Not again... She mentally counted in her head. So far this month, she knew of at least five confessions that had been directed at her colleague. Shiki took them all in stride; she'd never seen him become irritable with the girls, though similarly she'd never seen him display so much as a flicker of interest in even one of them. Admittedly, they were all the same: shallow, short-lived humans, but even so, this particular girl at least was cute for a human. Slightly curious despite herself, Rima lingered in the shadow of the trees, waiting for her partner to chase off the girl so that they could go to class.
"Shiki-sama!" the girl exclaimed, blushing vibrant red. "Um! I really like you!" She bowed twice in what Rima presumed was an attempt to hide her embarrassment.
Shiki glanced over at the trees, detecting the blond model's presence there, and Rima stiffened, embarrassed. She really shouldn't be eavesdropping...but it was too late to regret it now, she'd already been caught in the act. Besides, it was time for class. It wasn't odd for them to wait on each other to go there together. And anyway, there was a new student supposedly coming today, and she was mildly interested to know who it was.
To her surprise, Shiki directed the smallest smirk in her direction before answering the girl calmly, "Ah... I'm sorry, but... I already have feelings for someone..."
Rima narrowed her eyes. His uncharacteristic response was suspicious at best.
"Oh... It's Rima-san, isn't it? You guys are really dating..." The Day Class girl's blush deepened.
"Yes, that's right..." Shiki murmured detachedly, and sudden irritation crackled in the air surrounding Rima. No. No, no, and a million times no. Was it actually Shiki who was perpetrating these rumors that they were dating? Did he think it would stop the humans from pursuing him? As if.
"Um. I like you but... I think you guys are well-suited for each other!" the human declared bashfully before making her escape.
Stepping forward now in barely contained aggravation, the blond asked, "Why did you say that?"
"Eavesdroppers should be punished..." Shiki commented dryly.
Unable to stop it, she felt her foot stamp against the ground. "This is how these rumors are spreading."
"What rumors?"
"The rumors that we're dating," she explained curtly.
"Congratulations to us," her colleague stated blandly, and removed the box of pocky from her jacket pocket before she could protest. Ignoring her furious gaze, he withdrew a cookie and said, "We're late to class...darling." His eyes gleamed with subtle, contained laughter.
"Shiki-kun." Her tone was a warning. "This isn't funny." She reclaimed the pocky box, returning it forcefully to her pocket.
In answer to Rima's glare, he asked, "Why does it matter what the humans think?"
Rima heaved a sigh. "Because Ruka-san will harass me about it. It's tedious." And because, if rumors spread enough and someone mentioned it to her parents, they'd be cross with her. She didn't feel like arguing with them. One battle at a time was enough. She'd won when she'd convinced them to let her come to the academy. After that, she'd start her acting career, and if she ever did want to date someone she knew they wouldn't approve of, that was a third battle she'd rather postpone.
"Ah... Sorry..."
"Now you say it..." she muttered. "Come on, we're late for class."
When Senri and Rima stepped into the class, the teacher still hadn't arrived. The mahogany-haired vampire glanced at the clock. They were only five minutes late themselves, but it was strange that the teacher hadn't arrived. Kaname-sama sent them a reproachful look, and both models gave a short bow before joining Ichijou.
"A new student who was admitted late, huh?" the vice president was muttering to himself by the window. "How mysterious, I smell a crime."
"Is he talking about a manga?" Senri asked his coworker in an undertone, puzzled by Ichijou's abrupt spout of weirdness.
"No, there's really a new student coming," Rima confirmed, passing him a stick of chocolate pocky.
A new student? Odd. He supposed someone had decided to join the Night Class partway through the year. He shrugged idly and murmured, "I'm hungry." With a look of exasperation, the blond model handed him another two sticks. He crunched the three together in a single bite, taste buds reveling in the hints of dahlias that lingered over the chocolate. A shiver passed down his throat.
"Nooo!" a loud voice rudely interrupted his enjoyment of the treats. "My pocky! I was going to give that to the dorm president!" Hanabusa Aidou confronted him, childishly angry.
Senri raised an eyebrow. As though Kaname would actually eat a snack like this... He glanced at Rima. Had she actually pilfered a classmate's pocky? A smile tugged at the back of his lips. Judging from her overly innocent expression and fascination with the tree growing outside the window...she had. The idea was amusing.
"I'm so glad. This seems like a fun class," a soft, unfamiliar, feminine voice sounded from the front of the classroom. Beside the desk stood a petite, silver-haired vampire that Senri assumed must be the new student. "Hey, hasn't class started yet?"
"You... Who are you?" Aidou demanded, a touch petulantly, obviously still worked up by the loss of his candy.
"By who...you mean me, right?" the newcomer leapt gracefully across the room, alighting on the desk in front of the blond vampire and touching his face with the appearance of gentleness. Yet...her eyes betrayed a malevolence that jolted him. Something about her tone, gaze, or touch had temporarily paralyzed the usually energetic Aidou, who appeared frozen.
"You should have introduced yourself first, Maria Kurenai," Kaname chided, breaking through the tension as he arrived through the back door of the class.
The silver-haired girl started, and a look of pure adoration flooded her features. Immediately, she launched herself across the room once more, crying, "I'm sorry for displeasing you! Kaname Kuran-sama! I'm so happy to be able to meet a pureblood!" To everyone's shock and dismay, Senri included, the newcomer began cuddling Kaname's hand.
"Nice to meet you..." The pureblood regarded the girl stoically, despite her audacity.
"Ah." She glanced around the room, noting the glares and surprised faces, and apologized, "I'm sorry. It looks like I've upset everyone. I guess I should excuse myself for the present." A moment later, the door shut quietly behind her.
For a brief interim, the Night Class remained frozen. A beat later, several of its members broke out in loud protest and anger. Kaname quickly took the matter in hand, saying, "Let's not be too harsh on Maria-chan. She is young and not used to society..."
By the window, Senri glanced and Rima and shrugged one shoulder, murmuring his analysis of the new student: "Annoying."
Ichijou answered with characteristic friendliness, "We should give her a chance nevertheless, don't you think?"
"No thanks," Rima muttered bluntly.
Senri nodded his agreement. The rest of the Night Class were obviously more than preoccupied with Maria Kurenai. The matter didn't require his participation as well. As with so many things, it was simply too troublesome to bother with, and he was glad that Rima shared the sentiment. Fortunately, by the time the teacher arrived, most of the mayhem had died down. Nevertheless, Senri doubted many students retained much of the lecture that day.
After class, Rima was the first at their table to stand up. "Shiki-kun, let's go," she bade him. He stretched lazily, stifled a yawn, and followed her out. As he passed through the door frame, however, he caught Ichijou's raised eyebrows out of the corner of his eye, and it abruptly occurred to him...
Since when had Rima started using his name so informally? He hadn't noticed until now, but she'd been addressing him that way all day today, and perhaps yesterday too, or even the day before. The suggestion of a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. He most definitely enjoyed the way the change of title rolled off her tongue.
He glanced at her cautiously from beneath burgundy lashes. Rima was one of two people to address him that way. Still...he wondered...how would he feel if she used his given name instead? After all...the only other person who called him Senri was his mother...
He exhaled slowly. It was doubtful Rima would ever use his name so easily, and even if she did, he wasn't sure how he'd react to it. The sound of his name triggered memories of that large, empty manor and his mother's broken, incessant demands...
Or maybe...maybe he did want to replace such memories...with the electric hum of Rima's voice instead...
AN: As always, review!