Kuro ran, towing Shiro in his wake, towards the Moon Dorms. The fresh scent of blood spurned him on; he needed to get to Shizuka before Kaname could consume her. If he wanted to get stronger, to be able to establish himself as an entity free of parasitism, he needed that blood. Her blood could give him powers – granted they would transfer to Shiro as well, though she was but a hunter – and strength beyond measure.
Shiro purposefully stumbled and ran slower so that she could delay their arrival as much as possible. She knew Kuro's plan already, and she did not like it. They soon came upon the Moon Dorms, and Kuro thrust the doors open unceremoniously and continued up the stairs. He let Shiro go carelessly in his pursuit of Shizuka's blood, and she reeled back, falling backwards on the staircase. She rolled to a stop in a messy heap at the bottom of the staircase, shaken from the fall she had endured. Her leg was bruised and the flesh on her arm was torn in various places. She cursed; Kuro had been careless, and now he too would have the same injuries as her. If anyone saw, their secret would be revealed.
"Shiro!" Rima cried as she and Senri burst through the doors of the Moon Dorm and raced to her side. Senri helped her up and cradled her limp form against him, examining her wounds. Although she bled, he found her blood unappetizing, as if she was already someone else's. Usually once a human was claimed as a blood source for a vampire, their blood was marked untouchable to all but the vampire who claimed them. Senri's expression turned sour as he realized this. But he helped her nonetheless to the nearby sofa, where he sat her down against him.
"What happened?" he said agitatedly. He now had better sight of the wounds she sustained, and found her to be bruised and bloodied, but not broken.
"Kuro let go of my hand on the stairwell. I fell backwards and rolled down the stairs," she replied, her breathing short and shallow. Senri growled.
"And he did not stop to help you? What a considerate brother you have."
Rima went upstairs in search of Kuro to chastise him for his carelessness, but she cowered as she heard his voice accompanied by Kaname's. If she revealed herself now, Kaname would punish her for not following his orders. So she stood, hidden from their sight, behind the door and listened.
"You took her," she heard Kuro growled in frustration. Something or someone – she could not determine – hit the floor with a loud thump, and another grunt of dissatisfaction came from her charge.
"I did. You were too late," Kaname replied.
Shiki was shocked as a sudden burst of blood shot forth from Shiro's shoulder as he laid her down on the infirmary bed. She groaned in pain and writhed away from him, clutching at her already crimson-stained blouse in pain. He hurried to cover it with a thick bandage that he had found in the supply closet moments before. What was going on? Why had so many wounds and bruises appeared on her skin so suddenly, and without so much as a physical provocation? He finished bandaging her shoulder, though it did little to contain the river of blood spilling from the fresh wound. He tuned his attention to the red mark upon her face. It covered most of her left cheek, and stretched across her skin in the shape of a hand. He caressed it carefully, taking care not to cause Shiro pain as she seethed upon the bed. Upon her calf was a large purple bruise.
"What have you done, Kuro?" Shiro muttered through clenched teeth, and she twisted in pain as another bruise emerged upon her neck. Her eyes grew wide as the bruise darkened and finger marks began to appear, wrapped around her throat. Her breaths became shallow and she kicked and struggled upon the bed as if trying to free herself from the hold of an invisible force. Shiki watched on in horror, completely hopeless to help her. But why had she blamed Kuro? What did that troublesome brother of hers have to do with this torture? She was suddenly freed from whatever had taken her about the neck, and she fell limp onto the bed. Shiki moved closer to her and swept her auburn hair from her damp forehead. She had suffered enough, he decided. Shiki leaned down and placed a gentle kiss to the hot skin of her forehead, sending her into a gentle and peaceful slumber.
He settled down at the base of the bed, legs crossed upon the mattress and fierce gaze fixed on Shiro's still form. Silently, he contemplated her incomprehensible situation; what had caused her such physical pain and injury? Not a moment later, the infirmary doors crashed open to reveal a panting Rima, Kuro's limp form barely upright in her strong grip. She stumbled in and pushed him onto the bed by the door. Blood stained her uniform as she turned to regard Shiki with terror. Shiki merely stared at her, confused and bewildered by her abrupt entrance.
"He picked a fight with Kaname," she stated simply, her voice, though retaining its usual monotonous spirit, was shaken and perturbed. Shiki got up from his place and sauntered over to Kuro's bed. Leaning down to observe Kuro more closely, he pursed his lips and pushed his hands into his pockets with frustration. Upon Kuro's shoulder was a large laceration, much like Shiro's. The force of a hard slap reddened his left cheek, and his neck was decorated with dark finger marks.
"Their wounds are exactly the same," Shiki murmured. He looked at Rima, who returned his gaze curiously. Frowning, she marched over to Shiro's unconscious form and examined her injuries. She found them to be as Senri had said: exactly the same as Kuro's.
"How did she get these?" she breathed apprehensively. Shiki had seen the inflictions occur causelessly upon her, but it appeared now that they were not without cause entirely. They had been indirectly inflicted on her by the injuries Kaname had given to Kuro, but how so? Just what connection did Shiro and Kuro have that allowed them to share each other's injuries?
"I have a theory," Shiki replied tentatively. It was a wild guess, and completely illogical, but how else could this be explained? They just looked so alike. "They are…the same."