going off to scheme the best way to ambush and defeat Tsukune before he turned.
Meanwhile, Tsukune ran to his room and made his way in quickly, he was sure being fed on by four vampires at the same time would be a good enough excuse for missing class today. After he threw himself unto his bed, he allowed his mind to wander to what had happened in the past few hours. Shock, panic and surprise etched themselves in his brain as he tried to make sense of what was going on. The only thing that came up was how he had fed on Moka without her consent, he felt a great deal of shame and remorse over this. He went on to think about all the men he had known and allowed to die on his watch. Too many faces flooded his mind as his guilt continued to grow ever greater, all he could do was allow it to consume you.
That's when it happened, there was no change in scenery, no screaming or putrid smell to fill the air with terrible and vague memories. No terrible pain or abject hatred to fill soul. Nothing that could have forewarned of what was to happen. Of what filled Tsukune with pure fear, of what wanted to make him cry out to the Heavens and beg them to have mercy on him.
A low laugh ringed inside his head, it was dark, familiar and made Tsukune bolt up from his bed. He looked around the room in panic and sure enough fell face to face with his worst nightmare. His appearance hadn't changed a bit, still the same hateful eyes and cold, demented smirk. He embodied everything Tsukune wasn't, everything he didn't want to remember doing. He was leaning against the door to Tsukune's room and slowly made his way to the bed were Tsukune had sat beack down in shock.
"Impossible." He whispered just loud enough for his alter-ego to hear. The grin on the evil one's face grew as a result, good to see he remembered him dearly.
He didn't answer right away. Instead, he continued to walk closer to Tsukune before lowering himself to get to Tsukune's level. Once face to face, the manifestation of all of Tsukune's dark desires finally spoke. He said four words that spoke volumes about the situation. Four words that Tsukune did not want to hear. "Honey, I am home!" The laughter that filled the room was maniacal and evil, no less so than it's owner.