Yunoki entered the room quietly, smiling as he saw Kahoko asleep in bed. He leaned over and shook her shoulder gently. "Kahoko. Hey, Kahoko."

She opened her eyes slowly, frowning as she recognized his face. "Yunoki? What are you doing here?"

"Azuma," he corrected.

Kahoko sat up in bed, shivering slightly at the cold night air. "How did you get in my room, Azuma?"

He sat down on her bed. "My flight just landed. I couldn't wait to see you, so I came straight here."

"How did you get inside the house?"

Azuma raised an eyebrow. He pulled a brass key out of his pocket. "You gave me a key. Before I left. Don't you remember?"

"I—" Kahoko rubbed her eyes. "I guess. I'm sorry, I must still be asleep."

Azuma smiled. "It's okay. You're cute when you're sleepy." He leaned down and kissed her. "You don't know how long I've been thinking about doing that," he murmured.

"I suppose if you're here, that means you want…"

"Mmm, if you're willing."

He moved to kiss her again, but Kahoko pushed him away. "I should probably go brush my teeth first. I feel all gross from sleeping."

"I don't care. I need you. It's been too long."

"We have to be quiet," she managed to gasp in between heated kisses. "I don't want my parents—"

"My dear," Azuma interrupted her, "I don't think I am the one who needs to worry about making too much noise."

Kahoko blushed, but her hands moved to help him out of his clothes. She had just finished unbuttoning his shirt when she heard a light knock on her door. She froze. "Azuma, you should hide."

He scowled. "I don't see why—"

"What if it's my parents? Do you have any idea how much trouble I'd be in if they saw you in here—especially like this?" she hissed, gesturing to the bed. The knock sounded again and Kahoko pulled back her blankets. "Just get in."

Azuma grinned. "Eager, are we?"

"To hide."

Azuma shrugged and got under the covers. "If that's what you want to call it."

Kahoko drew the blankets over them both as the door opened. Tsuchiura stepped inside her room, closing the door quietly behind him. "Sorry I'm late," he said.

"Late?"

"You told me to be here an hour ago. It took longer than usual for everyone in my family to get to bed tonight. I figured you wouldn't mind, though. If you managed to fall asleep without my help, it just makes my job that much easier."

"Your…job?"

"Piano." He gestured to the small upright situated beside her desk. "Come on, Kaho. I know it's late, but surely you're not that out of it."

"I'm sorry, I don't understand."

Tsuchiura shook his head. "And this is why you need sleep. It does wonders for your think-tank," he said, tapping his temple. He opened the lid to the piano and pulled out the bench. "You said your family was coming back this weekend, right?"

"Wait. Tsuchiura, you came into my room to play piano for me?"

He stared at her. "Kaho, you asked me to. This is the third night in a row I've come here. You've been having trouble sleeping because the house is empty, and you said that this helps."

She blinked. "Oh. That's…that's very nice of you."

Tsuchiura shrugged. "I care about you, Kaho. I wouldn't be here otherwise." He sat down on the bench and started playing softly.

The music worked like a charm, and Kahoko found herself relaxing. Her eyelids started to droop shut and she prepared to drift off to sleep. She felt something brush against her thigh and her eyes snapped open.

"Forgetting something?" Azuma asked.

Kahoko flushed. "But—but Tsuchiura's here," she whispered.

"And?"

"Well we can't…you know…not if someone else is in the room."

Azuma sighed and pulled back the covers. His hair had gotten rumpled and he smoothed it with his fingers. "I don't see what the problem is."

"It's kind of rude, don't you think?"

"Kahoko, amuse me this once. I've been away from you for what, three weeks? I'm in your room, in your bed, and halfway undressed, and you mean to send me away?"

"But—"

"Besides, I don't think he'd mind. You wouldn't would you?" Azuma asked, raising his voice.

Kahoko dimly saw Tsuchiura shrug in the darkness. "I'm just here to provide music," he said. He kept his back to them and continued playing.

"See? All settled." Azuma said. "Now, if you'd let me pick up where I left off…"

Kahoko tried to voice her protest, but Azuma quickly cut her off. He wasted little time in removing the rest of their clothing. Kahoko clapped both hands over her mouth to stifle her cry as he entered her.

Something was wrong. It hurt. A lot.

"Azuma," she said, "Azuma, stop. It hurts."

Azuma laughed, and when he grinned down at her, Kahoko noticed that his teeth were sharp and pointed.

"What—"

Azuma leaned down and sank his teeth into her neck, spilling blood onto her pillow. Kahoko screamed and tried to push him away, but he latched on. He grabbed her hips to pull her closer to him, and she could feel sharp claws cutting into her skin.

"Tsuchiura, help me! Please!"

He stopped playing the piano and looked at her. "I don't know what you want me to do, Kaho. Isn't this what you wanted from us?"

"Please, he's hurting me," she begged.

He frowned. "Are you willing to pay the price, Kaho?"

"Anything," she pleaded. "Just make it stop."

Tsuchiura slowly got to his feet. He opened the piano bench and removed something from inside. Kahoko couldn't see what it was, but it glinted in the moonlight as he approached the bed.

"Hurry!" Kahoko was starting to feel faint from all the pain. The room seemed to be growing darker, and she worried that she was going to fade away.

"I was hoping I would have a chance," Tsuchiura said.

With a yell, he raised his arm over his head, and Kahoko got a clear glimpse of the sword in his hand before he stabbed it through Azuma and directly into her heart.

Kahoko sat up with a gasp. One hand was pressed against her chest, feeling her heart hammering away rapidly. She rubbed her eyes and glanced at the clock. 3:15 am.

"It was just a nightmare," she told herself. "It's not real life. Just a bad dream that didn't make any sense."

She realized that she'd fallen asleep on the floor, still dressed in the same clothes she'd worn to the Aquarium with Tsuchiura. Shakily, Kahoko went to the bathroom, brushed her teeth, and washed her face. She rubbed at her stiff neck and shoulders and walked gingerly back to her room to put on her pajamas.

"It was just a dream," she told herself again. "It didn't mean anything."

Author's Note:

Yep. Just a dream. No worries, I'm not turning Yunoki into some sort of demon creature. Though I have to note that there's only a one-letter difference between "Akuma" and "Azuma." Hmmmm.

I'm curious though. How long did it take you before you figured out it was a dream?