Brainwashing and Blackmail

by Salt-the-Catgirl

Rated M for a brief scene in Chapter 5. A look into the relationship of Tohru and Natsuno and the hypnotic abilities of the Shiki. Follows the series up until a certain point, before deviating into something else.

2. Chapter 2 - Angel of Death

Brainwashing and Blackmail

Chapter 2: Angel of Death

As if Natsuno didn't hate this village enough. He found himself walking to school alone during the days now, trying to ignore the prattling elders as they gossiped and the leering of the kids in class who were jealous of his popularity amongst the other kids who thought he was just so cool since he was a city boy. None of that mattered anymore, it was all background noise and annoyances, and now Natsuno had no choice but to go home to Shimizu's ever watchful eyes at night. He kept in touch with Tohru's family, he had told them, "If you ever need anything, please let me know," and he may have been the only one in town to say it and mean it. Tohru wasn't just another person he knew. Tohru had been Natsuno's everything. Natsuno ran into Dr. Ozaki on his way home. The doctor recognized him from Tohru's house.

"Tell me, Doctor, you're the one who worked on Megumi Shimizu's case, aren't you?" he asked.

"I am the one who wrote the death certificate, yes," the doctor nodded, popping an unlit cigarette into his mouth.

"Do you think she was really dead? Is it possible she could have come back?" Natsuno felt childish and stupid asking these questions, and hoped to hell the doctor didn't think there was a flicker of hope in his voice suggesting that he wanted her to.

"For that to happen, she'd have to be an Okiagari or Vampire or something," the doctor replied, lighting the cigarette, a look crossing his face as if a light bulb had suddenly flicked on inside his head. "Why do you ask?" the doctor inquired, much more serious.

"Never mind," Natsuno said, turning away from the doctor and heading straight for the library and video store. He had heard all he needed to from the doctor. Okiagari and Vampires were a ridiculous idea, but it was a start, it was a direction. If Shimizu had returned from the grave, then he was going to do everything in his power to send her back. Natsuno could still remember his words at the funeral, the only words he could remember from that night, "I wish I could find him and bring him back." The last thing he wanted to think of was Tohru, his Tohru coming back as one of those monsters.

On his way home, he passed by Kanemasa, the mansion on the hill that the new family had moved into. There were two kids there outside, and they were being watched. The girl, Natsuno recognized as Kaori from Megumi's funeral, the boy must have been Kaori's younger brother Akira. They were being watched by the Kirishiki family's servant with the weird spiky green hair. What was his name again? Natsuno over heard the boy talking about breaking into Kanemasa. He approached the two and lead them away, for their own safety. It appeared that Akira had the same idea about Okiagari that Natsuno had. The three of them agreed they would go dig up Megumi's grave. Kaori tried to talk Akira out of it, this had been her best friend since childhood, she didn't want to desecrate the grave, and she didn't want to think of Megumi coming back like that.

Their fears were confirmed, Megumi's grave was empty, and Kaori was attacked. Natsuno clobbered the attacker with his shovel, after the good luck charm Kaori had left in Megumi's grave had stunned him. They didn't know what the Vampires wanted, but now they knew they were really there.

Maybe it was Tohru's constant bombardments of Natsuno's defensive barriers that caused him to look at Kaori and Akira differently from the rest of the villagers, or maybe it was because they were the only other ones who knew what he knew, but for some reason, he felt he had to protect them. His parents had made a mistake one night when he was meeting with Kaori and Akira. They allowed a young girl with a wooden puppet into the house, not knowing she was an Okiagari, and even if he had told them, his parents would have scolded him for giving in to such superstitious nonsense. He simply told them to never let anyone in the house without checking with him again, and especially not into his bedroom.

Natsuno locked the door and plastered his room with Ofuda and crosses and other make-shift religious relics. He wasn't taking any chances. His father came to wake him up, rather than thinking something was wrong, knowing his son had just lost not only a classmate but his best-if not his only friend, he began taking them all down. Natsuno woke up to find that every one of them had been removed. "Dad, what happened to all that stuff that was in my room?"

"I tossed them," his father answered flatly.

"Tossed them?" Natsuno asked.

"You know I don't approve of religion and superstition, Natsuno," his father said, "I don't want you doing anything stupid."

Well, now what was Natsuno supposed to do? His father would never believe him. It was time to find another strategy. He locked the main door the next night, as well as his window. He bought a wrench, a heavy one, and kept it under his pillow. It may not kill the Okiagari, but it would at least knock the monster of guard, allowing time to find something else better to defend himself from.

Natsuno woke up to a soft tapping outside his window. He grabbed the wrench and jumped out of bed. Natsuno didn't know why, but just as that fateful night at Tohru's, he could sense the movement within the house. He heard the front door unlock. Had his dad unlocked it, or were these assassins master lock picks? The tapping at the window came again. Natsuno crept to the window, ready to unlock the window and strike. He could tell by the silhouette that it wasn't Shimizu. "Natsuno?" a quiet voice came.

The wrench clattered onto the hard wood floor of Natsuno's bedroom. He threw a hand to his heart, which was pounding so fast. "There's only one person who calls me that so tenderly," he thought. He closed his eyes and shook his head. "No, they took Tohru away from me, this has to be a trick!"

"Natsuno?" the voice whispered again.

Suddenly, for some reason a poem that his teachers had read to them in English class came to mind, something from Poe. "Quote the Raven, 'Never More.'" Natsuno through open the window and seized the wrist of the figure outside his window. He felt a tug and he pulled back, forcing the assassin into the light. Natsuno gasped, his eyes widening. It really was him. "T…Tohru-Chan!?"

Tohru reluctantly looked up. He saw what he thought to be fear in Natsuno's eyes. He had been sent here on a mission, and now that he had looked his friend in the eyes, he couldn't carry it out. "D-Don't look at me, Natsuno," Tohru whimpered, turning to run. Tohru could hear Natsuno call after him. He'd hoped Natsuno wouldn't give chase, but of course Natsuno did.

Tohru managed to loose Natsuno at the sacred fountain. Hiding in the tree line nearby, he banged his head and hands on a tree, his cheeks drenched in tears. "I can't do it, I can't," Tohru sobbed. "Not Natsuno, I just can't!"

"So, you're the one they sent after Yuuki-Kun?" Megumi's voice rang out.

"Shi…Shimizu?" Tohru spun around, trying to stop the tears. Damn it all, why did she have to be here, and with Natsuno in hot pursuit?

"So very like Tatsumi-Kun to send you to kill your best friend," Megumi said.

"I can't. It's hard enough to bite a complete stranger, but why? Why Natsuno?" Tohru said, trying his best not to start crying again. Megumi was the last person he wanted to see. "But, Tatsumi-Kun… He said if I don't, then my family will be next."

A smile danced across Megumi's face, she was enjoying seeing Tohru in pain like this. "Look at it this way, if we bite Yuuki-Kun, maybe he'll become one of us. If Masao became one of us, I'm sure Yuuki-Kun will, too." This didn't help Tohru's mental situation at all. "Fine," Megumi said, seizing this opportunity, "If you won't, I will."

Tohru's eyes widened. "What?"

"I'll bite him. That's why I came in the first place. Tatsumi-Kun can scold me all he wants, I won't let someone else have Yuuki-Kun," she sneered.

Tohru caught hold of Megumi, his hand nearly landing on her breast. "Wait a minute, Shimizu!" he did his best to talk her out of it, hoping there was another way.

Megumi turned to face him, her eyes glowing red, "Tohru Mutou, if you touch me like that again, so help me, I'll…"

"Don't you dare," Tohru shrieked at her. It was all Tohru could do not to slap her, he was refusing to look into her eyes while they glowed like that. She was the monster who had sired him, and he wasn't about to let her pull his strings. "Tell me, Shimizu!" Tohru gasped, "Do you REALLY care about Natsuno at all?"

Megumi took a step back, she couldn't believe this was coming from Tohru. "Of course I do," she replied.

"Then why? Why do you want to bite him? Think about it, Natsuno won't be happy if he becomes one of us. You've already destroyed his peace of mind while you were still alive, think of what it'll do to him if he becomes one of us." Tohru leaned against the tree. "I don't want to do it. Tatsumi-Kun could punish me all he wanted, but I just wish he wasn't making me choose between Natsuno and my family." Megumi started to walk out of the bushes. "Wait, Megumi?" Tohru sighed. Megumi stopped, but didn't turn to look at him. "If you do bite him?" Tohru put a hand to his neck where Megumi had bitten him, remembering how she had hypnotized him the second and third times she had brought the 'kiss of death' upon his neck. "What would you do?"

Megumi's eyes narrowed, glowing again. "I'd make him dance for me, the way I should have made you do for him. The way I WOULD have made you do for him if I had known you meant as much to him as he does to you." She turned and glared at Tohru. "Just stay here in the shadows like the coward you are, Mutou," she insisted, "Watch how it's really done."

Tohru's eyes widened as he looked out of the tree line. Natsuno was standing by the fountain, and Tatsumi was right behind him. "Oh no…" Tohru whispered.

Megumi looked up, her eyes widened. Tatsumi knew Tohru hadn't done his job, if she attacked now, they'd both get in trouble, but she couldn't let him have Natsuno. Tatsumi confronted Natsuno, then called out, "Megumi, I know you're here, come on out."

Natsuno froze, this green-haired punk he was sure he could take out, but Shimizu was the stuff of his nightmares. Could he truly take on both of them at once? He wouldn't even have left the safety of his house if it weren't for Tohru. Megumi came climbing out of the bushes, her arms outstretched. "Yuuki-Kun? Come to me," she called. "Isn't it better if I bite you than some stranger?" she tried to reason.

Natsuno took a defensive stance, he was weaponless, and had nowhere to go but the trees. "LIKE HELL I'LL COME TO YOU, YOU BITCH!" he growled furiously. "You had your chance! Rather than going back for Tohru, you should have come and found me. I said I didn't care what you did to me, as long as you left him alone. Did you truly not hear me say that? You use to linger for so long, longing for my every word, I have a hard time believing you didn't stick around to hear that after you bit him."

Tohru felt a knot in his throat that he couldn't swallow. "N-Natsuno…?" He leaned against the tree. Natsuno had known Megumi had attacked him and had tried to save him. Now, as he sat here, cowering in the shadows, Natsuno was up against not one, but two Okiagari, and without any form of self defense. "Please, Natsuno, just run," Tohru begged quietly, even though he knew it was useless, even if Natsuno was fast enough to outrun Megumi, Tatsumi wouldn't be lost so easily. "Augh, I hate this!" Tohru snarled, realizing there was only one way to get Natsuno out of this mess. Megumi would hypnotize Natsuno and bend him to her will, make him her puppet during his last days of life. Tatsumi was more like a wolf, if he caught Natsuno first, it would be a brutal, merciless painful slaughter of the dark haired teenager.

Natsuno took a step backwards, in his head, he was trying to calculate how best to fight off the two Okiagari standing in front of him and still get away safely. Lost in a state of fight or flight, he'd completely forgotten the Vampire he'd originally followed out here. He felt a hand cover his mouth and pull him backwards. Something cold and wet splashed on Natsuno's shoulders, as he glanced backwards, he felt Tohru's fangs sink into his neck. Megumi let out a shriek of anguish, covering her face. A look of both shock and horror had filled her eyes. Tohru had stolen him from her again. Tatsumi stood quietly, watching the scene unfold with a gleeful sadistic smile. Though, while Tatsumi didn't know Tohru's true reason for the attack, the Mutou family was safe, for now.

Natsuno didn't struggle. His mind was flooded with memories of his friendship with Tohru since they'd first met. Tears came to his eyes, as he realized Tohru was capable of doing this, but at least it wasn't Shimizu. The initial pierce into Natsuno's neck was quick and sharp, like a needle prick, but beyond that, Tohru tried to do what he could not to hurt him. Tohru's cheeks turned a light pink as he drank Natsuno's blood, but even as he satiated the hunger within, he couldn't stop his tears. He hated having to do it, and knew Natsuno would feel betrayed, but it was the only way Tohru could see out for him.

Megumi sulked away, feeling defeated. She would find a way to come back at Tohru for this later. Tatsumi stayed until Tohru let go of Natsuno. "Good work, Tohru," Tatsumi said. "Now, hypnotize him so that he won't tell anyone, and take him back home. You're the only one who's invitation was never revoked." With that, Tatsumi left.

Tohru knelt by the unconscious Natsuno, his tears still flowing down his cheeks and landing on Natsuno's face and shoulders. He couldn't do it. When he was alive, Tohru would have charmed the pants right of Natsuno without a second thought if he believed he could get away with it with his life in tact, but not like this. He couldn't bring himself to break Natsuno's mind, that was why he had to make the move instead of Megumi. If there was no way of saving Natsuno, then best for him to die as himself, and as painlessly as possible. Tohru laid Natsuno's head on his lap. "Natsuno," he sobbed, "I'm sorry. Please, forgive me." Tohru caught Natsuno's hand in his, and held it so their fingers were interlinking. He'd taken enough blood to render Natsuno unconscious. If he stayed away the next night, Natsuno should be ok. He wanted a chance to at least explain things. He carried Natsuno home, now that he was an Okiagari, he was much stronger. "Not nearly as hard to get you into a bed as it is to pull you out of one," Tohru sighed, as he laid Natsuno on the bed. "I'll be back, Natsuno. I don't know what I'll do, but I'll be back for you," he promised as he left the room.

Natsuno felt himself on the verge of tears when he awoke. Of all people to come back as one of those monsters, why did Tohru have to be one of the unlucky ones? No, that thing wasn't his Tohru-Chan. He watched Tohru's empty lifeless husk being placed in the ground. Tohru would never attack him like that. "Tohru-Chan would…" Natsuno moaned, pulling his pillow over his head and pushing his face as deep into his bed as possible to smother the sob, "Tohru-Chan…?" Natsuno stayed home from school, he didn't meet with Akira and Kaori, he didn't call them. If Tohru came back, he needed answers.

Tohru didn't come back the next night, and Natsuno found himself feeling stronger. This was his chance to get Akira and Kaori out of town. They protested every step of the way, but Natsuno forced them onto that bus, hoping Kaori would have enough sense to talk Akira out of coming back. Now, at least, he could say he tried to protect them.

Natsuno remembered Shimizu's hiding place in the bushes outside his window. He armed himself with a cross and a stake and hid in the bushes. He watched as that… THING that looked like Tohru came out of the bushes and approached his window. It looked and sounded just like Tohru. It hesitated to knock, this was the Tohru he remembered, the Tohru he knew and loved. The Okiagari poised itself to knock, but hesitated, hung it's head, and started to leave. "He'll never forgive me," Tohru thought to himself.

"I'm right here, Tohru-Chan!" Natsuno said, climbing out of the bushes.

Tohru's eyes widened in surprise. "Natsuno, why? You're safer inside!" he thought. "I've been sent to do this myself, but I'm certain Tatsumi's told the others to kill you on sight if they run into you."

Natsuno held up the cross so that Tohru could see it. It surprised him that such a simple thing could frighten Tohru, but he began asking questions, did it really work? Was Tohru really scared of two pieces of wood tied in the shape of a "t"? Tohru took a step backwards, "N-Natsuno?" he whimpered. Tohru didn't understand why but the cross did indeed frighten him.

"How many times have I told you not to call me that?" Natsuno growled angrily, throwing the cross at Tohru. Great, now Tohru saw him defenseless, and Natsuno wasn't ready to show the ace up his sleeve. Instead Natsuno turned and ran, and Tohru gave chase. He knew Natsuno was still weak, if anyone else caught him, there'd be no saving him either way. If Shimizu or Tatsumi caught him, all would truly be lost. Natsuno asked Tohru if there was another way, anyway but killing. Tohru tried to explain it was no different from a human eating a pig. But Tohru knew that wasn't true. Deep down, Tohru still knew there was no excuse to take a human life in such a way. He truly wished Natsuno's way would have worked.

That wasn't what the Shiki wanted, though. Sunako wanted a village full of Shiki and Jinrou, kill or starve, until everyone was dead or had rose up. Tohru agreed the Shiki had to sustain themselves somehow, but he wanted a better way. His 'masters' would never agree to it, though. They were trying to brainwash the Shiki into creating more of their kind. Natsuno turned, no longer able to run. "Even an animal fights to stay alive," Natsuno said.

Tohru stopped, keeping a safe distance. He didn't know what Natsuno would do if he got too close. He wasn't quite sure what he'd do if he got too close. Either way, that response was just like something he would expect Natsuno to say. Natsuno pulled out the stake and held it so that Tohru could see it. This was a warning to stay back, if ever Tohru knew one. Monster or human, it didn't matter, the sight of your best friend holding a piece of wood with a sharp tip that he could pierce through your heart at any moment is a very frightening thing. "N…Natsuno…?" Tohru said with a whimper of fright. He took a few steps backward, not sure if he should run or stay. "Please don't."

Natsuno closed his eyes and threw down the stake and hammer. "Damn it, you play dirty!" he sobbed. "Don't act like the Tohru-Chan I knew. I can't… I can't do this."

"Natsuno…" Tohru wanted to rush to Natsuno and comfort him, but he was too frightened to move. "I am still the Tohru you knew," he whispered, "I don't want to hurt you. I don't even want to be here." Tohru felt the tears forming in his eyes again. He looked up at Natsuno, his hands clenched at his unbeating heart. "I DIDN'T BECOME THE THING YOU SEE IN FRONT OF YOU OUT OF CHOICE YOU KNOW!" he sobbed.

Natsuno closed his eyes and flinched, he'd never heard Tohru raise his voice like that. He'd never heard such fear, pain, and panic in Tohru's voice, and it wasn't something he wanted to hear again. "Damn it all," Natsuno scoffed, rolling up his sleeve. "Then take my blood, Tohru-Chan! You and I, we can run. Leave these damned idiots in this backwoods village to their own devices." Natsuno had realized a long time ago, he could never leave without Tohru. "We can find a better way."

"No, Natsuno," Tohru turned away, putting his hands on his head and sobbing. He wished it could be true. "Even if we ran, where would we go? You don't know Tatsumi-Kun. He's a sadist through and through."

"Are you really so scared of this guy?" Natsuno growled. "Tohru-Chan, I wouldn't let him touch you."

"It's not me I'm worried about," Tohru thought. "Oh, please Natsuno, don't come any closer."

"Tohru-Chan, you didn't feed at all yesterday, did you? I can tell your hungry. Please!" Natsuno insisted. "Tohru-Chan!"

Tohru couldn't control himself. Natsuno's eyes widened in fright when he saw the hunger over take the Vampire. Tohru's eyes glowed red and their beautiful brown luster was now a dull black. Tohru bit, but drank too much, knocking Natsuno unconscious once more. Tohru carried Natsuno back home, changed Natsuno's clothes, and put him back in bed. Tohru almost felt he didn't deserve the privilege of seeing Natsuno half naked, or even in his sleepwear, but he knew his parents would start raising questions if they saw him asleep in his day clothes.

Tohru came back the next night. Either this would be the end of Natsuno, or Natsuno would convince him to run. Neither of them knew how the night would end. Natsuno was too weak to move on his own, and had asked his dad to leave the window open for some fresh air. He saw Tohru outside in the bushes and called for him to come in before his father came back.

Tohru cautiously entered the room and went over to the bed. He quietly sat on the edge of the bed. "Tohru-Chan," Natsuno whispered. "Help me sit up a moment, would you?" Tohru nodded and helped Natsuno up. Natsuno was so weak, though, that he started to fall forward, his head landing on Tohru's shoulder. Tohru sighed and wrapped his arms around Natsuno. He hated seeing him like this, hated even more knowing he was the one who had done it to him. He gently positioned Natsuno so that he was propped on his pillow against the wall.

"How's that, Natsuno?" Tohru asked.

"Better," Natsuno sighed, taking Tohru's hand in his. Natsuno was too weak for his usually keen senses to pick up on the fact that they had an uninvited audience of one, and Tohru was more focused on Natsuno than the bushes outside. "We're not going to run, are we, Tohru-Chan?" Natsuno asked.

"I wish we could, Natsuno, I truly wish we could," Tohru sighed. "Natsuno, I owe you an explanation. I didn't want to bite you, but I couldn't let Tatsumi-Kun or Shimizu catch you. Tatsumi-Kun would have killed you. He would have toyed with you, making you suffer, then outright killed you. You know what we are and how to fight us. He sees you as a threat. If Shimizu had caught you…" Tohru looked away, he couldn't bring himself to finish that thought.

Natsuno nodded, "You hate her as much as I do, don't you, Tohru-Chan?" He forced his hand to reach up and caress Tohru's cheek. Tohru flinched, he hadn't expected such a reaction from Natsuno. "I'm sorry, Tohru-Chan. It's my fault they did this to you." Tohru's eyes shifted to focus on Natsuno. "Shimizu had been stalking me ever since I moved here. I couldn't run to the police, I was an outsider. They probably would have thought I was spying on her and then making up stories. I already didn't trust people here, but she only made things worse. It's easy to forget rapist aren't always male, and the victims aren't always female, especially in a place like this. When she died, I thought I could finally get a good night's sleep, but I began to feel her watching me again. I asked to stay at your place, hoping I could sleep better. I never knew… I never expected what happened. Tohru, I'm so sorry. I saw her bite you the first time, and I couldn't do anything to stop it. My body just wouldn't move. I would have given anything to keep her from doing this to you. I don't know what she hoped to gain by taking you away from me like that. She's always been self-centered. She didn't care about me, she was only interested because I was from the city, and she spent night after night robbing me of my sense of security, sitting outside that window, hoping I'd show her some sort of ill-gotten affection!" Natsuno sighed shaking his head. "If she'd been more like you, maybe she would have gotten what she wanted."

Tohru jumped off the bed. At some point, he'd became aware that Megumi was listening, and while this was something she deserved to hear, it wasn't something he wanted to. "Damn it, Natsuno!" Tohru exclaimed as he turned to face him. "Why? Why now?" he sobbed.

"Tohru-Chan?" Natsuno gasped.

"Why do this to me now?" he sobbed again. He knew what Natsuno was getting at. This was a confession. "A whole month after that pink haired bitch was in the grave; a whole month I finally had you away from her, and did everything in my power to try and get you to open up to me! I could all but read your mind, Natsuno. I KNEW what you really felt for me, and I tried my best to lure you into admitting it."

Megumi's nails dug deep into the tree bark outside Natsuno's window, as she listened. "How dare that scrawny little scarecrow talk to my Yuuki-Kun like that," she thought. "I'm going to kill him!" This made the third time Tohru had taken him from her.

"T-Tohru-Chan?" Natsuno blinked.

"Natsuno, I love you!" Tohru confessed, "I always have. I know what I had with Ritsu-Chan, but it wasn't on the level of what I feel for you. All I wanted, Natsuno, was for you to open up and finally tell me you felt the same." Tohru knelt by the bed, his head in his hands. "I use to dream of you taking me in your arms and telling me I was your sun. You were certainly my moon and stars. You could have said something. You could have told me about Shimizu. You could have even said something at my funeral, maybe I wouldn't have come back at all if you had. So, why, Natsuno? Why do you wait until I have your life in my hands to finally open up to me?"

Natsuno's hands gently grabbed Tohru's. "Tohru-Chan," he sighed. "I've tried so damned hard to remember what I said at your funeral. All I can remember is telling your parents I wished I could bring you back. I wanted to scream out 'Don't leave me' as they lowered your casket, but the words lodged in my throat. If I thought that my words would have turned you into this, I never would have said them, Tohru-Chan. To come back like this… That's not something you deserved," Natsuno said. "If monsters like Shimizu and Tasumi truly exist, then so should angles. Tohru-Chan, I'm sorry if I did this to you. You deserved to come back as an angel."

"I have, Natsuno," Tohru sobbed. "Just not the guardian angel you deserve. My first attack was to protect you, but even then I had already been under orders to kill you in order to protect my family. In the end, I'm nothing more than an angel of death."

Natsuno forced himself to reach across the bed and grab Tohru's wrist. "Tohru-Chan," he whispered softly, giving a feeble attempt to pull the blonde Vampire closer. "You're right, I should have said it sooner, but if I have to die, then I don't want to die with it unsaid. I love you, Tohru-Chan, and I always have. You weren't just my sun, Tohru-Chan, you were my everything. And Tatsumi and Megumi should have never taken you from me. I wouldn't even have started fighting them if they had just left you alone."

"Natsuno…" Tohru climbed back on the bed and hugged him. "I don't want to do it, Natsuno," he sobbed.

Natsuno sighed. "Tohru-Chan," he smiled at the Vampire, "Time to stop beating around the bush. I don't have the strength to give myself to you, or I would. If I had known that night Megumi bit you would have been our last, I would have done it then. But if nothing else, the way I see it, you owe me a proper kiss."

Tohru's face turned a slight pink, the same soft shade that had graced his cheeks when he first bit Natsuno three nights back. "A kiss?"

"Yeah, I felt kind of cheated that you pinched my nose, and then jumped away the moment I opened my eyes when you stole my first kiss," Natsuno sighed with a weak smile.

"Y… Natsuno, you knew about that?" Tohru exclaimed, "I was so sure you were going to kill me, but you never even let on that you knew."

"It was better to let you think you'd got away with it," Natsuno smiled, "Now… Just shut up and kiss me, already, will ya'?"

Tohru sighed, smiled at Natsuno, and nodded. Natsuno was right, after all the flirting and teasing he'd done trying to get Natsuno to make the first move, he at least owed him this much. He leaned in, slowly, a smile of satisfaction sweeping his lips when they heard a rustle in the bushes. He almost hoped Megumi hadn't run off just yet, he wanted her to see this, and Natsuno seemed to ignore the bushes altogether, as though he didn't care one way or another.

Tohru gently put one hand on Natsuno's shoulders and pushed his lips to Natsuno's. They were cold, but Natsuno didn't care, he leaned into the kiss, as best he could. Natsuno blushed as he felt Tohru's tongue gently caress his lips. Natsuno put up no resistance, allowing the Vampire's tongue to slip inside his mouth. He wrapped his arms around Tohru's body, as the two of them became enthralled with the kiss, neither of them seeming to want to break it. Natsuno had given up on running. Tohru was to scared to leave with him, and with the safety of his family hanging in the balance, who could blame him? At least this way, Natsuno would have no regrets when Tohru finally drank his blood tonight. There was nothing left unsaid between them, and if Natsuno was to die at the hands of any Shinigami, he was glad it was Tohru.