One Week Later...Tsukune...

I find myself walking alone along a dirt path lined with an endless line of sakura trees, my footsteps create a soft crunch as they hit the ground. The air smells warm and earthy, and a sense of peace and calmness fills the air. It's quiet here, just me and the rest of the trees around, they're tall, and their branches reach out like fingers stretching towards the sky. The sunshine filters through the bright pink petals, casting a warmth around me.

"Hey there, Tsukune!"

I hear a familiar voice calling out my name, and I smile when I turn back to see her emerald-green eyes meet my own. "Hey, Moka."

Moka's smile softens as she steps closer, and we fall into step together side-by-side as we walk along the path. "Tsukune..."

"Oh, Moka..."

Moka glances to the side, her smile faltering as she comes to a stop in the dirt path. "Um, Tsukune?"

The way with how nervous she looks makes me feel the same. "Yes, Moka?"I try to figure out what's troubling her and my mind comes to one possibility. "Do you want to suck my blood again?"

Moka's blush deepens, and she clears her throat once more before replying. "Uh, no, not today...I want something else instead..."

"What do you-"

Before I could ask what it was she wanted, Moka did the last possible thing I could imagine doing...she pulled me by the color of my shirt and kissed me. She kept me in her grip for what felt like forever, the softness and slight wetness of her lips filled my head with pure bliss. Moka pulls away from our kiss, I breathe heavily, I didn't even know I was holding my breath the entire time.

"Moka.." But when I looked back at her...her eyes were not the same. Instead of seeing her beautiful green irises, I'm met with the sight of her extraordinary red ones. I realized that I had just kissed the Inner Moka all this time too. "I, uh..."

"Hmm," She smirks at me, her grip around my shirt collar getting tighter. "Stealing a kiss from me takes some nerve, you know?" The slightly flirtatious way she says that sends a chill down my back.

"I...Well, you..."

"I think it's time you..." Moka lifts me up off the ground, scowling up at me. Before I could negotiate, she twirls me around and throws me in the sky. "know your place!"

"WAAAAAAUUUUUUUGGGGHH!"

"AHH!"

My eyes jolted, I leaned up and felt a cold drip of sweat going down my forehead. That was only...a dream. Thank God... I stretch my arms out and rub the tiredness from my eyes. "What time is it, anyway? I hope I didn't..." I look at the clock beside my bed...and my heart stops when I read '7:37'. "Oh, crap!" I get out of bed and rush to get my school uniform. "Elijah! Wake up, dude! We're gonna-"

I look at the makeshift bed on the opposite side of my room, finding it folded up and my friend is nowhere to be seen. Huh? Did he get up early? If so, why didn't he... I groan and continue putting on my uniform. It doesn't matter, we need to get out of here so we don't miss the bus!

I managed to get my uniform on without tripping over my own feet and I grabbed my school and duffel bag. I rush out of my room and down the stairs, immediately smelling eggs being cooked in the kitchen. Man, those smell good...but I can't stay.

"Oh, good morning, Tsukune," Mom calls from the kitchen.

"Hey, Mom," I head straight for the front door and start slipping on my shoes. "Gotta run!"

"But what about your breakfast?"

"I'll eat when I get there! And have you seen Elijah?!"

"He already went on ahead to the bus stop and said he would wait for you there."

He left already? I shake off my worry and open the front door, waving my Mom goodbye. "Bye, Mom! Love you!"

"I love you too, Tsukune! Be sure to say hello to Moka for me, bye sweetie!" I internally groan at her last sentence before I close the front door of the house and sprint down the sidewalk.

If I keep up the pace, I should be able to catch up with Elijah and make it to the bus on time!

HOO! HOO!

"There you are, Mr. Aono!" Archimedes squawks at me, flying above my head. "And where is Mr. Everett?"

"He's at the bus stop...you didn't see him leave?" I say in between breaths.

"No!" The Pygmy Owl puffs his chest with annoyance. "I swear, I don't know what's gotten into that boy!"

Yeah...me neither.

For the past week, I've noticed a few changes in my best friend. There weren't changes that raised much concern, but I still couldn't help but feel this way. Whenever we would do stuff together, he would just stay quiet and focus entirely on what it was we were doing...and he wouldn't even bat an eye in my direction, not unless he didn't have a choice. Elijah doesn't even invite me out to his morning PT anymore, and he even stays out way longer than usual. I've seen him come back to the house completely drenched in sweat, bruises going up and down his arms, sometimes even in the middle of lunch. Mom was concerned, of course, but Elijah would just tell her that this was his 'normal' routine and he's used to it...but I knew better than that.

I've also noticed a slight change in Elijah's appetite, too. It wasn't a complete change, but I know he's a lot more hungrier than normal. I've even seen him sneak out to buy fast food. And most of all...he didn't make it noticeable, but I could just feel that Elijah is...angry. I've asked him about it, but all I get out of him is a nonchalant shrug or a simple 'I'm alright' in the form of an equally nonchalant sigh.

"Why do you care? It's always been you anyway, hasn't it? It was always you..."

It's like he doesn't even remember that night at all...

HOO! HOO!

"There he is!"

I look ahead and see my friend at the bus stop with his bags, I sigh in relief as I finally catch up. "Hey, man," I take a breath, resting my hands on my knees. Man, I'm still out of shape. Or is this because I woke up not only ten minutes ago? "You went ahead of me?"

"I got tired of waiting."

"And what about me?!" Archimedes squawked. "There I was, having a lovely slumber when I heard this one galavanting out of his home with you nowhere to be seen!"

"Well, you're both here, aren't you? So stop complaining, bus'll be here soon."

"...Yeah, good point, Elijah," I lightly punch his shoulder, and he responds by just looking ahead. I sigh in defeat, I really hope that whatever is going on with him passes soon, or that he would at least open up to me.

I think what's more concerning, at least I know that the others most likely notice, Elijah hasn't reached out to anyone in the group chat he's made. And from the few messages that Kurumu and Mizore sent me, he hasn't responded to any of their texts. I think I would get not wanting to talk after the night we had, especially with how Mizore hit him like that...but I would think that Elijah would want to at least express that he's not too worried about it. But I'm not a mind reader, who knows what's going on in his head?

"Look who it is," Elijah's voice breaks me out of my thoughts as well as the sound of the bus coming along. The vehicle comes to a stop and the door opens, revealing the familiar smirk from the Bus Driver.

"Heh, good to see you, boys."

I returned his smirk with a smile. "It's good to see you too, sir," I grab my duffel bag, Elijah goes onto the bus ahead of me, not even giving the Bus Driver a proper hello.

"Heh, your friend wake up on the wrong side of the bed or somethin'?" He asked me.

"You could say that, yeah."

"Hmph!" Archimedes swoops through the bus door and perches himself on the dash, crossing his arms. "That's putting it lightly if you ask me."

"Come on, Archimedes," I step onto the bus. "today's supposed to be a good day. We're gonna see our friends again." The owl simply huffed before he found a comfortable spot on the bus, I took my seat beside Elijah on the opposite side of the bus. "Heh, this is kinda like how we first met, huh?"

"...Yeah, sure is."

"..." He didn't even look at me...

VVTT!

My phone vibrates against my leg so I take it out of my pocket, smiling when I see Moka's name pop up in our group chatbox. I open my phone and I start reading.

Moka: "Hey, guys! I'm so excited that Yokai Academy is opening back up today! I'm really excited to see you all again. I missed you all so much!"

I chuckle lightly. Even over text, I can hear her cheery voice. I start typing up a response.

Tsukune: "I can't wait to see you guys too, I feel like it's been months since we were all together. It's weird that it was only a week."

Kurumu: "That's still too long, it's so boring back here at home! My mom has been nagging me nonstop ever since I came home."

Mizore: "You think that's bad? My mom won't stop pestering me."

Kurumu: "Oh, cry me a river, Stalker."

Yukari: "Both of you are such drama queens, let's just be happy that we'll all be together again soon! Right, Ruby?"

Ruby: "Ths'ts rimsgdj"

I chuckle at Ruby's text, looks like she's still getting used to it.

Yukari: "Again, Ruby. You just tap the letters, you don't have to write them out on the keyboard." I watch as the three dots come into the chatbox. Come on, Ruby, you got this.

Ruby: "There, is that better?"

Yukari: "Yep! That's it!"

Moka: "Excellent job, Ruby!"

Kurumu: "Way to use that phone!"

Ruby: "Thank you."

I smile. Good job, Ruby.

Tsukune: "Elijah and I are on the bus and on our way to the school, we'll see you guys soon."

Moka: "How are you feeling anyway, Elijah?"

I look off to the side, seeing my friend not even looking at his phone. Instead, he's just staring blankly out the window with a blank expression on his face. I don't want to make the others worry even more so I type up what I hope is a good excuse.

Tsukune: "He passed out on the bus, he didn't get much sleep last night." I know they won't buy that excuse, but it's better than making them worry.

Yukari: "Ha! Tsukune, take a picture!"

Kurumu: "Make sure he doesn't fall out of his seat."

Moka: "We'll see you guys soon. Oh! I forgot! It's also the time of year when we get new students, so technically, we're starting our second year at Yokai Academy!"

Tsukune: "Really? It's been that long already?"

Kurumu: "I know, right? It feels like forever since we first met."

Mizore: "I agree."

Moka: "I'm so excited to see all the new students we'll see! Maybe we can add someone to the newspaper club!"

Yukari: "Isn't it a little early for recruiting new members?"

Moka: "Of course not! The more the merrier after all!"

Yukari: "That's Moka for you, always so cheery and optimistic."

Kurumu: "Took the words right out of my mouth, Yukari."

I find myself chuckling at their texts, I'm glad everyone is enjoying themselves... I look over to my best friend, sighing. Well, almost everyone. I look back at my phone and give the others one last text.

Tsukune: "Well, we'll see you guys soon."

Moka: "See you soon!"

Kurumu: "See ya!"

Mizore: "Yeah."

Yukari: "You betcha!"

Ruby: "Safe travels."

"Heh, you happy to see your friends again, boys?" The bus driver calls back to us, making me smile at his comment.

"Yes, sir."

"What about you?" He asked Elijah.

"...Yeah."

"...Either way," The Bus Driver ignores Elijah's half-hearted response and continues with what he has to say. "you boys better keep your guard up this year, or it could cost you your life."

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"They may have fixed the buildings, but it's still the same school," He smirked, reminding me when the first time he warned me about Yokai Academy. "So you two better have each other's backs."

"We will," I nod. "Right, Elijah?"

"...Yep." My small falls into a frown and I sigh. Kinda wish he was more enthusiastic about it.

VVTT!

My phone vibrates again, I check it and see that Moka is texting me directly. I open my phone and check what she has to say.

Moka: "Tsukune, is Elijah really okay?" I sighed in defeat, I knew at least one of them wouldn't believe me.

Tsukune: "I'll be honest with you Moka, I don't really know. I'm really worried about him, you know? It's like after you guys left, he's just...different."

Moka: "Maybe he just really misses Yokai Academy and wants to get back as soon as possible. I know I do." That last part makes my heart flutter.

Tsukune: "I miss you most of all, Moka. I really can't wait to see you again."

Moka: "I miss you too, Tsukune, and don't worry. I'm sure Elijah will be back to normal once you guys get to Yokai Academy, okay?"

Tsukune: "Thanks Moka, I'm sure everything will work out. I'll see you soon."

Moka: "See you soon!"

The rest of the bus ride was quiet after that last text I got from Moka and we managed to get to Yokai Academy quicker than I had thought. The Bus Driver dropped us off and me, Elijah, and Archimedes headed down the path that'll eventually lead us to the school. Along the way, I can't help but feel a wave of nostalgia wash over me as I walked.

"You know," I speak my mind. "this is around the same place where we met Moka, Remember?"

"Yeah, and we got knocked on our asses," Elijah grunted. "So let's make sure that doesn't happen again." He walks faster down the path.

"I say!" Archimedes exclaimed as we caught up with our friend. "Aren't you in too much of a hurry?"

"Yeah, man, we're almost-" I stop mid-sentence as I hear the faint sound of...a bike's tires rolling against the dirt. I gasp lightly and smile. "That's a bike. Alright! Maybe it's Moka." I spoke too soon as I turned around. It was in fact a bike... heading directly for us.

"Oh, for fuck-"

The cycle crashes into us, knocking us and the person on the bike to the ground. I heard Elijah scream out a few swear words as I groaned in pain, but I better check to see if whoever was on the bike was okay.

"Are you okay?"

"Ngh..." I reached down to help...and my hand stopped just when I got a good look at the person. It was a girl with orange-red hair tied into pigtails, she looked up at me and scowled. "Nice job, jerks!"

"You ran into us, dumbass!" Elijah called out, rubbing his head. "I shoulda seen this coming..."

"But are you alright?" I ask the girl again, offering her a hand so she can get to her feet. The girl reluctantly takes it and I pull her up. But what she did next I did not expect of all things, she started...sniffing me, having no respect for my personal space. "Uh...what are you doing?"

"Oh, lord," Elijah sighs. "Not another one..."

"I don't normally say this, but your blood smells really good!" The girl exclaimed...and then she proceeded to lick my cheek. What is it with people and my blood?!

"Hey!" I pulled away, wiping my wet cheek with my sleeve. "What are you-"

SQUEE! SQUEE!

"Miss Kokoa! Kokoa, are you alright!" A small, round bat swoops in and sets itself down on the girl's shoulder.

"I'm fine, Ko. Just ran into these guys with my bike."

"HA!" The bat started laughing at us, it was already weird enough that it was talking. Well, I know a talking owl so this isn't entirely too far-fetched to me anymore. "Looks like these bozos need to watch where they're going, Whee!"

"What, what?! WHAT?!" Archimedes puffed out his chest, getting his face close to the bat. "Who do you think you people are, you bumbling blockhead!"

"Archimedes, that's enough," Elijah said. "Everyone seems fine now, let's just move on." The Pygmy Owl simply huffed and flew back to Elijah's side. "Now instead of screaming at one another, how about we introduce ourselves? I'm Elijah Everett."

"Tsukune Aono," I say to the girl with a kind smile.

"...Kokoa Shuzen," The red-headed girl pouted her response. "This is my bat, Komori."

"This is Archimedes, my friend," Elijah says.

GONG! GONG!

"Oh, crap!" The girl gathers her bags in a panic at the distant sound of the school bell. "The welcome ceremony is about to start soon! Bye!" She runs off and waves back at us, I wave back.

"Well, that was...something, right, man?" I look over at my friend. But I frown with concern as I see him wincing in pain and bring his hand up to his head. "You okay, dude?"

"Yeah," Elijah shakes his head, his eyes fluttering. "I'm fine. Let's just get going, alright?"

"...Yeah, let's go."

Moka...

"Moka!"

"Hmm?" The young vampire turns around and is immediately met with a small pair of arms wrapping around her waist. She smiles when she sees the familiar Witch's hat on the small child's head. "Oh, hi, Yukari!"

"I missed you, Moka!"

"I missed you too," Moka giggles, releasing the Young Witch. "You sure are in a good mood."

"Well, of course! It's been a long week!"

"You're telling me..."

Moka sighs. The young vampire girl has been looking forward to coming back to Yokai Academy, most of all to see her human friend. Well, she didn't think of him as a friend anymore, especially with how she last talked with him. Moka always gets butterflies in her stomach just thinking about that day.

I still can't believe I just kissed him like that. What was I thinking?

"Hehe," Moka is broken out of her thoughts by the sound of Yukari's giggling. "You know, you really stand out, Moka," The young Witch's remark made the vampire realize just how many people were staring at her as they made their way to Yokai Academy, she was getting astounded gazes from most of the boys. "Smooth skin, silky hair, pretty face," Yukari listed. "It almost pains me to share your beauty."

"Oh, come on, Yukari," Moka grew embarrassed of all the compliments she was receiving. "Cut that out."

"It's true, you know?" A pair of guys come along, approaching the vampire and young witch. Both had an equal amount of red marking on their cheeks, and they were infatuated by the beauty of Moka Akashiya. "You're such a vision of loveliness, I'm hypnotized."

"Is this your little sister," The second guy asked. "She's kinda cute," He smiled as he patted her head...unknowingly making her angry. "Are you in elementary school?"

BONK!

"Don't patronize me!" Yukari shouted after using her trademarked golden washtub on the boy's head. "I'm Yukari Sendo! I'm only twelve, but I'm a sophomore!" She turned to the other boy, flaunting her magic wand. "And don't hit on her either! Moka already has a lover! Tsukune Aono!"

"Yukari!" Moka grabbed Yukari by her shoulders, desperately fighting the growing blush on her cheeks. "What the heck?!" She whispered. "Tsukune is not my lover! At least... We're just not official yet!"

"I know, but that'll at least keep all the hounds away!" Yukari cackled like a madwoman.

"Don't let Tsukune hear you say that!"

"Huh? Is that you, Moka?" The Vampire's heart nearly popped out of her chest after hearing the familiar sound of the very boy she named, she silently cursed herself for jinxing the possibility.

"Ts-Tsukune?!"

"That's the aforementioned Tsukune?!" The boy asked Yukari out of sheer dumbfoundedness in a whisper.

"Mhm! That's right!"

"Did you...hear any of that, Tsukune?"

"Hear what?" The human tilted his head in confusion.

"Oh, nothing! Just forget I mentioned it!" Moka laughed nervously, and Tsukune only smiled at her antics.

"I really missed you, Moka."

"..." Moka couldn't take it anymore, she immediately ran to Tsukune and wrapped her arms around the human's neck. She didn't care that people were staring, Moka only saw her friend who she cared for so much. "I missed you too, Tsukune." She pulled away from him and looked over his shoulder, her eyes meeting Tsukune's best friend. "Hey, Elijah, it's good to see you too!" Moka did her best to smile for him, knowing that he may not be feeling normal.

"...You too, Moka."

"..." Tsukune was putting it lightly. I don't know what it is, but Elijah just feels...different than before. Has he been sleeping well, he's getting some dark rings around his eyes. "Where's Archimedes?"

"I sent him off to my dorm room, something about wanting more beauty sleep or somethin'..."

"..."

"Ya-hoo-hoo!" A cheery shout is heard from behind, coming from their Succubus friend, Kurumu Kurono. The very first thing she does after seeing her friends is run right up to the Wizard boy, practically wrapping her arms and legs around him in a tight hug. "Elijah! It's been way too long! I missed you so much!"

"Whoa! Who's that?" The boy whispered to Yukari again.

"Hmph! That's just Kurumu Kurono," Yukari crosses her arms and pouts. "I honestly don't know what Elijah sees in her."

"Okay, Kurumu, that's enough," Elijah sighs but the Succubus doesn't let go. "People are staring..." Elijah was about to continue, but he darted his eyes back and caught what appeared to be...a kunai blade made entirely out of ice, and it was heading right toward Kurumu's head. "Mizore..."

Eliah was correct about whom threw the ice weapon, he looked back to a nearby bush where the lavender-haired snow fairy was peeking out from. "Oh...hi, Elijah."

"..." He rolls his eyes and pulls away from Kurumu's hug. "You two can continue your rivalry some other day," Elijah says in a slightly annoyed tone. "But first, let's just get through our first day back, alright. And for God's sake, no bullshit for one day?" Elijah didn't even bother waiting for a response, instead, he took his bags and headed straight for the main building.

"W-Wait!" Mizore dashes out of the bush and stops Elijah by grabbing onto his wrist, the Wizard doesn't even look back at the Snow Fairy. "Can we talk for a second, I've been trying to call you all week so I can give you a proper apology, but you wouldn't just-"

"We'll talk later," Elijah cuts her off and yanked his hand away from her grip, Mizore lets out a small squeak of shock before she watches him walk away.

"B-But..." Mizore sighed in defeat, but she looked back over her shoulder when she felt a small hand giving it a gentle squeeze.

"Just give him some time, Mizore," Moka did her best to reassure her. "I'm sure he's not mad." I hope...

Tsukune...

"Ya-hoo-hoo!" Kurumu cheered as she took her seat behind Elijah, it looked like the gang was all here once again for our second year. "I'm in the same class with you guys again! It'll be just like last year!"

"Well, not exactly," Yukari called from her desk in front of Elijah. "because this year I get to be in the same homeroom as all of you!"

"It's so great that we're all together at last!" Moka chimed in, her smile tugging at my heartstrings.

"Looks like everyone is here in the same class," Mizore peeked her head out from behind her desk. "Anybody else see the Headmaster's hand in play during all of this?"

Now that she mentions it, it is a little odd that we're all in the same class now. Maybe the Headmaster just wants us to watch out for each other...like the Bus Driver warned us. "I'm sure he's just looking out for us." I try to reassure everyone.

"You're right, Tsukune," Moka agrees with me. "We're a team every single one of us, right you guys?"

"Heck yeah!"

"You bet!"

"Yay..."

I smiled at everyone's enthusiasm... Well, almost everyone's. "Elijah?"

"..."

I tapped his shoulder, trying to get his attention. "Elijah?"

"Huh? What?"

"Isn't it great that we're all together?" Moka asked once more.

"Yeah, yeah, sure..."

"Morning, students!" Before anyone could question Elijah's dismissive behavior, they smiled at the sight of their favorite Neko teacher. "Well, well, well! It certainly has been a while!"

"Ms. Nekonome's out homeroom teacher this year too?!" Kurumu matches our bewilderment.

"That's right, I sure am!" She greets all of us with a smile. "Welcome back to Yokai Academy, everyone! I'm glad to see that all of you again and that you're all sophomores! So, let me hear it, class. Are we gonna have the best school year ever, or what?!" Ms. Nekonome pumps her fist in the air, pumping up the rest of the students. It had a good effect since everyone cheered along with our teacher. Well, minus two people. Mizore I expected it from...but Elijah is just sitting there with his arms folded across his desk.

"...Hey, I got an idea," I speak up once the crowd dies down. "How about the rest of us check out all the buildings they fixed up?"

"Yeah!" Kurumu seemed excited. "Maybe they made some changes around the school?"

There weren't many changes around the school. It's what I expected, but I just wanted to get everyone's minds out of the gutter. It's a nice day today, and classes won't officially start until tomorrow. Today is just for new and returning students to get themselves settled in and meet their teachers anyway. And since we're all familiar with the grounds and our teachers, I figured we could just spend the day together.

As for right now, I managed to sneak away with Moka while the others kept looking around. I know this isn't ideal, but I just wanted to spend some time with her today since we'll both be busy with school pretty soon. I told Yukari to closely monitor Elijah since I didn't want to worry Kurumu or Mizore about him. Plus, I feel like she wouldn't pry too much. I led Moka up to the roof, our usual spot to be alone and away from everyone else.

"Wow!" Moka exclaimed happily. "There are so many new students here already, do you think there could be another Vampire attending Yokai Academy, Tsukune? Outside of my own family, I've never met another vampire before."

"Who knows?" I shrug. "There could be. If there is, I hope they're half as nice as you are."

"...Tsukune?" Moka looks at me with a worried look in her eye. "If there was another Vampire, you wouldn't let them...you know?"

"Huh?" It took me a second to realize what she was talking about. "Oh, no! Of course not, you know that you're the only person who's allowed to drink my blood." Wow, that sounded a lot more romantic in my head. "I mean, you're the only one special enough to..." I sigh, giving up on how to properly say what I mean, but at least Moka found it funny.

"Don't worry, I know what you mean. And speaking of..." Moka leans over to me, her face only a few inches away from mine and a faint blush rises to her cheeks. "Do you mind if I have just...a little taste?"

"..." A small pit of guilt fills my chest. I don't want to deny her, but after what happened earlier with that girl... "Sorry, Moka, not right now."

"What's wrong?" Moka pulls away from me after noticing my slight discomfort. "Do you not feel comfortable with me?"

"No," I shake my head. "It's not that. There was just this freshman girl earlier this morning who said that my blood smelled really good and It just gave me the creeps. Then she proceeded to lick me out of nowhere, maybe she was a Vampire or something, I don't know," I look back over at Moka with an apologetic frown pulling down on my lips...but it turns into a concerned agape when I see Moka...scared? "Moka? What's wrong?"

"No way, it can't be..." She rushes up to me, holding my shoulders with a firm grip. "Tell me, Tsukune, did she have red-orange hair?"

"...Yeah?"

"Was it tied into pigtails?" Moka holds up some of her hair in her hands, forming temporary pigtails. "Like this?"

"They were a lot shorter, but yeah." I nod.

"Did she have knee-high socks...and a pet bat?"

How is she getting this exactly right? "Yes, exactly, yes. Do you know her or something, Moka?" Before she could answer me, Moka ran away as fast as she could. "Moka?! W-Where are you going?!" I do my best to catch up to her, eventually finding myself in the hallways of Yokai Academy chasing her down. "Moka! What's the matter?"

"I'm getting my stuff and I'm clearing out for today!"

"Huh?!" Man, why does she have to be so fast?! And how am I keeping up with her? "What are you talking about?!"

"Tsukune, just stay away from that girl! She's a horror! Once she fixates on her target, she'll hunt them down until the ends of the earth!"

"Do you know her?" I follow Moka around a corner, we're so close to getting back to homeroom.

"Yes, and I'm her target!"

"What?! What are you talking about?"

"That girl," Moka bursts through the classroom door, screaming. "Is hunting...me..." Unbeknownst to her, the very girl she was speaking of was sitting at her desk. The others surround her and chat with her.

"Hi, Moka!" Kurumu greeted with a smile. "We have a guest!"

"She's a freshman," Yukari adds.

"Small world if you ask me," Elijah stated toward me.

"...Found. You." The redheaded girl tilted her head and spoke in a sing-song tone, striking fear into Moka.

"Kokoa..."

"Oh!" Her eyes sparkled once she recognized me. "It's that guy with the tasty-smelling blood. And here he is with you, so it must be fate-"

Moka cuts the girl off by standing in front of me, guarding me with her body. "Moka?"

"Kokoa, Tsukune is someone really special to me. So leave him alone."

"Oh, stop. Don't be such a mother hen," She giggled, picking up a nearby desk with no trouble. "You know why I'm here..." Kokoa slams the desk down with a hard thud, nearly hitting Moka in the process. What the heck?! "Die, Moka! Die!"

"Ahh!"

"What's the big idea?!"

"What the heck!"

"Saw that coming..."

"I told you, Tsukune!" Moka calls out as she continues to run away from Kokoa. "She's after me!"

"Ahahahaha!" Kokoa cackled like a maniac. "Yes! Yes! Yes! This is why I followed you here, Moka! Now fight me! Hit me with everything you got! Just like old times!"

'Old times'? Just how far back do they go?

"Now hang on just a seco-" I tried getting in between them to stop the fight, only for the desk to come slamming down onto my head. It nearly knocked me out, and I can definitely feel my own blood trickling down my forehead.

"Oops..."

"Tsukune!"

"Oh, man," Kokoa dropped the desk and leaned over me, I could only look up at the ceiling as I rode out the pain. "That really connected, huh? You okay?" I felt another drip of blood going down my forehead...and I saw Kokoa eyeing it out of the corner of my eye. Oh, no... My fears came to life as I lay here helpless as Kokoa...tasted my blood from my forehead.

BAM!

"Hey!" Kuurmu saves me by hitting Kokoa with the same desk that she hit me with, knocking Kokoa to the other side of the classroom. "What the heck do you think you're doing?!"

"I'd give that hit a seven out of ten, two points for formation."

"Are you okay, Tsukune?" Moka leans me up to a sitting position, just in time for me to see Kurumu cracking her knuckles and ready to fight. Elijah stands beside her with his hands in his pockets...and he is pissed off, I could feel it from here.

"Listen to me, you!" Kurumu started. "I don't care if you're a freshman! You lay another hand on my friend again, and you'll be sorry!"

"Damn," Kokoa got to her feet, rubbing her shoulder where she got hit with an annoyed scowl. "Now you've done it!"

"Don't try it, pipsqueak," Elijah stated, crossing his arms over his chest. "You've already overstepped your bounds, back off if you know what's good for you."

"Ha! You, calling me a 'pipsqueak'?" Kokoa mocked. "That's rich, coming from someone who's barely even a monster! Your kind are just parasites."

"...Parasite?"

"Don't talk to him like that, bitch!" Kurumu defends Elijah. "You mess with my friends, you mess with me!"

"You wanna fight? Let's go!"

"Try and take me! Go ahead!"

"Bring it on."

"Kurumu! Elijah! You can't hurt her!" Moka called out to them both. "She's my little sister!"

"..." If there was any more silence, I could hear a butterfly flapping its wings.

"YOUR SISTER?!"

"Hmph," Koko punted, whipping her head to the door. "There are too many people around right now, but next time I'll force you to transform! And we'll really throw down, Big Sister!"

Moka...

"Okay, Moka, enough already!" Kurumu grew impatient as Elijah patched up Tsukune's head injury. "You've got some explaining to do."

"..." Moka sighed, knowing that she owed her friends a proper explanation. "Her name is Kokoa Shuzen."

"Yeah, that we already knew," Elijah sarcastically remarked.

"Not now, Elijah," Kurumu tried to calm him down.

"As I was saying, we're the youngest of four sisters. We came from different mothers but from the same father, and we lived together when we were little," Moka sighed sadly as her head went back to her childhood. "My memories of that time are kind of hazy, but I do remember that we fought every single day. This was before my powers got sealed away by the Rosary, so I never lost. Not a single time."

"Kokoa...I'm impressed that you keep trying, I really am. But no matter how many times we fight, you can never win."

"Liar! I don't believe you! And I'll keep fighting you until I beat you! Even if it takes forever!"

"...I'm sorry, Kokoa. But we can't fight for much longer, I have to move out soon. I'm going to live with my mother in the human world. They say they're going to seal away my Vampire powers, so this might be the last time we get to fight together."

"...No. That's not fair! You can't just quit while you're ahead! Now who am I supposed to fight with?!"

"...I'm sorry."

"NO! I'll never forgive you! If I have to chase you to the ends of the earth, I'll beat you someday for sure!"

"And she wasn't all talk. Even after I moved to the human world, Kokoa kept coming to challenge me. She wouldn't give up even after my powers were sealed by the Rosary. Since I couldn't fight as well as my inner self, all I could do was run away from her."

"Moka..."

"So, let me get this straight," Kurumu brought her index finger and thumb to her chin, trying to wrap her head around Moka's situation. "The only reason she's even enrolled in Yokai Academy is because of...sibling rivalry?"

"Her persistence is something else..." Yukari remarked.

"So fucking stupid..."

Tsukune heard the annoyed mutter from Elijah but chose not to address it and turned to Moka instead. "Haven't you told her that you can't pull off the Rosary on your own?"

"Tons of times, but it's no use!" Moka groaned. "She thinks if she keeps provoking me, I'll just eventually transform and fight back."

"Annoying little pest," Mizore smirks at Moka, her left hand already forming into an ice claw. "Want me to encase her in ice?"

"Hey! That's my little sister you're talking about!"

"So what?" Elijah asked, making Moka and the others turn to him. "She's being a pain in the ass and she needs to, in the words of your Other Self, know her place. And I for one am itching for a fight." He didn't even know, but a small smirk was forming at the corner of Elijah's mouth. But before Moka could question it, Tsukune speaks up.

"Are you sure that beating you is all she's after, Moka?"

"What do you mean?"

"Sure, she seemed a little rough around the edges when Elijah and I first met her this morning, but I think she seemed...kinda nice. It just made me think is all, I wonder if there's more to this than just...sibling rivalry."

"...Thanks for your concern, Tsukune," Moka sighed, leaning her back against the wall. "But you don't need to worry about it. This is between me and her, I'll handle Kokoa on my own."

Moka didn't even give her friends a chance to speak up once more before she stormed off to look for her little sister. She knows she stands zero chance against her, but she is determined to end this once and for all so that no one else has to get hurt. It didn't take Moka too long to find Kokoa, she was just outside the school grounds, waiting for her sister to show up. Once the sisters met each other's gaze, Kokoa smirked as she hopped off her place on the tree branch.

"Ha! I knew it! I knew it! I knew you couldn't run away forever!" Kokoa cheered. "So, you're finally gonna fight me?"

"...I don't have a choice," Moka's eyes darkened with her spirit. "If I let you go on like this, you'll keep getting other people mixed up in our business. So before anything else can go wrong, we're ending this here and now."

"Yes!" Kokoa smiled fondly. "I'm so happy! Thank you! Let's do this, Ko!"

"Right away, Ms. Kokoa! Whee!" Kokoa's little bat companion flies into her reaching hand, transforming itself into a giant spiked morningstar with a bat wing as an end ornament.

"I've been dreaming of this since the day you left home! And after all this time," Kokoa swings her giant weapon over her shoulder with ease. "you better give it your best!"

BOOM!

Kokoa swings her weapon at her sister, not caring just how much damage she would do to the surrounding forest or her in the process. Kokoa manages to break not only several trees with her morningstar but a few tombstones as well. Moka narrowly dodged her sister's attack, only receiving a small scratch on her arm.

"Hahaha! My bat, Ko is a shapeshifter so I can use him to make any weapon I want! You're gonna get crushed! If you wanna survive, you better transform and go on the offensive!" Moka growled as she rose to her feet, she tore out a nearby stone crucifix from the ground and threw it over her shoulder, ready to use it as a weapon. "Ha! What's that?!" She mocked. "You're gonna take this on with that puny thing?!"

The battle between the two Vampires raged on. Kokoa destroyed every tree and stone monument that crossed her path as Moka acted mostly on the defensive with her stone makeshift weapon, barely blocking Kokoa's weapon and her strong attacks. Moka really was trying her hardest to fight her own sister, but with the Rosary sealed around her neck...it was a losing battle from the start. Kokoa knocks the stone cross from Moka's hands and her to the ground, she towers over her with her morningstar only inches above her head.

"I...I can't go on, Kokoa," Moka huffed in an exhausted sigh. "I really did fight my hardest, but...you win."

"...Why?"

"Huh?" Moka tilted her head when she saw her sister...crying.

"Why won't you fight me for real?!"

"Kokoa..."

"Don't you understand how badly I was looking forward to this fight?!" She shouted in desperation, dropping her weapon to the ground. "Year after year after year...in that silent empty house...not one single person to fight with..." Kokoa wiped her falling tears with her hand. "How do you think I felt all that time?!"

"I see," A familiar voice came from the aftershock of the fight, the voice of Tsukune. "When Moka left, you were all alone. You were just lonely all this time, weren't you?"

"Tsukune? And..." The Human wasn't the only one to follow after her, Kurumu, Yukari, Mizore, and even Elijah came along. "Everyone?"

"Kokoa," Tsukune continued on with an empathetic smile. "that's the real reason you've been chasing after Moka all this time, wasn't it? Not to fight her or prove you're stronger, but because you love her. Deep down, what you really wanted was your sister, you just wanted to see her again."

"It all makes sense now," Yukari says with a cheeky grin.

"An expression of love all twisted around," Mizore added.

"Though, you're probably the last person she wants to hear that from," Kurumu mocked.

"..."

"Well?" Kurumu nudged Elijah's arm. "Say something."

"...All this could've been avoided if you had just said that in the first place."

"But anyway," Tsukune said, trying to cover Elijah's flat words with encouragement. You don't have to do that anymore, Kokoa. You and Moka are at the same school now, so you two can be together as much as you like." Tsukune helped Moka to her feet, and she looked at her sister. Kokoa looked down at the ground as more tears fell down her cheeks.

"...That's is, isn't it, Kokoa?"

"..."

Moka takes Kokoa's silence as her answer...and she gives her what she hasn't done in years, a warm and gentle hug. "I'm so sorry, Kokoa. I didn't understand. Even after all those times I ran away from you..."

"This is just like those human stories I used to read," Yukair wipes away a few tears of joy from her eyes. "where the two sisters have their joyous, tearful reunion!"

"For real!" Kurumu adds, wiping away a few tears of her own. "It's so beautiful..."

"You guys need tissues?" Elijah answered them by snapping his fingers and making a pair of handkerchiefs appear out of thin air. The crying Witch and Succubus take them and clean off their faces, the Wizard and Snow Fairy watch with their arms crossed over their chests.

"Thank you," Kurumu blew her nose.

"We should act like the sisters we are," Moka pats her little sister's head. "and maybe we can be friends again like we used to be."

"...That's not it."

"Huh?"

"That's not it!" Kokoa pushes Moka away from her, knocking her to the ground in anger. Kokoa picks up her oversized weapon, gritting her teeth. "The truth is, I hate your guts and I won't stop until I defeat you!"

"Wha-a-at?! That wasn't the problem?!" Tsukune exclaimed.

"But it was so insightful!" Yukari added.

"Don't give me this 'let's be friends' crap!" Kokoa continued on with her rage, raising her weapon over her head. "All I want to do is wipe you off the face of the earth!"

"Moka, no!" Tsukune makes his move to try to push Moka out of the way, to keep her from getting her from Kokoa slamming her weapon into the ground.

BOOM!

But Tsukune and Moka got caught underneath the spiked Morningstar, causing the others minus one to gasp in shock. "Oh, man..."

"Tsukune and Moka...they're-"

"Squashed flatter than a pancake!"

"Eh," Eliah shrugs. "I'm not worried."

"What?!" Kurumu looked at Elijah with a scowl. "How could you say that?!"

"How do you forget how these situations go? Just look." Elijah points with his finger, the others follow it and see the spiked weapon slowly rising from the ground...but Kokoa wasn't the one moving it. "She fucked up this time."

"So, my little sister hates me, huh?" The deeper voice of Inner Moka shocks the younger Vampire, even more so when she sees her glowing red eyes. "Well, I don't care who you are. If you wanna fight me, then you'd better," With Kokoa's guard down, Moka takes the opportunity to deliver her signature move, sending Kokoa flying back and breaking a tree in the process. "know your place!"

"See? What I tell ya?"

"Moka!" Tsukune clutched the Rosary in his hands. "Are you-"

"I'm fine, nice work," She cuts him off. "If you had pulled the rosary off even a second later, she might've had me. But for now, stand back. Kokoa is a vampire just like me, one kick won't take her down just like that," In seconds after saying that, Kokoa rose to her feet. Her monster energy spirals in the same way Moka does when her seal is removed from her choker. Moka smirks and takes her stance, ready to fight her sister for real this time. "Well, well, you can still get on your feet huh?"

Kokoa responds by letting out a guttural scream to the heavens, making the girls wince at how loud it is. "I don't understand, she took Moka's kick like it was nothing!"

"Don't tell me..." Kurumu speaks with disbelief. "Are we about to witness a vampire fight to the death?!"

"We've already seen two powerful monsters fight before," Mizore adds. "we know exactly what's about to happen."

"Well, I sure as shit do," Elijah takes his stance beside Moka, making the Vampire sneer.

"This doesn't concern you, Elijah," She states. "I can handle her on my own, no need to throw yourself into the fray over a simple family matter."

"And when did I ask what you wanted?" He retorted. "Your sister is getting on my nerves and she needs to learn respect."

"Watch yourself," Moka warned. "I won't hesitate to put you in your place too, you know?"

"You sure your bark can match your bite?"

"Guys!" Tsukune interjected. "Things are already out of hand, can we not do whatever this is right now?!"

"RAAAAAAAAUUUUUGHHH!" Kokoa stops her battle cry...and smiles. "Big sister..."

"...What?"

"Huh?"

The dumbfoundedness of the Wizard and Vampire grew even more as Kokoa ran straight for Moka, she jumped onto her like a lost child and hugged her tightly. "Big sister!" Kokoa cried her heart out in pure, absolute joy, and her big sister grew even more confused. "Moka! Yay! You're finally back! I wanted to see you so bad!"

"...You gotta be fuckin' kidding me." Elijah slammed his face into his palm, groaning in annoyance as he connected the dots before everyone else.

"Kokoa, didn't you say that you wanted to wipe me off the face of the earth?" Moka actually found some amusement in Kokoa's childlike behavior.

"Yeah, not you!" Kokoa looks up to her sister, her eyes puffy and red from crying. "It's that dumb, lame other you that I couldn't stand, that bitch isn't anything like the real you! promise me you'll never go away again!"

"So...she only likes the real Moka?" Tsukune voiced his conclusion.

"And she despises the Outer Moka we all know." Mizore finishes for him.

"All my time...wasted."

"You're telling me," Moka agreed with Elijah before she turned her attention to her little sister. "You're starting to get on my nerves!" Moka kicks Kokoa off of her, sending her back with...a wide smile on her face. It's like she missed being pushed around like a weakling by her sister. "Listen to me, Kokoa," Moka says firmly. "The person you want me to be won't be around as much as you like."

"Huh?" Kokoa looks up from the dirt ground with a sad look in her eyes. "What are you talking about?"

"So you better get used to the other me, you understand?" Moka doesn't look for an answer from her little sister. Instead, she looks to Tsukune and takes the Rosary from him, reattaching it to her choker and she slowly turns back into her Outer self. Tsukune catches her as she falls unconscious into his arms.

"Moka!" Yukari exclaimed.

"She okay?"

"Yeah, she'll be fine."

"..." Kokoa scowled in anger at the sight of her 'real' sister leaving her. "It's because she's surrounded by those wimps all the time! But that's just fine by me!" She pouted, but her determination didn't falter. "I may not have all the information, but one of these days I'll get the real Moka back in my life for good!"

"...No...you won't."

Elijah

The Young Vampire looks up at me, Tsukune and the others attend to Moka as I stay towering over Kokoa. "Since you don't 'have all the information', as you say, let me put it in terms even your simple mind will understand," I squat down, feeling a sense of satisfaction seeing her in such a weak state. "The Moka you know is sealed away thanks to the Rosary on her chest, this creates the sweet, loving, and kind Moka we all come to love. And the only time your sister comes out is when Tsukuen takes it off, only he is the only one that can. So get that through your head."

"I don't care!" She yells at me, desperately trying to get to her feet. "That bitch will never be my sister!"

"Ms. Kokoa!" The bat screeched, fluttering its wings over her in a panic. "Are you alright?! Whee!" He looks at me and growls. "You stay away from her you- WAUGH!"

"..." I sigh after I smack that annoying pest away, my patience is treading on thin ice. "The one you call a 'bitch' is my friend and I won't tolerate anyone who threatens my friends. You call me a parasite, but I assure you..." I lean closer, staring daggers into the freshman's eyes. "I am much, much more than that. So stay out of our way if you know what's good for you, because next time, you will be facing me."

I don't even bother waiting for a response from her so I stand up straight and head back over to the others. Tsukune started carrying Moka in his arms, Kurumu looked at me and smiled as I approached.

"Well, at least this whole thing is over," She tries cheering me up, only for me to groan in response.

"Not soon enough if you ask me."

"Oh, don't be like that," Kurumu spread her arms out and tilted her head at me, a warm smile overtaking her lips. "Come here, this'll make you feel better."

I do my best to fight back an annoyed groan, I'm really not in the mood for hugs right now but at this point, I really didn't have a choice as Kurumu wrapped her arms around me without consent. I gently tap her back with my hands, not even giving back half the hug she's giving me.

"Liar..."

"Huh?" I gently push Kurumu away from me. "What did you say?"

"Hmm?" Kurumu grew confused at my question. "I didn't say anything."

"..." I swear I thought I just heard someone talk just now.

"Are you alright?" Kuurmu places her hand on my forehead. "You look a little pale."

"I'm fine," I pull away, shaking my head. "Just need to rest my head after today, I guess."

"Well before you do," Kurumu smirked at me. "How about we listen to your playlist for a while? It's been forever since-"

"No thanks, Kurumu." I raise my hand dismissively to her face. "I just wanna lay down and rest, we can do that some other day, alright?"

"Huh? B-But-"

"I'll see you guys later, alright?" I walk away, only to be stopped by someone grabbing my wrist. I turned my head back to see that it was Mizore grabbing onto me.

"Can we at least talk first? I've been meaning to all week and you just don't answer any of my calls. Please, Elijah? Just for-"

I jerk my hand away from her. "Well, maybe I didn't want to talk to you! Did you consider that? Like I said, I'll see you guys later." I turned on my heel and stormed away, not even bothering with what they had to say to me. Who fucking cares what they think anyway? I saw them all staring at me the moment I got back, like I'm some...freak! like something is wrong with me, nothing is wrong with me! They're the freaks! They're...

I stop in my tracks, startled by my own thoughts. Why the hell am I thinking like this? And why do I feel so...angry? Especially towards them? They didn't do anything, did they? Maybe it's just all the stress coming back to me, I don't know. And did I really say that to Mizore? I should just head back to my dorm room and just relax, I'm gonna need it for school anyways. Who knows what my second year has in store for me? I'm starving too, feels like I haven't eaten in a week.

"...The hell?"

I look down at my trembling hands, tilting my head in confusion when I see...a small black smudge in between one of my fingers. I wiped it away, but...it didn't get on my other hand, it just disappeared. I just shrugged and kept on walking back to my dorm, I really need to get my head on straight. Maybe things will get better if I just relax, but who knows how long that'll last?