Shadows [Chapter 4]
Title: Shadows [Chapter 4]
Author: Ani
Genre: AU, angst, slight romance/fluff
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: Chiitaro
Summary: Ryutaro-centric. His past refuses to leave him alone.
Disclaimer: I don't own JE
"Turn me back."
"No."
"Damn it, turn me back!" I rushed at her only to end up on my back, cringing with pain.
"No." Lili turned back to the stove, on which she had been boiling something for the past hour.
Something wet trickled down my arm. I checked and saw a deep wound where I cut myself on the wooden floor. As I watched, the hole closed as the skin seemed to sew itself back together. I shuddered, still feeling disorientated.
"Self-regeneration." I looked up to see Lili hadn't even turned around. "It's much more powerful in younger vampires. They tend to hurt themselves more. You'll be grateful for this later on."
Without thinking, I clenched my jaw and accidentally bit myself with the newly grown fangs I now had. A strong taste of iron and salt exploded in my mouth, but the worst part was that I liked it.
"Please don't poison yourself within the first week." Lili took some bowls out of a cabinet and began to dump whatever it was she was making onto it. "Vampire blood is highly venomous when undiluted. It's the venom that turns a human. The myth that vampires drink the blood of maidens and they become creatures of the night as well? Nothing more than a fabrication of human imagination. The truth is the reverse. The human has to drink the vampire's blood. One drop will do the trick; it's that powerful. Anymore may well kill the human."
I got a sudden sick feeling. "Doesn't that mean I-I...you..."
"You drank my blood, yes." She set the bowls on the table and gestured me to go over. I however, wanted to be anywhere but close to her and nearly tripped myself with my own two legs in my haste to get away. Lili made an impatient sound. "Oh come! You didn't drink it directly. I bled myself beforehand and used an eyedropper. It's one of the best ways to ensure there isn't an overdose. You haven't eaten for three days, you must be starving."
Reluctantly, I did as I was told, mostly because whatever it was that she made, it smelled really good and my stomach was growling badly. My appetite though, had been slightly welted by the idea that I had taken her blood. So I was still suspicious as I picked up a spoonful of the food. "What is this?"
"Curry rice mixed with soy sauce and the blood of a few teenagers in the area." I dropped the spoon, spilling rice all over the table. "I was kidding about the last part, by the way." I glared at her, but she just smiled with amusement. "It's a special recipe that's supposed to act as a supplement of blood."
I continued to look at it warily, not sure whether or not I could trust her word. Lili heaved a heavy sigh. I got the feeling patience wasn't her forte. "Two choices, Ryutaro-kun: one, you eat of your own free will, or two, I force it down your throat."
I picked up the spoon again. After getting thrown across the room like a football, I didn't want her anywhere near my throat. Cautiously, I nibbled the food. It tasted like regular curry rice.
"See? Not that bad." Lili seemed pleased for some reason. "You look like you have a burning question to ask."
"Don't vampires drink human blood?" I couldn't help asking.
"Stereotypical." Lili chewed her rice slowly before answering. "We don't necessarily just drink human blood. Anything that bleeds is fair game. Humans are the only ones who go and make ridiculous fairy tales. Personally, I prefer rabbit blood, but I just ran out and haven't had time to restock. The only thing lying around was blood supplements, so that's what I used. Human blood's the most common, for obvious reasons, plus it's the easiest to get. A lot of us get lazy, so we go for humans."
"You attack us?"
"Them." She reminded me. "Some of us, for fun, will attack humans. Most of us just buy stocks of blood from stores. It's actually quite illegal to hunt humans, just because it attracts too much attention. Among the Shadows, vampires aren't really an attention-seeking group." She frowned, as though worried about something that had been nagging her for a while.
I frowned. "Shadows?"
"Secret society. Underground cults. 'Mythical' creatures. It's the name we chose for our, I supposed the best word for it is 'community.' There are many, many groups. Vampires are simply one. You'll learn about others in due course."
Honestly, I couldn't care less about them. I had more pressing issues on my mind. "Why won't you turn me back?" I demanded. "You agreed to turn Mom back, why not me?"
"Kaya's different from you. I had known her for a long, long time. It's unbelievably difficult to return a vampire's humanity. There's one tonic capable of reversing the affects of the poison in a vampire's blood and it's also very expensive." Something must have shown on my face because she turned a sardonic smile on me. "I promised to never reveal the location so don't even think about it. I staked everything for Kaya once, I'm not about to do it again, especially not for a little brat."
The first and only time I tried to sneak out of the house, I nearly died. Lili never slept (more like she didn't need to), but she was always out of the house in the mornings "taking care of business." Usually, she locked the door so I couldn't leave, but one day, when I had nothing better to do except wander around the house, I found a hidden door in an unused closet.
Lili never let me out because my body was still adjusting to the "vampire blood" which made my skin extra sensitive to the destructive rays of sunlight. When I asked why I couldn't go out at night, she just gave a vague answer. "More dangerous creatures wander at night to prey than you can imagine in your worst dreams."
Back in those naive days, I thought she only said those things to keep me from running away. The idea of escaping my new life was always on my mind. I resented Mom for letting me go so easiliy. I resented Lili for taking my humanity away against my will. And I hated myself for being unable to do anything stop them.
I found the hidden door close to the end of August, right when the worst heat was over. From the moment I saw it, my decision had already been made. I didn't bother to make plans or pack or even rethink my actions over. To this day, I wish I hadn't been so hasty.
To my surprise, the door opened easily to a set of ancient stone stairs leading down a dark tunnel. Being a vampire now, my senses have been enhanced to a higher level. I could see in pitch black darkness and bright sunlight hurt my eyes. I could distinguish different odors much better than humans and my movements have become much more coordinated.
Being desperate to get out of the house and away from Lili, I plunged into the tunnel without a second thought. I'm not sure how long I walked, but I clearly remember how the cold air of the tunnel seeped deep into my skin. By the time I made it out, I was shivering.
The walk must have taken a longer time because when I pushed the trapdoor opened, the sun was already starting to set. That was perhaps the only lucky thing to happen. I didn't get burned instantly to a crisp by the sun. Someone cynical might also say that was unfortunate. The most I got was a bit of stinging pain on my bare arms, but I thought that was just because I hadn't been exposed to the sun for the past month.
I had no idea where on Earth Lili had taken me. As I walked onto the street to get my bearings though, I realized with a start I recognized where I stood. In fact, I had often walked on this road to school, with Chinen clinging to my side. Of all places, the last I expected was for Lili to keep me in Tokyo.
Once Chinen made his way into my head, I couldn't shake him loose. It's always been and still is a bad habit. I knew unless I met up with him or talked to him, I wouldn't be able to rid my thoughts of him. Without any hesitation, I started to run back towards my house, unconsciously keeping to the lengthening shadows.
Physically, vampires have stronger limbs and better endurance than humans. I later learned we could run for days on end as long as we took a few minutes' break to drink canteened blood. So on that day, I had no trouble making my way back home.
From the start, I had no plans of going back to my apartment. First, I had no idea what sort of reception I would get from Mom. She more or less thrown me out just a month before to this hell bound life. In a way, I felt she abandoned me and I was resenting her for it. Second, I wanted to make sure Chinen was okay. He had always been on my mind fro the past month, but I didn't trust Lili enough to talk to her about him. I also hoped seeing him could restore a bit of sanity into my otherwise out-of-control life.
It took Chinen a longer time than usual to open the door. While waiting, I realized with a sudden start I had no idea what I would say to him. Did he know what happened to me? How would he react? Could I tell him? Should I tell him?
I contemplated whether or not to run away now, before he saw me. There was too much to explain, but most of all, I was scared he would reject me when he learned the truth. Still, I hesitated, and that indecision of mine would haunt me forever after.
Before my mind was fully made up, the door swung open. For a long moment, neither of us spoke a word. Chinen looked the same as I remembered him. It had only been a month after all. To me, it had felt much, much longer though.
He blinked once, twice and without warning, rushed me so fast I almost lost my balance. I put my arms around him by reflex, closing my eyes as I breathed in his familiar scent. He tightened his hold on me, snuggling closer against me as though afraid I would disappear again.
"You came back, Ryu-chan. I thought you wouldn't come back." Chinen's eyes as he looked at me were brimming with happiness.
It wasn't too late to leave. I should have run and never looked back. But I couldn't bring myself to do so, not with his hands wrapped around mine as he pulled me into his apartment.
"You should've called, I haven't cleaned up my room or anything, it's so embarrassing. Are you thirsty, Ryu-chan? It's hot today, isn't it? Even though everyone says it's supposed to be getting cooler. I only have water though, hold on, I'll get you a cup-" I grabbed his shoulders and turned him around so we were face to face. "R-ryu-chan?"
"What's wrong?" Chinen only blabbered on and on whenever he got nervous or anxious about something. That in turn would make me worried.
"Nothing. Nothing's wrong." He was lying. I could tell from the way he avoided my eyes as he turned away. Chinen was keeping something locked up inside that he didn't want to tell me. Then again, so was I, but I tried to tell myself I had a perfectly good reason to do so.
"Chii." I took led him over to the couch, where I sat down and pulled him onto my lap. He came slowly and reluctantly, like he knew what was coming and was dreading it. "Did something happen while I was gone? What's on your mind?"
"Ryu-chan, why did you disappear without saying a word to me?" It seem to take all he could to muster the courage to ask me that question. "Why didn't you even...tell me anything?" A tear fell and splattered on my arm, followed by another. "Your mom told me to forget you, and that you wouldn't be coming back, ever. She didn't tell me why, or anything. She just said you were going somewhere far away, and never coming back.
"It's long and complicated," I told him after a long moment, lightly knocking our foreheads together. From the annoyed flash of his eyes, I could tell he wasn't satisfied with that explanation. "I'm sorry, Chii. I don't really get what's going on myself. But please believe me when I say I love you." We were so close to one another, I could count his every individual lashes and feel the breeze of his breath against my skin.
His expression softened slightly as he slowly nodded. I cupped his face with the palm of my hands and kissed him softly. He returned it, and I wish he didn't. I wish he had pushed me off, and told me to go away, and never come back.
Some innate instinct took over and I lost control of myself for the first time. I found myself kissing Chinen deeper than I usually did. It scared us both, but I couldn't make myself stop. The familiar taste of iron and salt was suddenly upon my tongue.
"I c-can't...breathe..." Chinen gasped, squirming to get away. He squeaked as I grabbed his wrists and pinned him down. Suddenly, I found my mouth pressed against his neck and the sounds of him screaming filled my ears.
A/N: Ani's violent side comes out next =3
Author: Ani
Genre: AU, angst, slight romance/fluff
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: Chiitaro
Summary: Ryutaro-centric. His past refuses to leave him alone.
Disclaimer: I don't own JE
"Turn me back."
"No."
"Damn it, turn me back!" I rushed at her only to end up on my back, cringing with pain.
"No." Lili turned back to the stove, on which she had been boiling something for the past hour.
Something wet trickled down my arm. I checked and saw a deep wound where I cut myself on the wooden floor. As I watched, the hole closed as the skin seemed to sew itself back together. I shuddered, still feeling disorientated.
"Self-regeneration." I looked up to see Lili hadn't even turned around. "It's much more powerful in younger vampires. They tend to hurt themselves more. You'll be grateful for this later on."
Without thinking, I clenched my jaw and accidentally bit myself with the newly grown fangs I now had. A strong taste of iron and salt exploded in my mouth, but the worst part was that I liked it.
"Please don't poison yourself within the first week." Lili took some bowls out of a cabinet and began to dump whatever it was she was making onto it. "Vampire blood is highly venomous when undiluted. It's the venom that turns a human. The myth that vampires drink the blood of maidens and they become creatures of the night as well? Nothing more than a fabrication of human imagination. The truth is the reverse. The human has to drink the vampire's blood. One drop will do the trick; it's that powerful. Anymore may well kill the human."
I got a sudden sick feeling. "Doesn't that mean I-I...you..."
"You drank my blood, yes." She set the bowls on the table and gestured me to go over. I however, wanted to be anywhere but close to her and nearly tripped myself with my own two legs in my haste to get away. Lili made an impatient sound. "Oh come! You didn't drink it directly. I bled myself beforehand and used an eyedropper. It's one of the best ways to ensure there isn't an overdose. You haven't eaten for three days, you must be starving."
Reluctantly, I did as I was told, mostly because whatever it was that she made, it smelled really good and my stomach was growling badly. My appetite though, had been slightly welted by the idea that I had taken her blood. So I was still suspicious as I picked up a spoonful of the food. "What is this?"
"Curry rice mixed with soy sauce and the blood of a few teenagers in the area." I dropped the spoon, spilling rice all over the table. "I was kidding about the last part, by the way." I glared at her, but she just smiled with amusement. "It's a special recipe that's supposed to act as a supplement of blood."
I continued to look at it warily, not sure whether or not I could trust her word. Lili heaved a heavy sigh. I got the feeling patience wasn't her forte. "Two choices, Ryutaro-kun: one, you eat of your own free will, or two, I force it down your throat."
I picked up the spoon again. After getting thrown across the room like a football, I didn't want her anywhere near my throat. Cautiously, I nibbled the food. It tasted like regular curry rice.
"See? Not that bad." Lili seemed pleased for some reason. "You look like you have a burning question to ask."
"Don't vampires drink human blood?" I couldn't help asking.
"Stereotypical." Lili chewed her rice slowly before answering. "We don't necessarily just drink human blood. Anything that bleeds is fair game. Humans are the only ones who go and make ridiculous fairy tales. Personally, I prefer rabbit blood, but I just ran out and haven't had time to restock. The only thing lying around was blood supplements, so that's what I used. Human blood's the most common, for obvious reasons, plus it's the easiest to get. A lot of us get lazy, so we go for humans."
"You attack us?"
"Them." She reminded me. "Some of us, for fun, will attack humans. Most of us just buy stocks of blood from stores. It's actually quite illegal to hunt humans, just because it attracts too much attention. Among the Shadows, vampires aren't really an attention-seeking group." She frowned, as though worried about something that had been nagging her for a while.
I frowned. "Shadows?"
"Secret society. Underground cults. 'Mythical' creatures. It's the name we chose for our, I supposed the best word for it is 'community.' There are many, many groups. Vampires are simply one. You'll learn about others in due course."
Honestly, I couldn't care less about them. I had more pressing issues on my mind. "Why won't you turn me back?" I demanded. "You agreed to turn Mom back, why not me?"
"Kaya's different from you. I had known her for a long, long time. It's unbelievably difficult to return a vampire's humanity. There's one tonic capable of reversing the affects of the poison in a vampire's blood and it's also very expensive." Something must have shown on my face because she turned a sardonic smile on me. "I promised to never reveal the location so don't even think about it. I staked everything for Kaya once, I'm not about to do it again, especially not for a little brat."
The first and only time I tried to sneak out of the house, I nearly died. Lili never slept (more like she didn't need to), but she was always out of the house in the mornings "taking care of business." Usually, she locked the door so I couldn't leave, but one day, when I had nothing better to do except wander around the house, I found a hidden door in an unused closet.
Lili never let me out because my body was still adjusting to the "vampire blood" which made my skin extra sensitive to the destructive rays of sunlight. When I asked why I couldn't go out at night, she just gave a vague answer. "More dangerous creatures wander at night to prey than you can imagine in your worst dreams."
Back in those naive days, I thought she only said those things to keep me from running away. The idea of escaping my new life was always on my mind. I resented Mom for letting me go so easiliy. I resented Lili for taking my humanity away against my will. And I hated myself for being unable to do anything stop them.
I found the hidden door close to the end of August, right when the worst heat was over. From the moment I saw it, my decision had already been made. I didn't bother to make plans or pack or even rethink my actions over. To this day, I wish I hadn't been so hasty.
To my surprise, the door opened easily to a set of ancient stone stairs leading down a dark tunnel. Being a vampire now, my senses have been enhanced to a higher level. I could see in pitch black darkness and bright sunlight hurt my eyes. I could distinguish different odors much better than humans and my movements have become much more coordinated.
Being desperate to get out of the house and away from Lili, I plunged into the tunnel without a second thought. I'm not sure how long I walked, but I clearly remember how the cold air of the tunnel seeped deep into my skin. By the time I made it out, I was shivering.
The walk must have taken a longer time because when I pushed the trapdoor opened, the sun was already starting to set. That was perhaps the only lucky thing to happen. I didn't get burned instantly to a crisp by the sun. Someone cynical might also say that was unfortunate. The most I got was a bit of stinging pain on my bare arms, but I thought that was just because I hadn't been exposed to the sun for the past month.
I had no idea where on Earth Lili had taken me. As I walked onto the street to get my bearings though, I realized with a start I recognized where I stood. In fact, I had often walked on this road to school, with Chinen clinging to my side. Of all places, the last I expected was for Lili to keep me in Tokyo.
Once Chinen made his way into my head, I couldn't shake him loose. It's always been and still is a bad habit. I knew unless I met up with him or talked to him, I wouldn't be able to rid my thoughts of him. Without any hesitation, I started to run back towards my house, unconsciously keeping to the lengthening shadows.
Physically, vampires have stronger limbs and better endurance than humans. I later learned we could run for days on end as long as we took a few minutes' break to drink canteened blood. So on that day, I had no trouble making my way back home.
From the start, I had no plans of going back to my apartment. First, I had no idea what sort of reception I would get from Mom. She more or less thrown me out just a month before to this hell bound life. In a way, I felt she abandoned me and I was resenting her for it. Second, I wanted to make sure Chinen was okay. He had always been on my mind fro the past month, but I didn't trust Lili enough to talk to her about him. I also hoped seeing him could restore a bit of sanity into my otherwise out-of-control life.
It took Chinen a longer time than usual to open the door. While waiting, I realized with a sudden start I had no idea what I would say to him. Did he know what happened to me? How would he react? Could I tell him? Should I tell him?
I contemplated whether or not to run away now, before he saw me. There was too much to explain, but most of all, I was scared he would reject me when he learned the truth. Still, I hesitated, and that indecision of mine would haunt me forever after.
Before my mind was fully made up, the door swung open. For a long moment, neither of us spoke a word. Chinen looked the same as I remembered him. It had only been a month after all. To me, it had felt much, much longer though.
He blinked once, twice and without warning, rushed me so fast I almost lost my balance. I put my arms around him by reflex, closing my eyes as I breathed in his familiar scent. He tightened his hold on me, snuggling closer against me as though afraid I would disappear again.
"You came back, Ryu-chan. I thought you wouldn't come back." Chinen's eyes as he looked at me were brimming with happiness.
It wasn't too late to leave. I should have run and never looked back. But I couldn't bring myself to do so, not with his hands wrapped around mine as he pulled me into his apartment.
"You should've called, I haven't cleaned up my room or anything, it's so embarrassing. Are you thirsty, Ryu-chan? It's hot today, isn't it? Even though everyone says it's supposed to be getting cooler. I only have water though, hold on, I'll get you a cup-" I grabbed his shoulders and turned him around so we were face to face. "R-ryu-chan?"
"What's wrong?" Chinen only blabbered on and on whenever he got nervous or anxious about something. That in turn would make me worried.
"Nothing. Nothing's wrong." He was lying. I could tell from the way he avoided my eyes as he turned away. Chinen was keeping something locked up inside that he didn't want to tell me. Then again, so was I, but I tried to tell myself I had a perfectly good reason to do so.
"Chii." I took led him over to the couch, where I sat down and pulled him onto my lap. He came slowly and reluctantly, like he knew what was coming and was dreading it. "Did something happen while I was gone? What's on your mind?"
"Ryu-chan, why did you disappear without saying a word to me?" It seem to take all he could to muster the courage to ask me that question. "Why didn't you even...tell me anything?" A tear fell and splattered on my arm, followed by another. "Your mom told me to forget you, and that you wouldn't be coming back, ever. She didn't tell me why, or anything. She just said you were going somewhere far away, and never coming back.
"It's long and complicated," I told him after a long moment, lightly knocking our foreheads together. From the annoyed flash of his eyes, I could tell he wasn't satisfied with that explanation. "I'm sorry, Chii. I don't really get what's going on myself. But please believe me when I say I love you." We were so close to one another, I could count his every individual lashes and feel the breeze of his breath against my skin.
His expression softened slightly as he slowly nodded. I cupped his face with the palm of my hands and kissed him softly. He returned it, and I wish he didn't. I wish he had pushed me off, and told me to go away, and never come back.
Some innate instinct took over and I lost control of myself for the first time. I found myself kissing Chinen deeper than I usually did. It scared us both, but I couldn't make myself stop. The familiar taste of iron and salt was suddenly upon my tongue.
"I c-can't...breathe..." Chinen gasped, squirming to get away. He squeaked as I grabbed his wrists and pinned him down. Suddenly, I found my mouth pressed against his neck and the sounds of him screaming filled my ears.
A/N: Ani's violent side comes out next =3