A/N: Ghost songs…

"You know, it's not half bad… Not modern…" Lee started, taking off his sunglasses. Shiki followed in suit, stepping over the threshold. At least he was polite enough to offer a smile to Gonkuro. Kain embraced the butler, glad the blood lust had subsided.

"So affectionate… It's weird." He patted Kain on the back. Kain broke away, trying to drain the tension from himself. "These are the guests you referred to?"

Kain only nodded. It was a sudden wave hitting him, the nausea overtaking his body. He rested against the door, eyes shutting. Gonkuro signaled for Enmei to assist their master. The chauffeur did so, helping Kain to stand. Gonkuro's eyebrow raised significantly, almost impressively. The aristocrat put a hand to his head. "Master Kain, are you unwell?"

"He's fine." Shiki stated on his behalf, assisting Enmei. "Overwhelmed to be home. Right, Kain?"

Kain tried his best to swallow the pain of the order. "I'm fine. Though…"

Gonkuro lowered his head, scurrying away. When he returned, it was with a blood water. Kain smiled weakly, leaning heavily on Enmei. "What did I miss?"

"Well, they completed the front room." He shielded his eyes from the brightness. Again, Gonkuro's eyebrow lifted.

"The ivy?"

"Planted. It'll take a while to grow but…"

"It'll be picturesque. Just like Himari imagined." He smiled as Enmei helped to adjust the master towards the dining room.

"Not quite done but, it has been painted white."

"Hmm…" Kain stepped towards the French doors, using the dining table to hold him up. He nodded to himself. "The garden view…"

"… Is good?" Gonkuro tried to finish.

"Perfect." Using the chairs to support his weight, they made their way into the kitchen. He scowled at the outside dining area. "When will they finish that?"

"There's been a few delays…"

"Why for? They've had two years…"

"The interior designer has been going back and forth with Master Kiryuu. She wants to follow your plans, he says it'd do better as a café feel rather than one long table."

Kain stumbled into the outdoors, his face softening as he imagined it. The herbs and fruits could continue to grow around the windows. A small coffee stand. Scattered tables. He nodded to himself. "I agree with Kiryuu."

"There's also not much progress on the bathrooms." Kain sighed inwardly as Enmei escorted him back inside. "They're not happy about tearing down the traditional drawing room and secondary study."

"Well, it doesn't matter what they want. I'd rather not have the servants have a huge line up." Gonkuro nodded at that. Kain gestured for the study. Enmei turned them, Gonkuro following in suit. As soon as he rested on the couch, the nausea started to pass. "Thank you, Enmei."

The younger nodded, assessing Kain. The aristocrat barely smiled. "It's been three years without you seeing her. Go."

Enmei smiled back at him, tearing off. Gonkuro shut the doors, locking them in. His voice was colder. "It wasn't Enmei, was it?"

Kain shook his head. "Worse."

"… The boy with the blonde hair?" Kain could barely manage a nod. Gonkuro sighed. "How long?"

"… Two years?" He sighed, closing his eyes. "There's something wrong with his blood."

"What?"

"I don't know." He opened them again, assessing Gonkuro. "Can I trust you with the task?"

"Absolutely."

"There's something else you want to say."

"… You've never been this…" He gestured to Kain's current state.

"I don't have time to take care of me." Sighing, he lifted himself up, hearing one of the maids scolding Lee. He pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Intrusive little bugger, isn't he?" Gonkuro questioned.

"Intrusive… Annoying… Believe me when I say the only reason –"

"I know. I picked up on that." His smile faltered. "But, you have the real man here."

"The real man doesn't need me." Kain forced himself to sit up. "So… I'll do what I do best. Be the invisible shoulder to cry on, to comfort, to express his emotions when he can't get the words out… Be useful. In the meantime… I'm going to figure out what's wrong with Lee's blood and get off it."

"Kiryuu can help with that." Gonkuro suggested.

"It's better if Kiryuu never knows." Kain sighed, the emotions finally draining from him.

"You aged." Gonkuro commented.

"Nothing twenty years of sleep wouldn't cure."

"Not karoke with Ms. Wakaba?"

Kain offered a smile, the glint in his eye showing his appreciation. "I haven't sung karoke since… Well, since I left for America."

"Did you do anything fun?"

Kain shook his head. "Too busy working and sleeping."

"And screwing, apparently."

"That was work of a different kind." He avoided Gonkuro's hand brushing against his shoulder. "Kanno… I feel like I haven't had a break since I left."

"Did you relax at all?"

"… I watched… Three movies?"

"Anything you enjoyed?" Again, Kain shook his head. Gonkuro exhaled.

"I feel like I'm switching between two roles: the dutiful host and the ghost."

"What are their duties?"

"Feed. Work. Supply. Make sure everyone else is having a good time…" He bit down on his suppressed feelings of resentment. "The ghost… He's ignored. Never thought about. His needs don't matter and he can't voice it."

"Why'd you bring them here, then?"

"Lee insisted. I'd have rather come alone." He held out his hand. "Do you have my other phone?"

Gonkuro nodded, handing it to him. "I don't see –"

"I haven't heard from anyone in two years." Kain interjected. "All of my messages didn't go through…"

He felt another wave of nausea pass through. He drained the glass of blood water. Gonkuro poured another. "Is there a key?"

"Aidou showed me how." Gonkuro sat next to him. He tapped on the settings, a convoluted path once it accessed the internet in incognito mode. Through it, an app on his phone appeared. Kain calmed as it started filling with messages, a small smile on his face. "Did you honestly think you were forgotten?"

"I didn't know what to think. Calls were getting cut off if I spent more than five minutes on the phone, text messages didn't exist, e-mails that weren't for work…" He ran a hand through his hair. "Easier to plan my stay."

"How long are you staying for?"

"Two weeks. That's all I have." He smiled in spite of himself. "Not long enough to reconnect…"

"So, what's your first plan?"

"City for two days. Takada's really stepped up. Between her and Ruuka, I don't think I have anything to worry about partner wise."

"And then?"

"Touya for alcohol. Catch up with Wakaba. Probably a meeting with the Kurans at some point…" He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Then, Hanabusa and Ruuka. And then, Kiryuu."

"Why is Master Kiryuu last?"

"I'm hoping Hana will be able to figure what's wrong before Kiryuu…"

"Why are you so worried about what Kiryuu will think?"

Kain's smile faded as fast as it appeared. He knew the real answer, the words hanging on the tip of his tongue. He settled for a roundabout way. "I'm afraid of disappointing him. He's got enough reasons to hate vampires… How is he?"

"Last I saw?" Kain nodded, waiting. Gonkuro shrugged. "Been calling Souen 'Mama' and Aidou 'Papa'… Touya's become like a little sister to him… Um… Ichijo's… Not kind to him…"

Kain tried his hardest not to show any emotion, chancing a drink. "Is he alright?"

"Most days, yeah." Gonkuro's eyes brightened. "Oh. Touya moved in with him."

Kain spat the wine out of his mouth, choking slightly. Gonkuro patted his back. "Touya's moved in?"

"… Is that an issue?"

Kain groaned. "In a relationship Touya? No. Single Touya?... We're going to need to burn the apartment and have them rebuild."

Gonkuro chuckled. "Master Kiryuu disinfects it every week."

"Good. Least one of them does." He rubbed his forehead. "Seriously… Single Touya moved in?"

"Mm. And, there was something about an Onee-chan…"

"… Who?"

Gonkuro shrugged. "I only know what I overhear."

Kain nodded. "And, yourself?"

"I'm old." He forced a smile. "My mind plays tricks on me."

"What sort of tricks?" Kain asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"…" Gonkuro sat in the chair. For the first time, Kain observed how small he was. "I hear them all at times."

"Kitashi and Mayoko?"

"And Himari." He glanced towards the garden. "Some days, I see her as she was. I hear the fighting…"

"You're taking the medications, right?"

"Most days." He assured. His face turned serious. "Promise me one thing."

"Ask."

"… When I go, you'll cleanse it."

"Go?" Kain gripped his hands, kneeling in front of him. "You've got years ahead of you. You're still spry."

"I could win over any man you bring home." He grinned. Kain noted the missing teeth, the declining health.

"I'd let you have them if I thought they could keep up."

"As much as I love the compliments…" Gonkuro glanced out the window. "We have to be realistic."

"What do the doctors say?" Kain questioned, swallowing the lump in his throat. A world without Kanno…

"Weakened heart. Cataracts. Forgetfulness…" The mischief still shone in his eyes. "The usual culprits that stop the old."

"… When you go," Kain muttered, pushing the thought away, "I'm moving to the cabin."

"Don't be ridiculous. You spent thousands redecorating."

"There's too many ghosts to be happy here. It'll remain empty with basic servants."

"You hear them, too?" Gonkuro questioned, his eyebrow raising again.

"All the time." He smiled. "Sometimes, I see Himari, too."

"As she was?"

"As she was." Gonkuro nodded, forcing himself to stand. This time, Kain allowed the older man to rest against him. "No more death talks until you're actually on your death bed, yeah?"

"Fine, fine." They heard something smash upstairs. "Was that the library?"

"No… That'd be the first corridor hallway."

"… Well, why'd they go there?"

"… Feeding time."

It was a rush to the finish for Kain. Takada welcomed him warmly. The meetings and his progress were discussed in great length. In the two-day window, Kain's head spun, the cravings getting the best of him. Once home, he practically dragged Lee with him. He knew his appetite was bigger than it was before, only reflected in Lee's loud moans that quieted the deeper Kain drank. He felt the hatred seep from him, the anger.

Kain. Stop. It was followed by Shiki pulling him off Lee by the hair. Kain panted as he wound up on the floor, swallowing the liquid. Shiki sighed as he lifted Lee bridal style, his glare an echo of Kitashi. Kain averted his gaze as the brunette walked by. He could hear Gonkuro's transfusion machine as he pulled his knees to his chest, the craving satisfied. He exhaled, the calm, collected Kain returning to his faculties. He forced the blood water down his throat, erasing any remaining trace from his tongue. Six days… Hana will be back in six days… He nodded to himself, preparing yet another test tube for his cousin. It was easier to hide now that Gonkuro was aware of the situation.

"What the hell?" Shiki yelled, shoving Kain back towards the bathroom after he had finished. "You almost killed him!"

"Like you didn't?" Shiki's glare hardened, his jaw tightening. "Look. I lost control for a minute."

"His heart is slowed."

"Good." He stepped away from Shiki's accusing finger. "We need a break from feeding on him."

"You know a vampires bite is addictive."

"So is feeding on a human. But, an addiction is just that. And, I refuse to be an addict."

"Yet, you've fed on him more than I did."

"At your encouragement." Kain raised an eyebrow as Shiki huffed, crossing his arms over his chest. "Or… Are you mad because you didn't get to feed?"

"Please. I can last longer without it than you."

"Without… Blood?"

"Obviously." He sighed. "Why didn't you take a thermos or something?"

"He wouldn't let me." Kain answered. "He wants the bite, not to feed a vampire."

"So, what do you want to do now that our blood bags out of commission."

"Can you not refer to him like that?"

"To me, he's just a blood bag." He held up his hands, his eyes lighting up. "Unless… It was a sneaky ruse to get me back into your bed."

"I've been over you since dating Kiryuu. I'm good." Kain replied snidely. They glared at each other momentarily. Shiki suddenly smirked, cutting the base of his neck. Kain's eyes flashed red, his fangs protruding.

"Not an addict, huh?" Shiki continued, licking the blood off his nail. Kain tasted the blood on his tongue, glad he didn't bite the other. Shiki lifted his head by the hair. Kain groaned, his eyes fluttering closed. "You're no better than any Level E. A beast in disguise."

"Shut up." He answered, unable to meet the others' eyes.

"Do you think it'll stop with Lee?" Kain parted from Shiki. "Do you think Souen or Aidou will be able to accept it? Touya? Do you think your beloved Kiryuu will ever look at you the same?"

"Shut it." Kain repeated with less conviction in his voice.

"Face it, Akatsuki." Kain flinched as Shiki rested a hand on his back. "This is going to end one of two ways: with a bullet between your brain or Kiryuu's body in your arms."

Kain shoved him away, trying to push the horrors away from him. "You don't know me."

Shiki nodded. "You're right. The Kain I thought I knew had the most control over his blood lust."

A/N: Three hours of Three Days Grace and Linkin Park and Evanescence, this is where I end up: Kain a mess, Shiki manipulative, Lee almost dead (YAY! Mainly cause all I hear is the squawky voice), Gonkuro declining… I almost made me cry again.