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Chapter Text

Mahiru dried off the raccoon with an old towel. He had just given the critter a bath after picking it up off the street. He knew a raccoon wasn’t exactly the most common choice of pet, but if Mahiru hadn’t taken it in, who knows what would’ve happened to it in a big city like Tokyo? Besides, the raccoon seemed calm enough. If it had rabies, it would’ve tried to bite him already, so the young brunette figured it was safe.

As Mahiru rubbed the towel over his new flatmate’s fur, he noticed some strange things about it. First and most obviously, it was albino. Its snout and chest were still a brighter white than the rest of its body, and it still had black rings on its tail and around its eyes, but it was definitely missing some pigment everywhere else. The second thing was the fur around its face. It was long, natty, and almost looked like it had bangs. One clump, in particular, fell over its left eye. In fact, all the fur on the left side of its face was longer than its right.

At last, Mahiru deemed the animal dry enough to wander the apartment. Before he let it go, though, he carefully carded his fingers through the fur falling over its face.

“Poor thing,” he said to the raccoon. “It’s getting in your eye. Hang on.” Slightly surprised when the creature actually stayed put, Mahiru went to his nightstand and searched through the small drawer. Almost instantly, he found what he was looking for: a hairpin with two pink sakura flowers on it. He’d found it in the hallway at school about a year ago, and he kept it in hopes of one day finding its owner. However, thinking simply, if it had already been a year, she had probably replaced it by then. There would probably be no harm in Mahiru using it.
The raccoon stared at him curiously. It tilted its head as Mahiru gently pushed back the fur covering its eye and pinned it back using the hair clip. He laughed as it curled upward in response, seemingly defying gravity. The raccoon raised a little black paw up to feel the accessory. Mahiru could’ve sworn the thing smiled.

“Aww, he likes it,” he said to no one in particular, lifting the animal up off the ground. The raccoon titled its head again, its beady, white eyes staring directly at the teen. “Now, what to name you…?” Mahiru was no animal expert, but he was fairly certain his new friend was male. “Your hairpin has sakura flowers on it, but Sakura’s a little girly…” He mused to himself for a second before gasping with realization. “That’s it!” he exclaimed, making his albino companion jump in his hands. “How about Sakuya?”

There it was again. That satisfied little expression on the fluffy, white face. Mahiru laughed. “Sakuya it is, then!”

“I had no idea I was inviting trouble into my home and putting my life in danger… Until the next day.”

The next day, in a random high school, the students were attempting to plan for the upcoming Culture Festival. Most of the duties had been handed out already. All that was left was to decide who would make the costumes. No one really had any experience with making clothes, so the job was passed around until one student spoke up.

“Why don’t we just get Mahiru to do it?” asked a boy with short, black hair and red eyes. A pair of sunglasses hung from the collar of his uniform shirt. This boy was Tsubaki Yuushuu, a first year.

“But he’s already in charge of preparing the food,” replied another first year with wavy, light brown hair. Koyuki turned toward his friend with a soft smile.
“True,” said Tsubaki, “but it’s not like he has anything else to do since he lives alone. Besides, he’s the only one of us who knows the first thing about sewing. The way, I see it, there’s no other choice!”

“You talk about him like he’s the class maid or something,” said Ryuusei, the last of the trio, with a chuckle. Tsubaki burst out laughing at that. It was an unexpected but admittedly accurate description of their friend. As he was busy slapping his desk in hysterics, the classroom door burst open, revealing Mahiru himself, a black apron over his uniform and a bowl of butter cookies balanced in each hand. The stern look on his face made everyone in the room simultaneously think “angry mother.”

“Seriously, you guys?!” he scolded. “You still haven’t picked someone?! There’s only one job left! How hard can it be?!”
“Speak of the devil,” said Tsubaki, having calmed down.

Mahiru let out an exasperated sigh. “Honestly! Oh, and here,” he shifted the bowls to draw attention to them. “I made a test batch of cookies, so line up and-“ The entire class immediately swarmed the boy. He yelped as he struggled to balance the sweets. “HEY!” he shouted over his classmates. “I said LINE UP! One at a time! There’s plenty for everyone!”

Within seconds the whole class was gushing over how delicious the freshly-baked cookies were. Still a little annoyed at the stampede, Mahiru shrugged off the compliments with a simple “Well, I like to keep recipes simple,” before taking a bite of his own creation. Once everyone was done eating, the students all took their seats.

“So, costumes are all that’s left, right?” said Mahiru. Everyone nodded. “The person in charge of that will need to know how to sew and have lots of free time.” More nodding. “Well then, thinking simply,” Mahiru pointed to himself, “I’ll have to do it!”

The class erupted into cheers. They could always count on Mahiru to take charge!

(later)

Mahiru, Tsubaki, Koyuki, and Ryuusei strolled down the steps of the school. Mahiru and Tsubaki took the lead while Koyuki and Ryuusei lagged behind side by side, the latter greedily munching on a sandwich.

“Are you sure you can handle making the food and the costumes?” Koyuki asked with a concerned smile. As much as he appreciated Mahiru’s willingness to do all the work, he didn’t want his friend to exhaust himself. Mahiru tended to do this often. The other three recalled when he volunteered for track back in middle school, or when he offered to care for the class pet.

“Well, someone’s gotta do it,” said Mahiru. “I figured if I can be that someone, then why not just go for it?”

“Still,” said Tsubaki, who was now wearing his sunglasses on his face, “isn’t it a bit unfair that you’re doing everything yourself, Mahiru?” He threw an arm around the brunet. “I’d be happy to help if you’re willing to teach me how to wield a needle-“

“That would just be unnecessary work, especially knowing you!” Mahiru cut off his raven-haired friend. Tsubaki gasped and clutched at his own chest as if in pain.

“You wound me, Mahiru!” he cried, dramatically pressing the back of his free hand to his forehead. “How will I go on knowing my best friend has such little faith in me?!”

Ryuusei swallowed his mouthful before butting in. “He’s got a point though, Mahiru,” he said. “I mean, all that responsibility. Don’t you ever get…overwhelmed?”

“Nah,” Mahiru shrugged. “It’s easier to just do it than to try to make an excuse not to.”

“I don’t get that philosophy, but whatever,” Ryuusei responded. “We owe you one for this, though."

“Yeah!” Koyuki chimed. “Let us know if there’s anything we can do to help you out.”

Tsubaki laughed. “Well, it might take some bribing with me, but I’m here for you, too!”

“What can you even do, Tsubaki?” Mahiru jabbed. “Other than make bad jokes?”

Tsubaki feigned offense. “My jokes are gold, and you know it!”

“At the very least, we can help you shop for supplies,” said Koyuki.

“Thanks, you guys,” said Mahiru.

Tsubaki gasped. “Oh!”

“What is it, Tsubaki?” asked Mahiru.

“You’re not going to the shops near the station, are you?” the raven-haired boy inquired.

“Uhh, yeah, I am. Why?”

“There are rumors going around about that area.” A sinister smile tugged at Tsubaki’s lips as he leaned in. “I heard there’s a vampire on the loose!”
The other three met Tsubaki with matching stares of skepticism.

“Seriously, though!” the red-eyed teen defended, smile falling. “There’s an investigation on some kind of street slasher. People have been calling him Tokyo’s Jack the Ripper! He’s already claimed about ten victims, all of them found drained of blood with bite marks on their necks and arms!”

While Mahiru and Ryuusei still weren’t convinced, Koyuki was practically shaking. “Th-that’s really scary!”

Tsubaki grinned, baring his longer-than-average canines. “Of course,” he said, “I could be lying,” and was promptly smacked on the back of the head by Mahiru.

“Don’t do that! You’re gonna give Koyuki a panic attack!”

Said brunet managed to compose himself fairly quickly. “Oh! W-well, if it’s really safe, I’ve got free passes for karaoke by the station if you guys are interested!”

“I’ve got no respect!” Tsubaki replied, sending himself and Ryuusei into a fit of laughter.

“I’ll meet up with you guys later,” Mahiru said, starting down the road to his apartment building. “I’ve got some laundry I want to finish before I do anything else.” And with that, he sprinted home.

“Hey!” Tsubaki called after him. “Not all of what I said was a lie! Don’t blame me if you get attacked by a vampire~!”
“Yeah, yeah!” Mahiru called back.

“I’d actually already heard the rumor about vampires going around. But I had real things to worry about. I wonder if Sakuya’s alright. I hope he didn’t get into trouble while I was gone.”

Arriving at his building, Mahiru stepped into the elevator to get to the seventh floor. A few minutes later and home sweet home. He pulled out his key to unlock his apartment door.

“Sakuya, I’m home!” he called out from the doorway as he removed his shoes. A light from the living room caught his attention, and he could faintly make out pop music. “I could’ve sworn I turned the TV off before I left…” he muttered to himself. Now on guard, he silently approached the living room. He slapped a hand over his mouth to stop himself from gasping.

Sitting cross-legged on the rug in front of the TV, the only source of light in the apartment as the blinds were closed, playing a rhythm game, was a boy who looked about Mahiru’s age. He had messy, green hair that was swept off to the left. Dressed in black slacks with suspender straps hanging at his waist and a black jacket over a black-and-white-striped button-down shirt, the collar popped. Seeming to notice Mahiru’s presence, the boy turned to face him. His eyes were red and seemed to glow in the dim light. Those eyes widened as the controller fell from his hands, and the song finished with a series of “Miss” sounds.

Chapter Text

Mahiru and the green-haired boy stared at each other in stunned silence until Mahiru said the only thing he could.
“What the crap? Who are you?!”

The boy shot to his feet, his hands held up in defense, almost looking scared. “M-Mahiru!” He had a surprisingly deep voice for his youthful appearance. “I thought you said- I wasn’t expecting you to be home so early! I-I can explain!”

“How can you possibly explain breaking into someone’s house?!” Mahiru shouted, grabbing the nearest object: a mop. Using all his strength, he swung the mop at the stranger, only for the boy to jump out of the way and flip through the air.

“Well, if you would just give me a chance to- WHOA!” The intruder dodged Mahiru again, causing the brunet to stumble and fall backward as he tried to steady himself. He instinctively grabbed the curtain on his way down, pulling it open. The afternoon sunlight poured into the room directly on the stranger, and in a puff of smoke, the stranger was gone. In his place was…

“Sakuya?” Mahiri asked cautiously. Right there, where the green-haired boy had been, lay the little albino raccoon Mahiru had brought home the day before. Eyes wide in shock, he slowly closed the curtain, and in another puff of smoke, the stranger was back, sprawled on his stomach. The boy pulled himself up to his knees and cleared his throat.

“As I was trying to say,” he ground out, “I didn’t break in. It’s me, Sakuya! See? I’m even wearing the hairpin you gave me!” He pointed to the gravity-defying swirl of his hair, and Mahiru could see he was indeed wearing the little pink sakura hair clip. “And by the way,” the str- Sakuya continued, “I’m not supposed to be in the sun, so keep that thing closed, would ya?”

Mahiru was still trying to process what he just saw. “Wh-what in the world are you?” he stuttered.

“I guess there’s no hiding it now,” said Sakuya with a sigh, looking down at the floor. “You like simple, right? Then I’ll keep it simple: I’m a vampire.” When he got no response, he looked up at the other. “Uhh, Mahi-!!” Suddenly, he was being dragged toward the window by his jacket collar.

“That’s it!” said Mahiru. “You’re going out the window!”

Sakuya struggled against the human. “Wait, wait, wait! Didn’t you hear what I just said?! I’m a vampire! I’ll die if you throw me out in the sun! I mean, okay yeah, I’m immortal, but still!” With one final tug, Sakuya managed to yank himself out of Mahiru’s grip and quickly spun around to face him. “Seriously, what is it with you and not letting me talk?!”

“Shut it, evil spirit!” Mahiru shouted in response. He suddenly remembered Tsubaki’s story from earlier and backed away from the other in a panic. “Wait, you said you’re a vampire? Are you that street slasher?! Did you come here to bite me and drink my blood?!”

Sakuya looked offended at that. “What?! No! I just wanted a place to stay, honest!” He looked down at the floor again. “Look,” he said, his voice much softer, “I’m sorry I lied to you. I just didn’t want you to be afraid of me. But I guess that backfired. I promise I won’t hurt you.” He placed a finger to his chin in thought. “Though, now that you mention it, I am a little thirsty.” Mahiru prepared to run. “Do you have any ramune or something?”

“I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHERE TO BEGIN WITH YOU!” Mahiru was already at his wit’s end with this guy. What kind of vampire drinks ramune?!

“Some deep breathing would be a good place to start,” Sakuya said. “For real, you’re gonna drop dead if you keep up like that. Look, if I really make you that uncomfortable, then I’ll be out of your hair after sundown. Until then, don’t say my name while I’m in this form.”

“I don’t even know what your name is!” said Mahiru. “I thought you were a raccoon, so I called you Sakuya.” The vampire wasn’t fast enough to slap his hand over the other’s mouth. As soon as the word rang through the apartment, a ring of green light formed around Mahiru’s right wrist, and identical ring forming around Sakuya’s neck. In a flash, the rings connected themselves before closing around the two and vanishing completely.

Mahiru stared slack-jawed at his wrist for a moment before looking up at Sakuya, whose hand was still outstretched toward the brunet’s face. He looked absolutely livid. “I meant the name you gave me, you idiot. If you’d just waited five seconds, you would’ve known that!” he ground out through his teeth. It was then that Mahiru found his voice.

“What the hell just happened, raccoon?! Explain!” he demanded.

“Oh, NOW you want me to explain?!” the green-haired boy shot back, baring his fangs. “Well, maybe I don’t feel like it anymore!”

“Start talking right now! I want simple answers!”

Sakuya got right in Mahiru’s face. “FINE! Your dumb ass just made a temporary contract with me! That simple enough for ya?!”

Mahiru blinked and backed off a bit. “Wait… Vampires can form contracts? I thought that was more of a demon thing.”

Sensing his temporary master calming down, Sakuya backed off, as well. “There’s a certain type of vampire that can. I’m one of them. We can only drink blood from the human we’re contracted with, and we have to follow our masters’ orders.”

“You said ‘temporary,’ though,” Mahiru pondered. “What did you mean by that?”

“I mean our contract wasn’t finalized. As long as I don’t drink your blood within the next twenty-four hours, our link will be severed. Oh, and we’re connected physically through the contract, too, so we have to stay close together until it wears off. Sorry you’re stuck with me.”

Mahiru sighed. “No, I’m sorry for yelling at you. I should’ve given you a chance to explain.”

Sakuya looked at him with a wide-eyed look of bewilderment. “You’re…apologizing…to me?”

“Well, if we’re stuck together for the day, we might as well try to get along, right?”

The smile Mahiru flashed him was so bright, Sakuya was afraid he’d turn into a raccoon again. He could feel his face rapidly heating up. If his heart still worked, it would have skipped a beat. Why was he even mad at the human again? Realizing his silence was probably unnerving Mahiru, he offered a quiet, “Y-yeah…” He straightened himself out as he suddenly remembered something. “Oh! Now that you know I’m not an animal, I wanted to ask you: Where are your parents? You’re only fifteen, right? How come you’re on your own?”

He was about to take it back when he saw the look of longing on his master’s face, but once again, Mahiru didn’t give him a chance. “My dad was never really a part of my life. My mom…died in a car accident when I was little. Luckily, my uncle stepped in. If it weren’t for him, I don’t know what I would’ve done…”

“Losing a parent is…pretty painful, huh?” said Sakuya, a sad smile on his face. “Is that why you picked me up off the street? Because you saw a wild animal all alone in unfamiliar territory?” He chuckled. “That kind of sentimentality could get you killed, y’know? What if I had rabies or something?”

“I’m sentimental?” Mahiru accused. “I’m talking about my own dead mother, and you’re the one who looks like he’s about to cry!” He glanced at the clock. It was already half past five. “Oh crap! I forgot I have to run errands!”

“But the contract,” said Sakuya. “We can’t be separated, remember?” Heat rose to his face again when Mahiru grabbed him by the hand and started pulling him toward the door.

“Well then, you’ll just have to come with me!” said the human.

“W-wait! The sun-“

“It’s nearly set, you’ll be fine!”

Even having said that, Sakuya poofed back into his raccoon form once Mahiru opened the door due to the late afternoon sunlight streaming into the corridor. As if he was prepared for it, Mahiru quickly tucked him under his arm. He’d only taken a few steps when the two heard the sound of glass shattering. Mahiru turned to look back at his door, briefly debating whether he should go back inside to investigate.

He decided he’d do it when he got back. After all, he had two jobs to do for the festival now. He didn’t have time to worry about it. Shaking his head, he hurried out of the apartment building and toward the shopping center.

Chapter Text

“So,” Ryuusei said slowly, wondering if his friend had lost his mind, “you’re saying that raccoon is a vampire?”

Mahiru, Ryuusei, and Koyuki were currently standing outside the shopping district by the station. Mahiru was holding Sakuya in his hands to show him off to the other two.

“Exactly!” Mahiru said. “It’s just like Tsubaki said! That rumor about vampires is true! This thing is actually one of them!” He quickly looked around for the missing fourth member of their group, crying out in frustration when he couldn’t see him anywhere. “Why isn’t Tsubaki here?! He’d be all over this!”

“Um, is this a joke?” Koyuki asked, his brows furrowed in concern for his friend’s mental health. Maybe the extra responsibility was already taking a toll on him.

“All I see is an albino raccoon,” Ryuusei added. “For real, it’s just an animal.”

“No,” said Mahiru, “he can turn into a human!” He looked down at the little critter in his hands. “Come on, Sakuya! Speak! Show them what I’m talking about!” Sakuya was silent. Exasperated, Mahiru shook him slightly. “Why don’t you say something?!” Ryuusei and Koyuki exchanged worried looks before turning their attention back to Mahiru. Koyuki spoke first.

“Uhh, Mahiru?”

“What?” Mahiru snapped without necessarily meaning to.

“You’re tired, aren’t you?” said the taller brunet.

“For sure. You’ve overloaded yourself,” Ryuusei concluded.

“That’s not it!” Mahiru shouted. He was getting desperate. He needed someone to believe him. “How can I prove to you that I’m telling the truth?” As he looked around for any kind of solution, he caught sight of a shadowy reflection in one of the store windows. The figure leaped off its perch, and a man with long, pink hair tied in a ponytail dressed in a white magician’s outfit landed in front of the three teenagers.

“Greetings and salutations!” the man announced. He removed his hat and reached inside. “Students,” he continued, “as you wander down the wordless path of youth, stop a moment and watch my amazing show!” He pulled three swords out of his hat; swords that were far too long to physically fit inside the article. A small crowd had gathered around and cheered at the man’s trick.
The magician struck a grand pose, arms outstretched, his hat in one hand and swords in the other. “Thank you, thank you! Thank you for your applause!”

Mahiru watched in confusion. Koyuki marveled at the man’s performance. Ryuusei brushed it off as a cheap trick and turned to walk away, urging the others to follow him. After just a few steps, the blond felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see the magician, his swords gone.

“Why are you touching me?” he asked, irritated.

“That’s a good question,” the pink-haired magician replied, moving to stand beside Ryuusei. “Tell me, audience! Why do you think I stopped this petulant little brat? Anyone?”

“Huh?” Ryuusei muttered.

Putting on a silly voice, the magician continued as if he didn’t hear the teen. “Is it 1: because he ignored me? 2: Because he cut in front of me? 3: Because I’m hungry? Or 4:” his voice lowered to an angry growl, “BECAUSE HE IGNORED ME?!” A sinister grin overtook his face. “The answer is…”

Before anyone could even move, the magician sunk his teeth into Ryuusei’s neck, sending the boy’s blood splattering to the ground. The crowd screamed in terror and scrambled to get away as the sight suddenly turned into a horror show.

“ALL OF THE ABOVE!” Ryuusei was deathly still and horrifyingly pale. The only thing holding him up was the magician’s hand. “This idiot’s dead! And I’ll kill anyone else who ignores me!” He released his grip on Ryuusei, letting him fall limply onto the pavement.

“RYUUSEI!!” Mahiru and Koyuki were rushing toward their friend before he hit the ground. People all around them were screaming and running as fast as they could from the pink-haired madman. All the while, the man was swinging by a lamppost above all the commotion, manically thanking his audience for their “cheers.”

Mahiru and Koyuki tried desperately to wake Ryuusei up. Mahiru checked his pulse. He was still alive, but barely. Mahiru jumped at the sound of the magician’s voice directly above them.

“The crowds always get more excited about bloodshed than magic,” he lamented. Mahiru turned to see the man swinging from the lamppost by his legs, a fanged grin spread across his face. “I guess it’s just that much rarer to see a vampire on the streets than a magician!”

“Another vampire?” Mahiru said.

“You should know!” said the pink-haired man. “After all, you picked one up just yesterday!”

“Why would you do something like this?!” Mahiru asked, still holding onto Ryuusei’s unmoving body. “Who are you?! Are you a friend of Sakuya’s?” What if Sakuya intentionally led him and his friends here? How could Mahiru be so stupid to trust someone he just met? He was torn from his thoughts when the vampire magician made a buzzer noise and dropped down to the ground.

“I hate that little trash panda!” he said, sticking his tongue out in a childish display of mock disgust. “He’s the absolute worst! That’s why…” he pulled his swords out of his hat once again, “I’ll skewer you if you try to protect him!” he growled. “Now then, let’s hear some applause!” He jumped around the street, searching for something. “Come on out, raccoon!” he called. “Where are you, Seed of Deceit~? Make an entrance! Give us a show!” He twirled around. “Why don’t you show a little bravado! Let’s kill all these humans! After all, he wishes it to be-“

The vampiric magician was cut off by a fist to the face. He was sent crashing through a store window. Mahiru beheld in shocked relief, “Sakuya!”

Sakuya, now in his human form, pulled his hand back.

“What’s that guy talking about?!” Mahiru asked.

“That’s not important!” said the green-haired vampire, grabbing Mahiru by the wrist. “We have to get out of here now!” He pulled the human away from the scene as fast as possible. Mahiru resisted with all his strength until finally when they reached an alleyway, it became too much for Sakuya.

“Come on! We have to go!” the vampire urged, tugging harder and harder against an increasingly uncooperative Mahiru, straining himself.

“Why are you running away?!” Mahiru yelled. “My friends are back there!”

Sakuya dropped Mahiru’s hand to get right in his face. “I’m not strong enough to fight that lunatic vampire! If I had a choice-”

“But you’re a lunatic vampire, too!” Mahiru interrupted. So much for getting along. “Can’t you do something to help?! Someone has to do something!”

“Goddammit, Shirota, WILL YOU LET ME FINISH A SENTENCE FOR ONCE?!” Sakuya screamed at the other. That shut Mahiru up. “If I had a choice, I would try to help, but I’m. Not. Strong enough! If I go out there as I am, we both die!” He lowered his head, letting his hair fall over his eyes. “I’m sorry,” he said, his voice tight and cracking, “but there’s nothing I can do. You’re right. Someone has to do it. But this time, it has to be someone else. I know you want us to play hero, but I don’t have that kind of power.” He gripped at his hair as his voice broke even more. “I’m sorry, Mahiru! I’m sorry you’re stuck with me! I’m sorry I’m so fucking useless!”

“Make all the excuses you want,” Mahiru said, “but I’m going back!” Sakuya watched with tears stinging the corners of his eyes as Mahiru rushed back toward his friends and back toward danger.

Chapter Text

Still trying desperately to wake Ryuusei, Koyuki failed to notice the pink-haired magician approaching, swords in hand, until his shadow fell over them. Frozen in fear, the brunet could only stare up at the man, horrified, as he prepared to strike the two of them dead. He squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the pain.

Rather than feel the cold sting of metal, Koyuki heard the vampire grunt in surprise. He cautiously cracked an eye open to see Mahiru perched on the magician’s shoulders, blocking his vision and trying to throw him off balance.

“Someone. Someone else. People never want to do anything themselves because it’s easier that way; because you don’t have to take responsibility. But…the only reason the world keeps going is because someonedoes show up to help. Someone takes a stand!”

“Mahiru!” Koyuki called out to his friend.

“Take Ryuusei and get out of here!” Mahiru shouted back.

“I wanted to be that someone, too!”

After regaining his footing, the magician shot a deranged grin up at Mahiru. “Nice try,” he growled, “but didn’t anyone ever tell you that showing off,” he shifted his grip on one of his swords to better aim it at the human clinging to him, “is a good way to get killed?!” He readied his strike.

“Something… In all the time I’ve been alive, I’ve always sat on the sidelines doing nothing because I wasn’t strong enough; because I didn’t think there was anything meaningful I could do. I still don’t know if I can do anything, but there’s something about you that makes me want to try.”

The magician’s blade hit flesh and sunk in halfway to the hilt. Flesh that was clothed in black and white stripes.

“I told you you’d get yourself killed, didn’t I? You never listen to me.”

Sakuya shoved Mahiru and the pink-haired vampire away from each other with all his might. Blood poured out of the wound in his chest like a gory waterfall, a bit more blood trickling from his mouth. He gripped at the sword that was still lodged in his heart.

“We’ve already had this conversation. I’m weak. I haven’t had a drop of blood in centuries. I was hoping I could just let myself starve and quietly slip away from this world. No one would even notice. But…you made me realize I don’t want to die like that. I don’t want to die for nothing.” He winced as he slid the sword out of his body. “If I can buy you and your friends enough time to get out of here, then at least I can rest knowing I wasn’t completely useless.”

“Hold on a second,” Mahiru said. “Sakuya… Why are you so sure you’re going to die?”

Sakuya let out a strained chuckle. “Again, you weren’t listening.” He turned his head toward the human sitting on the ground, a pained smile on his face. “I’m starving, Mahiru. There’s no way I can survive this fight on my own. But I can distract him for you.”

“On my own…”

As if Sakuya had flipped a switch, a memory came to Mahiru. It was shortly after he’d lost his mother...

“I don’t think I can do this on my own,” said Tooru with a gentle smile. He held out his fist to his nephew. “I’ll need your help.” Mahiru’s tiny hand met his uncle’s in a fist bump. “I’ll try my best, and you can try yours. How’s that sound? It’s how we’ll get through this.”

An idea struck Mahiru, and he could see Sakuya was deep in thought, as well.

Wait, Mahiru thought. Is it possible?

Or maybe… pondered Sakuya, that’s it…

Someone…

Something...

The someone we need isn’t me. Not quite.

Maybe it’s not just me who can do something here.

It’s not him, either. No…

Maybe I’m not supposed to be doing this alone.

I think the “someone” here…

Maybe the one who needs to do something…

Is both of us!

“SAKUYA!” Mahiru held his arm out to the green-haired vampire who greedily took a bite, gulping down the human’s blood. Just like with their temporary contract, a ring of green light formed around Mahiru’s wrist. Only this time, a line of green light in the shape of a chain connected him to Sakuya, the last link seeming to dig directly into the back of the vampire’s neck, as he licked the excess blood off his chin.

“I’m Mahiru Shirota. Fifteen years old. I like to keep things simple and try to keep life uncomplicated. That’s why I picked up a raccoon. Well, I thought he was a raccoon, but looks can be deceiving."

“And with the exchange of blood,” said Sakuya, standing up straight and facing the magician, his hands held out to either side of himself, “you are now my Eve.” A set of black knives with an eerie green glow materialized in each of his hands. “I am bound to you until the day of your demise.” Holding the knives up to his face, he turned his head to flash a grin at Mahiru. The human was taken aback at the confidence he had never seen in the other before.

“It’s been a while since I’ve gotten in on the action,” said Sakuya. “I’ll need some instruction. So, what would you have me do, Master?”

Chapter Text

The pink-haired magician watched the display with fear written clearly on his face. Quickly rising back to his feet, he tried to brush it off, but he knew this could only spell bad news.

“He made a contract,” he muttered to himself. “This could be a problem for me.” With a nervous smile, he summoned a deck of cards from thin air and guided them in a dance around him.

“I know what to call true vampires who make contracts with humans!” he said. “It’s written in the cards here!” The playing cards arranged themselves into three lines and flipped to reveal letters that spelled out:

SERVANT
+VAMPIRE
=SERVAMP

“You are a Servamp!” the magician finished.

A low growl left Sakuya’s throat as he bared his fangs at the other vampire. The magician, in turn, pulled yet another set of swords from his hat.

“Well?” Sakuya said to Mahiru without taking his eyes off their adversary. “I’m waiting. What should I do?”

Mahiru dared a glance at the pink-haired vampire. The one who had just tried to kill his friends. There was only one thing to do in this situation.

“We’ll defeat him!” Mahiru declared.

“That sounds like something straight out of a shounen manga,” said Sakuya, readying his knives. “I admit I’m out of practice in the combat department, but if that’s your final answer, I guess I don’t have much of a choice!” Despite his words, the delighted grin never left the green-haired vampire’s face as he flicked his wrist. A tangle of thorny, black branches with the same green glow as Sakuya’s knives sprung out of the ground around the magician, holding him in place no matter how wildly he struggled. Sakuya lunged at his captive, slicing through him and landing behind him as blood spurted from the lacerations.

The pink-haired man’s swords clattered onto the pavement as he fell face-first to the ground with them. Sakuya stalked over to his immobilized prey and lifted him up by his hair. He stared right into the other’s eyes with a dangerous glare, murder clear in his eyes. Mahiru realized Sakuya fully intended to finish the job. He had seen enough bloodshed for one day.

“Sakuya, wait,” he said. Sakuya’s only response was to raise his crimson eyes to his Eve. “He can’t move any more! He’s not a threat to us! Stop!”

Sakuya’s attention was back on the magician as he opened his mouth, aiming right for his jugular. His head snapped back as Mahiru tugged on the chain still connecting them.

“No!” said the human. “You said you needed me to tell you what to do, right? Well, now I’m telling you to stop, Sakuya!”

After a few seconds of resistance, Sakuya let the magician drop back to the ground. A snarl left the incapacitated vampire’s throat before he snapped.

“You brat! How dare you?!” he screeched. “You just boarded the deadly vampire parade headed straight to Hell!” He paused to cough up blood before continuing. “It’s a runaway train with no stops in between, you pointless waste of blood!!” With the last of his strength, he reached for his hat. “That’s a wrap,“ he said to no one in particular. “I guess I’ll end the show here for now.” Once the hat was back on his head, he disappeared into a puff of smoke to be replaced by a doll version of himself.

Mahiru and Sakuya stared down at the little plushie in confusion. The brunet picked it up by the neck. “Uhh, is he…dead?” he asked. He jumped when the doll let out a high-pitched laugh.

“Of course I’m not! I’m a vampire, you dull, moronic, simple, stupid human!” said the doll, swinging his legs. A black knife pierced his hat before Sakuya swung him back and forth with a bored expression. “Stop,” the doll whined. “Don’t shake me! I get bad motion sickness!”

“So,” said Mahiru, “who are you? Why would you attack one of your own like Sakuya?”

“Just following orders,” said the doll. “I have a Master, too, you see. His name is Kuro, and he hates little Lies here. You’ve got some pretty powerful enemies, raccoon. Kuro wants the whole lot of you dead! You and all your precious siblings! All of you will die, die, DIE!!”

It was at that moment that the chain connecting Mahiru and Sakuya shattered and the Servamp dropped the doll. Mahiru rubbed his wrist in puzzlement.

“The chains are gone,” he said dumbly. “What happened? Did I do something wrong?” It wasn’t until he heard a deep groan that he realized Sakuya had fallen to his knees.

“No,” said the green-haired vampire. “It’s nothing to do with you. Like I said, I haven’t done this in a while. It just took a lot out of me is all. I’ll be fine after I rest.”

“By the way,” Mahiru said, “who is this Kuro guy? Why does he hate you so much?”

Sakuya glanced tiredly up at his Eve. “No idea,” he answered with a shrug. “I don’t even know anyone named Kuro. I’m as confused as you are.”

“If you say so,” Mahiru said.

I’m glad he’s okay, though, the human thought. He was a little scary just now, but he seems to be back to normal. His own voice grew fuzzy in his head as the world faded to black. That’s good… He was unconscious before he hit the pavement.

Less than an hour later, the scene had been cleared out for the police. Meanwhile, from the shadows of the rooftops, a figure watched the aftermath of his underling’s carnage.

“So…” he said, his voice gruff and void of emotion. “You’ve found an Eve, huh, Lies? What a pain…”

Chapter Text

Mahiru bolted upright the second he was conscious. Questions formed in his head almost faster than he could process them.

Is Ryuusei alright? What about that magician? Where is Sakuya? Wait a minute, I recognize this place.

He stopped to take in his surroundings. He was in his room, seated on his own bed, still dressed in his school uniform.

“How did I get in my room?” he asked the air. He glanced down at the little pet bed at the side of his own. There, sound asleep, was Sakuya, the little albino raccoon he had taken in a couple of days earlier. “Was all that a bad dream?”

Gently so as not to disturb his companion’s slumber, he lifted Sakuya out of his bed. At least, he tried not to disturb the critter’s slumber. He was apparently unsuccessful, as Sakuya squirmed in Mahiru’s grasp.

And spoke.

“Noooo,” he whined in a high-pitched version of his voice in Mahiru’s dream. “Just a few more minutes…”

The teen’s eyes widened. “Wait, if you’re talking, then it wasn’t a dream…”

Waking up a bit more, Sakuya opened his beady, white eyes and looked up at the other. “‘Fraid not,” he said. “Sorry, but you really are stuck with me now.” He turned his fluffy little head toward the clock. “Hey, don’t you need to get to school?”

“Oh, crap!” Mahiru almost dropped Sakuya as he rushed to get ready. It was a good thing he was already in uniform.

-----------------

Mahiru burst into the classroom, frantically looking around.

“Ryuusei!” he called out. He spotted Tsubaki sitting at his desk, doing his part to help with festival preparations by cutting out flyers. His sunglasses were laying beside a pair of scissors. At the sound of the classroom door being violently shoved open, the black-haired boy turned to his friend.

“Ah, the hero returns!” he announced, a grin spreading across his face. “Koyuki told me all about it!”

Mahiru rushed over to him. “Tsubaki! Is Ryuusei okay?!”

Tsubaki’s smile fell as he looked down at the floor. “Mahiru…” he began with a somber tone. “I didn’t want to be the one to tell you, but… Ryuusei might not make it…”

Before Mahiru could respond, a familiar voice rang out. “Look alive!” A second later, a roll of tape smacked Tsubaki on the forehead. Fortunately, he recovered quickly enough to catch it. “That’s the kind of tape you needed, right?” the voice asked. Mahiru turned toward the source as Tsubaki burst out laughing behind him.

“Ryuusei!” Sure enough, there stood Koyuki and Ryuusei. The blond had bandages wrapped around his neck, but otherwise he appeared in perfect health. Mahiru’s relief was quickly replaced with anger as he glared back at Tsubaki, who immediately went silent. In a flash, Mahiru had the black-haired boy on his stomach. The brunette sat on his back and pulled Tsubaki’s legs up toward himself.

“Why’d you scare me like that, Tsuabki?!”

“I-I was just joking!” Tsubaki answered, his voice strained as his spine was bent at an unnatural angle. “You seemed so serious, I thought I’d play along! I wasn’t going to keep it up for much longer-“ he cut himself off with a groan of pain, pounding on the floor with his fists.

Opting to ignore the jokester, Mahiru turned his attention back to Ryuusei. “So, how’s your neck doing? Does it hurt much?”

Ryuusei shrugged and rubbed at the back of his neck. “Eh, it’s not that bad. I was lucky the car barely hit me. The accident could’ve been a lot worse.”

Car? Mahiru thought. What is he talking about? He was bitten by a vampire! Is he messing with me, too?

“What are you talking about?” he said. “That’s not what happened!” He recounted the events of the previous night to them. Surely they had to remember! How does someone just forget something like that?

“Some kind of vampire street performer?” Koyuki asked. “You sound like Tsubaki! Are you gonna start telling stories all the time, too?”
“It’s not like you were even there with us,” Ryuusei added. “Anyway, we don’t have time to goof off. There’s still a ton of stuff to do for the festival.”

Mahiru stared at the two of them in shock. Was he losing his mind? He was wide awake when Sakuya spoke to him that morning. What was real and what wasn’t?

Mahiru was still questioning himself as he walked home from school alone. Well, not alone. Whether or not the magician was real, his bond with Sakuya was absolutely reality. As such, he had the raccoon tucked away in his book bag.

Something’s wrong. They don’t remember I was with them or that we were attacked. It’s like their memories were wiped. But that wouldn’t explain their new memories. Ugh! This doesn’t make any sense!

He was pulled out of his thoughts by an argument coming from…his book bag? He pulled the bag off his shoulder and yanked it open to see Sakuya and the doll form of the pink-haired magician shoving at each other.

“I keep getting raccoon hair in my mouth!” the doll complained.

“What the hell…?” said Mahiru, pulling the doll out of his bag by the neck as Sakuya leaped up onto his shoulder to glare at the other vampire with his Eve. “When did you get in here?”

“I am so very hungry,” said the doll. “Please, just let me have a little bit of blood. Pretty please!”

“Keep it down and tell me why everyone is acting so weird! It’s like last night didn’t even happen!” Suddenly aware of the fact that he was yelling at a doll in public, Mahiru resorted to shaking him violently in frustration.

“Ow, ow, ow!” cried the doll. “What are you doing, you brat?! I hope Kuro murders you soon!”

Realizing he wasn’t going to get a straight answer out of the magician, Mahiru zipped him back up in his book bag. Better to keep him close then to let him run loose.

“You’re sure you don’t know anyone named Kuro?” he asked Sakuya, who was still perched on his shoulder.

“Doesn’t ring a bell,” the raccoon replied. “I can’t imagine someone who’d want to hurt a cute little woodland creature like me.”

“Quit acting like you’re some kind of harmless animal and not a vampire.” Sakuya responded with a cute little trill. “Let’s think about it in simple terms,” Mahiru continued. “This Kuro guy is obviously our enemy. If we don’t do something about him, he might send more vampires to attack you. And me.”

Everything suddenly went dark as black clouds blotted out the sun. Mahiru and Sakuya looked up in confusion. “Huh?” said the human. “It was totally clear just a second ago…” A wall of blue and black closed around him, blocking everything else out. Hearing the thud, thud, thud of boots approaching, Mahiru jerked his head to look before him.

A blue-haired man dressed in a tattered, blue jacket with a hood lined with black fur approached the teen and the vampire at a leisurely pace. He was hunched over, his hands stuffed into his coat pockets. He had bags under his red eyes and a bored expression on his face. He seemed to be looking right through Mahiru.

“Hey…” he said. His voice was low and raspy from what Mahiru could only assume was lack of use. “You’d better repay me for coming all the way out here just to pick you up, you damn clown…”

Chapter Text

“Hey, kid!” The doll’s voice drifted from Mahiru’s book bag. “Tell him how your raccoon turned out to be a vampire! Or maybe how you used him to try and murder a brilliant street magician who was just putting on a good show!”

“I have a very bad feeling about this. We should scram,” Sakuya whispered, still perched on his Eve’s shoulder. Mahiru’s eyes widened as the gears in his head clicked into place.

“Wait,” he said as he turned his attention back to the blue-haired man. “So is he a vampire, too?”

The man grimaced, baring his fangs to the others. Fangs, red eyes, definitely a vampire, Mahiru thought. He felt a shift in weight on his shoulder as Sakuya crawled behind his head.

“What, are you trying to hide now?” He asked the raccoon. “Hold on a second! Do you know this guy?!”

“I’ve never seen him before in my life,” Sakuya answered. “But he looks like he’s ready to kill someone. Namely us.”

The blue-haired man held up Mahiru’s book bag and lifted the doll out. “I guess I should thank you for doing the hard part for me in finding this patchwork pest,” he said, his voice still competent monotone.

Wait, wasn’t that…? Mahiru whipped his head to see his book bag was no longer on his shoulder. How the hell did he do that?! He didn’t even come near me! The shrill voice of the doll snapped the teen out of his thoughts.

“Ugh, it was so cramped in there!” he whined. “You’re very late, my precious Kuronya!”

Mahiru and Sakuya were both at a loss for words at that. Such a cutesy name for such an imposing figure!

“Precious…Kuronya?” was all Mahiru could manage.

The other two ignored him as the doll continued speaking. “But you did come for me! I’ll forgive you, Kuronya~!”

“Kuro…” Mahiru said to the little raccoon on his shoulder. “It must be him. That was fast. What is he doing here?” Sakuya cut him off.

“Maybe a little less asking questions and a little more running away?” he said. Before Mahiru could even blink, the blue-haired man was right in front of him.

“Yes,” he said. “I’m the one called Kuro. So what? Since you’re apparently set on keeping that scavenger around, I guess I’ll have to take on both of you. What a pain…” He grabbed Sakuya by the scruff of the neck and, in a flash, he was out of Mahiru’s reach. The teen had no idea what to do as Kuro studied the shaking raccoon.

“Hmmm,” he hummed. “You don’t look familiar, but you feel familiar. Yes, you’re definitely one of us.” He carelessly threw Sakuya to the ground, the Servamp poofing into his human form on his way down. “So, Seed of Deceit, are you prepared to sleep forever?” Black claws protruded from Kuro’s hands, shining with an eerie, light blue glow.

Mahiru was certain he could hear Sakuya’s teeth chattering, but the Servamp’s brows furrowed as he sat up and stared the other vampire in the eyes.

“It’s… It’s Sakuya,” he said softly, his voice quivering.

Kuro raised a brow, the first change in expression he’d shown throughout this whole exchange. “What was that?”

Sakuya balled his hands into fists and said, louder and with more resolve, “My name is Sakuya.”

Kuro’s face fell back into a bored expression. “You really think that matters?” He took a step toward the green-haired vampire. “Sakuya. Seed of Deceit. Servamp of Lies. Whatever your name is, it won’t change your fate, baby brother.”

Mahiru finally found his voice. “Baby brother?” he echoed before shooting an accusing look at Sakuya. “You said you didn’t know him!”

“I don’t!” the Servamp retorted. “This guy’s out of his mind!”

“Go ahead and just keep living up to your namesake,” Kuro butt in. “Your true namesake. You’re about to die, anyway. So go on. Let your final words be a lie.” He suddenly turned his attention to Mahiru. “Do you know how many Servamps there are? Or rather, how many there were supposed to be?” Sakuya lowered his head so his mess of green hair cast a shadow over his eyes.

“Seven,” Kuro answered his own question. “I’m the oldest. Sleepy Ash, Servamp of Sloth. Next is Old Child of Pride. Then Doubt Doubt of Envy. The Mother of Wrath. Lawless of Greed. World End of Gluttony. And finally, All of Love, Servamp of Lust. Seven monsters for seven sins. That’s all there was supposed to be. However, there is an eighth member of the family. An outlier among outliers.” He pointed to Sakuya. “Seed of Deceit, Servamp of Lies.”

“Sakuya…” Mahiru said. “You have so many siblings. Is that normal for raccoons?” The green-haired vampire shot the human an incredulous look.

“Even if it was, I’m the only raccoon I know of.”

Kuro leaped into the air and, in a puff of smoke, turned himself into a black cat. He landed gracefully on Mahiru’s arm as Sakuya turned back into a raccoon and reclaimed his perch on the boy’s shoulder.

“He’s right,” Kuro said, his voice coming out in a higher pitch much like Sakuya’s. “This is what I can transform into.” Without warning, Kuro gave chase to Sakuya, leading to the two animals scrambling around Mahiru’s neck and shoulders.

“Hey!” he shouted. “Get off of me if you’re gonna chase each other!” Kuro promptly sprang off of Mahiru, landing in human form. “So you’re a cat?”

“Sometimes,” the older vampire replied. “I can be a lot bigger if I want to be. Or if I need to be.”

“Kuronya!” the doll chimed in. “This brat kept me from murdering little Lies like you ordered me to! He ruined everything!”

Mahiru clenched his fist as he remembered Ryuusei. No doubt he was just collateral damage to them.

“Kuro,” he said. “Why do you want to kill Sakuya?”

“You think it’s just Lies?” said Kuro. “I want all Servamps gone.”

“But why?!” the human demanded.

“Because we’re mistakes. All of us. We’re monsters. Plagues upon this world.” He held up the doll. “You saw what Belkia here did to your friend, and he’s not even a 'true' vampire. Imagine what someone like me could do to humanity. What someone like him could do.” He gestured toward Sakuya. “We need to be erased.”

“So you think murder is the answer?! I’ve never heard of any vampire attacks until he showed up!” Mahiru emphasized he by pointing at the doll.

“There’s a reason no one ever reports vampire attacks,” Kuro explained. “And it’s not because they never happen. Do you have any idea how many people died last night? Can you remember any bloodshed aside from your friend?”

Mahiru thought as hard as he could, but the only carnage he could recall was when Belkia bit Ryuusei. Did the magician hurt more people last night? Wouldn’t that be something Mahiru would remember? Then again, Ryuusei and Koyuki didn’t even remember Belkia at all. What was real? What wasn’t?

While Mahiru was distracted, Kuro surged forward and slammed a black boot down onto Sakuya, knocking him to the ground, once again in human form. Before he or Mahiru could react, that same black boot was pressing down against Sakuya’s chest, pushing blood up his throat and spurting out of his mouth. The black claws were back.

“This would be so much less of a pain if we were all together, but I guess I’ll have to go one at a time.” He shifted his eyes to Mahiru. “It would also be less of a pain if you didn’t have an Eve. But…” He raised his claws toward Mahiru.

“…Humans are easy to get rid of.”

Chapter Text

Before Kuro’s claws met Mahiru’s flesh, a pitch-black branch with an eerie, green glow shot up from the ground between them, catching the blue-haired Servamp’s claws. The two of them whipped their heads toward Sakuya, who had raised himself to one knee and had a hand raised to eye level before pushing himself to his feet, raising both arms above his head to raise his tree toward the sky, and quickly brought both hands down in front of him, sending the razor-sharp tip of the tree speeding downward toward Kuro.

The blue-haired vampire leaped out of the way at the last second. The impact of Sakuya’s tree left a massive crack in the concrete. Re-brandishing his claws, Kuro glared at the other vampire.

“Out of my way, Lies,” he said.

“No!” Sakuya responded. “You only want to eliminate other Servamps, right? Leave Mahiru out of this!”

“Sakuya, I’m not letting you fight this guy alone!” Mahiru shouted. He was about to step out from behind the tree to help his Servamp, but Sakuya’s words stopped him.

“Shut up! I’m trying to save your damn life!”

“How can you say that,” Kuro interjected, “when you’re the one who got him involved in the first place?”

Sakuya said nothing. What was there to say? Kuro was right. If he had just stayed a raccoon. If he had never let Mahiru see his true form. Mahiru wouldn’t be dealing with any of this. His friend wouldn’t have gotten hurt.

“I…” the green-haired Servamp could only manage a single word before he cast his gaze down.

Kuro raised his eyes from the pathetic display that was his youngest brother up to his Eve, who was gripping tightly onto one of the tree’s branches. “You see?” he asked the boy. “We’re nothing but trouble. The world would be better off if we just disappeared.” Tired, red eyes turned back to Sakuya, and Mahiru saw his chance. Just as Kuro began strolling toward the unresponsive Sakuya, claws at the ready, Mahiru rushed toward the younger Servamp and slapped his hand over Sakuya’s mouth.

Sakuya’s eyes widened when the metallic flavor of blood hit his tongue. Mahiru had deliberately cut himself on one of the tree branches. Sakuya instinctively lapped up the liquid life force and, just like the night before, a glowing, black chain connected Sakuya’s neck to Mahiru’s wrist.

“I told you,” said Mahiru, “I’m not letting you do this alone.”

In a flash, Mahiru was lifted off the ground, held there by Kuro’s (declawed) hand wrapped around his throat.

“What a pain,” said Kuro. “Now I’m going to have to kill you, too. If you refuse to believe that we are all of us nothing but bloodthirsty monsters, I’ll just have to prove it to you.” His grip on Mahiru’s neck tightened, crushing his airways. Mahiru kicked and thrashed, but Kuro didn’t even budge.

Maybe it was oxygen-deprivation-induced delirium, but Mahiru had another flashback. After his mother died, Mahiru had become cold and distant, even lashing out at other kids. For years, he felt like an outcast. He felt like no one would want to talk to the orphan boy. But then his uncle helped him realize that there were kids who wanted to be his friend. He just had to be more open with them. He had to make an effort to be a little kinder. After meeting Ryuusei and Koyuki, Mahiru realized that the only person who saw him as an outsider was himself.
Just as Mahiru’s vision started to become fuzzy, Kuro dropped him. Mahiru coughed as air rushed back into his lungs. Once his breathing was somewhat even, he saw why Kuro had stopped.

The tip of a tree branch was sticking out of his chest. A red stain rapidly grew on his blue jacket.

“I told you to leave him out of it!” Sakuya said.

“Sakuya, wait!” Mahiru said when he noticed Sakuya rearing to summon more branches. “Let me talk to him!” Sakuya shot him a skeptical look and hesitated for a moment, but eventually replaced the branch in Kuro’s chest with several tangled around his whole body to keep him still. Mahiru stood and approached Kuro.

“You don’t have to be monsters,” he said. “Just look at Sakuya. We’ve only known each other for two days, and he’s saved my life twice already! The first time, I wasn’t even his Eve yet! He didn’t have to do that, but he did. Sakuya’s not evil, and you don’t have to be, either. You just have to put in a little effort to be a little kinder.” He lifted his head to look at Sakuya. “Let one of his arms loose.”

“Mahiru, no-“

“That’s an order, Sakuya.” Despite his blatant efforts to fight against it, Sakuya lowered one hand, and the branches curled around Kuro’s right arm receded back into the ground. Mahiru held out his hand to the blue-haired Servamp. “What do you say?” Kuro was silent for a moment, his hair hiding his eyes from the human.

Mahiru blinked, and suddenly, Sakuya was in front of Mahiru, back facing him, Kuro’s claws jutting out from between his shoulder blades.

“Sakuya!” Mahiru cried out.

“I think that’s too much trouble,” said Kuro. “It’s easier to just kill you all and be done with it. Then, I’ll join you.”

Still impaled on the black claws, Sakuya turned his head toward his Eve. “Mahiru, he’s not going to listen! Get out of here! NOW!” When Mahiru refused to move, Sakuya let out a frustrated grunt as he summoned a barrier of branches separating Mahiru from himself and Kuro and turned back to face the other vampire. “Kuro, I’ll make a deal with you!” Kuro said nothing but raised his head slightly as Sakuya released him. Kuro followed suit, leaving Sakuya’s blood to splatter onto the ground, the two vampiric brothers now with matching holes in their chests. “I’m the one you want dead. If you let Mahiru go, unharmed, I won’t fight you. I’ll give you a free kill.” The chain connecting him to Mahiru turned to green mist as it began to dissipate.

“Deal.”

“HOLD ON A SECOND!” Mahiru shouted from between the branches of Sakuya’s barrier. “Sakuya! I said I wouldn’t leave you to die, and I’m not going to!” Sakuya turned to look at his Eve, his eyes wide.

“Mahiru…”

“Why do you keep trying to get yourself killed?! Have some value in yourself, dammit!” Gripping a branch with his still injured hand, Mahiru paid no mind as he re-opened his wound. “This is an order! You’re not allowed to let yourself die!!”

The black chain instantly became solid again, and Sakuya’s eyes flashed completely green as his body levitated a few inches off the ground, the tails of his coat flying up around him. All the while, an inhuman wail left his throat. Mahiru had to shield his eyes from the light. Kuro, seeing an opening, lunged for the younger Servamp.

When Mahiru opened his eyes, the barrier was gone, and Kuro was standing over a kneeling Sakuya. His claws were caught on a cluster of branches that had wound themselves around Sakuya’s arm. His eyes returned to their natural red as he stood, pushing against a surprised Kuro, before shoving the Servamp of Sloth off of him completely. Sakuya’s stance was confident and his eyes were fierce, but in his mind, he was panicking.

My body is moving on its own. Mahiru… What have you done?

Chapter Text

Mahiru… What have you done?

Against his own will, Sakuya’s body fought Kuro with a ferocity he never knew he was capable of. Every swipe of claws was parried perfectly by a vine-covered arm or a tree. Sakuya managed to nick Kuro with a few well-placed branches. Kuro just barely avoided being skewered by a particularly large branch.

Panting and dripping blood, Kuro decided to change tactics. With the kid’s latest order, Seed of Deceit wouldn’t go down easy. Two of Kuro’s tattered, black coat tails rose up behind him, almost looking like wings. A set of black spikes phased from the cloth and just hovered around him for a second. Sakuya was already prepared to block.

He was not prepared for the spikes to fly right past him and toward his Eve.

“MAHIRU!!”

Beyond all odds, Sakuya was able to tackle Mahiru out of the way in time. The spikes zoomed over the Servamp’s head and lodged themselves into the ground. Unbeknownst to Sakuya, he was exactly where Kuro wanted him. Leaving the younger vampire no time to react, Kuro pounced. Just before his claws struck the other two down, they vanished, leaving the Servamp of Sloth to get his claws stuck in the ground.
The blue-haired vampire blinked a few times before his claws disappeared in a blue mist.

“Seriously?” he said, scratching at the back of his head. “What a pain… Now I have to figure out where they went.”

Belkia, who had been lying on the ground throughout the whole battle, perked up as his Master lifted him off the pavement.

“But look on the bright side! Now if you find Lies, you’ll find Lust, too, Kuronya!”

“That would make things a little easier,” Kuro responder. “Let’s head back for now. I’m sore from fighting…”

———————

Not that Sakuya wasn’t grateful for the last-second transportation, but the drop-off could’ve been a little gentler. The Servamp of Lies was lying on the ground on his stomach with Mahiru sprawled on top of him before the human shot up.

“What was that?!” he said. “And where are we?!” Looking around, Mahiru surmised they were in an alleyway.

With a grunt, Sakuya pushed himself up into a kneeling position. “Someone must’ve saved us. And I think I know who.”

“One of your siblings?” asked Mahiru.

Sakuya nodded. “I’m pretty sure.”

“Mahiru Shirota.” The boys both jumped at the two voices perfectly in sync. They turned to see two young girls in matching outfits, holding hands. They both had red eyes and bright pink hair, only one had hers cut short, and the other had let hers grow out. “Please, come with us,” they said in unison. Each girl reached out her free hand to Mahiru and Sakuya. “All of Love is summoning you now.”

Mahiru was a bit unnerved by these children. “Who, me?” he asked. Sakuya, now back in his raccoon form, plopped himself on top of his Eve’s head.

“This is really creepy,” he whispered. “But if they’re with All of Love, then it should be safe.”

“Who’s All of Love?” Mahiru asked.

“My brother immediately before me. Listen to the kids, Mahiru. We’ll be fine.”

“I know it’s out of the ordinary,” said a new voice. This one was clearly male. Behind the little girls, a young-looking boy with purple hair and eyes sat in a chair, looking almost annoyed with the other two boys. “But I must insist you come with me. And I won’t accept any answer other than ‘yes.’”

Chapter Text

Mahiru sat in the back of an expensive-looking car. The purple-haired boy was seated to his right. The little pink-haired twins were on his right. They were gushing over Sakuya, who was squished in between the girls and petting him. He had his front paws over his face, and Mahiru could practically see the poor raccoon blushing through his fur at the attention. Mahiru turned his attention toward the boy. He was staring resolutely forward at the back of the passenger seat.

“So,” he said, “are you the one they call All of Love?”

“I’m not,” the boy replied without looking at Mahiru. “My name is Misono Alicein.” It was only then that he turned his head to face the other boy. “I’m All of Love’s Eve.”

“Eve…” Mahiru pondered. “Come to think of it, I’ve heard Sakuya call me that, too. What does it mean?”

Misono let out an exasperated sigh and shot Mahiru a look that screamed You should already know this, you idiot. “‘Eve’ is simply the term for a human who is contracted to a Servamp. The Servamp’s master, if you will.”

Mahiru flashed back to Kuro. If he had a name other than his Servamp title, then who gave him that name? He was snapped out of his musing by Misono.

“That’s my place up ahead,” said the purple-haired boy. Mahiru had to do a double-take as he looked out the windshield. There was an actual mansion in front of them! Misono lived there?!

“Holy crap!” said the brunette. “This place is gigantic!”

Sakuya wriggled out of the girls’ death grip and leaped onto Mahiru’s shoulder as the car pulled up in a front garden area surrounded by meticulously trimmed hedges with a fountain in the center. After stepping out of the car through the gate, and into the garden, Misono took a seat in the same chair he’d had in the alleyway.

“I’m tired,” he said. “Let’s rest a bit.”

Mahiru was…flabbergasted, for lack of a better word. “It’s only been five minutes since we got out of the car!” he shouted. “And now you have to sit?! And where did that chair even come from?!” A chuckle flowed through the air. Mahiru looked around for the source. That certainly wasn’t Misono. A butterfly decorated with a pattern of pink and black landed gracefully on Misono’s head.

“Unfortunately, Misono has something of a weak constitution, my dear Mahiru.” Okay, Mahiru wasn’t crazy. That voice was definitely coming from the butterfly. Misono noticed him staring and furrowed his brows.

“What are you looking at?” he asked curtly. Seeming to realize where Mahiru’s gaze was pointed, he swatted at his own head as the butterfly took off back into the air. “Lily, I keep telling you not to land in my hair!”

In a puff of smoke, the butterfly transformed into a tall man with shoulder-length, blond hair, two little strands sticking up resembling antenna, and his clothing half off. His pants were open and sliding down his legs. His pink shirt and black jacket were both unbuttoned, and the sleeves hung low on his shoulders. He opened his eyes to reveal their striking red hue and gave Mahiru an inviting look.

“Nice to meet you,” said the blonde. His voice was like silk. “Please let me know if there’s anything that you desire.”

Mahiru was freaking out. Was this guy trying to seduce him or something?! What’s the proper response to this?!

Misono ended the awkward encounter by throwing a book at the man’s head and yelling at him to put his clothes back on. The blonde took it in stride, smile never leaving his face, as he turned toward Misono.

“What?” he said, feigning innocence. “I was only trying to make a good first impression!” Nonetheless, the man obeyed Misono’s order and buttoned all his clothes back up. Well, mostly. His jacket remained opened, and he left several buttons of his shirt undone, but it was a marked improvement in Mahiru’s book, and Misono seemed to accept it, as well.

“Allow me to introduce this stripping perv,” said Misono. “This is All of Love, the Servamp of Lust.”

“My Eve has given me the name Snow Lily,” said the blond. “But you can call me whenever you’d like~” He began to remove his jacket again, only to receive a weak jab to the side from Misono. Snow Lily simply laughed it off and slid his jacket back up over his shoulder. Sakuya chuckled beside Mahiru’s ear.

“You haven’t changed at all, have you, aniki?”

“It’s very nice to see you, too, little flower,” said Snow Lily before he and Misono walked up to the door of the mansion. “Now please, come inside.” Once inside, Snow Lily led Mahiru and Sakuya, now in human form, up a massive set of stairs with Misono and the twins trailing behind. “I’m the one who helped you out behind the scenes with that horrible magician business,” the blonde Servamp said.

Ah, Mahiru thought. So he’s the one who made everyone forget. “Oh, thanks!” he said to the vampire. “It’s nice to meet someone on our side. There are so many things I want to ask you guys.”

“Before we get to your questions…” said Snow Lily. The air suddenly grew cold as the Servamp of Lust kept his back to the others. “There’s something we need to ask you.” Mahiru stopped in the doorway of a room with a giant bronze statue of a man on horseback stood proudly in the center. “I didn’t help you out just because I was feeling kind, unfortunately.” The large double doors slammed closed behind Mahiru, leaving him and Sakuya trapped with Snow Lily, Misono, and the twins.

Snow Lily transformed back into a butterfly and fluttered toward Misono. The boy readily undid the top few buttons of his shirt and bared his neck to the vampire. “Here, Lily,” he said. He sounded almost bored. Snow Lily eagerly drank his fill. In an instant, he was back in his human form, wielding a black scythe, the same chain that sometimes formed between Mahiru and Sakuya connected Snow Lily to Misono. Only instead of green, the chain and scythe shone with a fuchsia glow. Misono was once again seated in his chair with Snow Lily leaning his free arm against the backrest. The chair was also glowing with the same fuchsia as the chain and scythe.

“Mahiru, you bastard,” said Misono. “I hear you didn’t launch a single attack when you faced Kuro today!”

“Wait,” said Mahiru. “Misono, you know about Ku-“

“You haven’t earned the right to say my name!” the purple-haired boy cut him off. “How pathetic. You don’t know what it means to be a Servamp’s Master at all!” He raised his right arm, displaying the end of the chain wrapped around his wrist. “Mahiru Shirota, you must become my servant. I’ll give the orders now, and you’ll tell Lies what I want him to do.”

“Huh?” was all Mahiru could manage. This was all happening too fast. He thought he’d found an ally.

“I’m afraid you don’t have a choice,” Misono continued. “You must say yes.”

Snow Lily lunged at the Lies pair and took a swipe at them. Fortunately, both of them were able to duck at the last second. Still smiling, Snow Lily readied his scythe for another attack.

“I really would like to resolve this peacefully, if it’s at all possible,” he said. “You’ll be a good boy and play along nicely, won’t you?” He struck again. Sakuya shoved Mahiru out of the way and leaped in the opposite direction. Mahiru’s last order was taking effect. He could feel control of his body slipping away. Snow Lily ran at him, but before he could swing his weapon again, Sakuya landed a strong kick to the blond’s stomach, sending him flying backward, crashing into the bronze statue, and causing him to lose his grip on his scythe. Sakuya caught it in midair and snapped the grip in half. The weapon vanished into a pinkish-violet mist.

Snow Lily’s groan of pain brought Sakuya back to himself as he rushed toward his brother.

“Aniki!” he cried as he knelt down beside the other Servamp. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” Snow Lily simply laughed, despite the small trickle of blood dripping from the side of his head.

“No need to apologize, little flower,” he said. “I’m quite impressed, actually. That’s the first time I’ve seen you really fight back.”
Sakuya shifted his eyes away from his brother. “Yeah, well, I didn’t exactly do it on purpose.” His gaze drifted to Mahiru, who along with Misono watched the display in awe. “Just following orders.”

Misono hummed in thought. “Perhaps you’re not as incompetent as I thought, Shirota,” he said. “Just what did you tell Lies to do in order to get him to fight like that?”

Mahiru blinked a few times before coming up with a response. “His name is Sakuya. And…I ordered him not to let himself die.”

“I see,” said Misono. “So now, when he’s in a life or death situation, he has to fight at his full potential to avoid getting killed. That’s actually rather genius. Very impressive for a commoner.”

“What?!” Mahiru said, obviously annoyed by Misono’s bratty behavior. “Look, obviously, you’re rich, but do you really have to act like such an arrogant prick? How do you expect me to trust you after you showed up out of nowhere and demanded that we obey you?”

“Peasant!” Misono shouted, rising from his chair. “How dare you talk to me that way?!”

Mahiru took Sakuya by the wrist and dragged him toward the doors. “That’s it! Sakuya, we’re leaving!”

“Wait-“ Sakuya started, but Mahiru was having none of it. As he burst through the door, Sakuya switched to his raccoon form and allowed his Eve to carry him down the black-and-white hallway.

And here I thought we’d found an ally in this fight. Dammit!

Misono and Snow Lily stood in the doorway, watching the Lies pair run into the darkness of the night.

“Idiot,” Misono grumbled.

“Well,” said Snow Lily with a contrasting cheeriness, “what shall we do now?”

“Leave them for now,” his Eve answered. “They’ll never find the exit on their own. Then they’ll realize how much they need us.”

Chapter Text

Sakuya lost count of how many doors Mahiru shoved his way through. Mahiru didn’t even bother counting. But eventually, they were at last greeted by the chill of the night air as Mahiru carried his Servamp into some kind of courtyard. There was another fountain in the center and patches of grass and flowers strategically planted along the walkways. However, there was no gate; no way out. The Lies pair was surrounded by walls and windows.

“Man,” said Mahiru. “This place is like one big maze.”

“Yeah, this definitely isn’t the way out,” said Sakuya as he crawled up onto his Eve’s shoulder. “We need to head back inside and find those stairs again.”

“Right.” Mahiru turned halfway back toward the door he had come out of when something caught his eye. There was a group of shadowy figures poised at one of the windows. As Mahiru looked back around the courtyard, each window was suddenly filled with the things. There they stood, unmoving. Mahiru could feel a hundred eyes on him. The air suddenly grew colder. The teen squinted to get a better look at them. They were all…

“Children… Why are there so many?” Mahiru’s eyes widened as realization struck. “They can’t all be Lily’s, can they?!” he shouted. “I know he’s Lust, but that is nuts!”

“No, no, certainly not.” Mahiru jumped as the Servamp of Lust himself appeared behind him. “Those cute kiddos are just my subclasses.”

“Subclasses?” Mahiru parroted dumbly.

“Subclasses are lower-level vampires that have been created by a Servamp,” Snow Lily explained. “Our servants. They follow the orders of the Servamp who created them.” The ever-present smile left the blonde’s face before he continued. “Kuro’s minions have been killing subclasses like these children. They seem to be his first targets. We know of two who were murdered this week alone. It’s possible there are more.”

The door opened, and Misono stumbled into the courtyard, out of breath. It may have simply been a trick of the moonlight, but he looked paler than Mahiru remembered.

“Do you know how to play chess, Mahiru?” he asked.

The brunette faltered at the seemingly random question. It was oddly friendly for someone who had just tried to kill him moments ago, but Mahiru decided to play along. “Uh, yeah,” he answered. “Why?”

“As the game goes on, the number of pieces on the board gets smaller and smaller, but as long as your king survives, you win. It’s unfair, and it’s not how battles should be fought in the real world, either, understand?”

Ah. Mahiru was starting to get where Misono was going with this.

“I don’t want to hide on some throne and be protected,” the purple-haired boy continued. “That’s why I need all the power I can get on my side. I need so much more than I have, and…” He trailed off and collapsed into his chair which had magically appeared behind him. “Tell me,” he said to the other teen. “What do you plan on doing with your strength?”

Mahiru simply furrowed his brows in confusion at the other.

“There’s a single Eve for every Servamp,” Misono said, “and you’re one of them. So what’s driving you? Can you use the power of Lies to achieve your goals?”

What even were Mahiru’s goals? His mind flashed back to the night Ryuusei was attacked by Belkia, and immediately, he knew what he wanted. He wanted to protect those closest to him. His friends, his uncle, if he could, he wanted to use Sakuya’s power to help keep them all safe.

“Mahiru Shirota,” the pink-haired twins spoke, startling the brunette back to reality. “You’ll help this lonesome king, won’t you?” Mahiru lifted his gaze from the girls to Misono, to their “King.” He looked absolutely miserable, his face buried in one hand. Snow Lily stood beside him to offer comfort.

I see now. He is an ally after all. He just doesn’t know how to ask for help. He’s not a bad guy. I just misunderstood his intentions.

Sakuya shifted back into his human form and sat on the rim of the fountain as Mahiru walked over to the distraught Eve of Lust.

“You know,” Mahiru said, “I get it. Simply put, you’re just trying to protect people.” Just like me. Misono’s head shot up to give the other boy a look that screamed both shock and relief. “I don’t think you have to do this alone. Wouldn’t it help if others were by your side? You need allies” As he spoke, the little girls rushed to either side of Misono’s chair. “Misono… Sakuya and I will help you. Not as your servants, but as your friends.” He offered his hand to Misono.

Sakuya and Snow Lily exchanged relieved smiles behind their Eves’ backs. Neither of them was known for being the best fighter of the family, but at least now they had each other.

Misono sighed in defeat. “Okay, I guess,” he said. “If you won’t be a servant, we can try things out this way. It’s not that big a difference.” Snow Lily let out a chuckle, which instantly caught the boy’s attention. “What do you think you’re laughing at, Lily?!” he shouted accusingly as the Servamp of Lust poofed into a butterfly and fluttered out of his reach. “Get back here!”

Sakuya laughed at their antics. “You sure know how to pick them, aniki!”

“By the way, Mahiru,” said Misono, having already given up chasing Snow Lily. “Since you’re new to this, you don’t have a weapon yet, do you?”

“Weapon?”

“Of course! You don’t plan on fighting vampires empty-handed. An Eve has the ability to wield a custom weapon created from their Servamp’s power.”

“What? Seriously?” He shot an accusatory glare at Sakuya. “How come you never told me about this?!”

The green-haired Servamp raised his hands defensively. “I told you, I’m not exactly a fighter,” he said.

Misono scoffed. “What a novice. I suppose I’ll have to teach you everything, won’t I?”

“Yeah!” said Mahiru. “Please do! You’ll be like my mentor!” Misono simply responded with a look of agitation as Mahiru flashed him a grin.

“That day, I found someone who would fight by my side. A great ally.”

______________

“Mahiru?” Tsubaki said as he walked into the small clothing store to find his friend. Along with his friend’s new friend. Sakuya has his furry little head poking out of Mahiru’s book bag. “So, you decided to keep the raccoon after all.”

“Oh! Uh, yeah,” said Mahiru.

“Have you taken him to a vet yet?” asked the black-haired teen. “Raccoons are especially prone to rabies. He might go crazy in the middle of the night and try to bite you!”

“Don’t worry,” Mahiru assured. “He’s perfectly healthy. No crazy biting incidents.” He turned his attention to the table on his left.

Tsubaki shrugged. “If you say so.”

“Ooh!” Mahiru exclaimed, picking up a black-and-white striped wrist band. “I think I’m gonna buy this wrist band.”

“Wh-what?!” said Tsubaki.

“I lost mine a while ago, remember?”

“You can’t buy that one!” The red-eyed boy seemed almost frantic.

“Why not?”

“Because… because…” Unable to find an excuse, Tsubaki simply groaned in frustration and reached into his own book bag, pulling out a paper bag and offering it to his friend. “Here!” His cheeks went slightly red in embarrassment.

Mahiru took the bag. Inside was a wrist band identical to the one he had just picked out, and identical to the one he had lost. “For me?”

“Plot twist~” Tsubaki said weakly. “After you told me you’d lost your old one, I found one just like it and figured I’d take the initiative and buy it for you. I was planning to give it to you later.”

“Tsubaki…”

Tsubaki’s face reddened further. How shameful to have been caught in his lie like this! “I know it’s a little out of character for me to just give gifts out of the blue like this, but don’t make a big deal out of it!”

Mahiru smiled. “I won’t. But thank you, Tsubaki.”

Tsubaki flung an arm around the other’s shoulders. “Well, that plot’s ruined. I feel dumb now.” After a second, he added, “I didn’t say stop.”

Moments later, the two were walking home together in the late night rain, umbrellas open above them. Mahiru was trailing slightly behind when he heard a strange noise. It sounded like a low growl, but it was no animal Mahiru had ever heard of. He stopped and looked around for the source, but there was no one on the sidewalk but him and Tsubaki. Noticing his friend’s distress, Tsubaki stopped as well and turned to look at Mahiru.

“Something wrong?” he asked.

“It’s nothing,” Mahiru answered after a few seconds.

“Are you sure? You know strange things have been happening around here lately~”

If only you knew…

“Hey, Tsubaki,” Mahiru said, striding over to the other teen, “this is out of nowhere, but let me know if anything weird happens to you, okay? I’ll take care of it for you.”

Tsubaki’s crimson eyes widened at the request. That was certainly an odd reaction for Mahiru. Usually, the brunette would be whacking him on the head or scolding him for trying to make him believe such silly stories.

Something was wrong. There was some dramatic irony happening here, and Tsubaki didn’t like it.

“Mahiru…” he said cautiously. “You’ve been acting a bit…out of character lately. Are you alright? Did something happen to you?” With his free hand, he held onto Mahiru’s wrist. From the outside, it looked like an attempt at a comforting gesture, but there was a hidden danger that Mahiru could feel in his bones where Tsubaki’s icy fingers wrapped around him. “You know you can talk to me about anything, right?” he asked, his camellia-red eyes boring into Mahiru’s. Though it felt more like a demand than a question. “I’m always up for a good story.”
The look in Tsubaki’s eyes told Mahiru that he knew something. Everything. But that was impossible. Ripping his arm free, perhaps a bit more violently than he intended, Mahiru placed his hand on Tsubaki’s shoulder.

“Nothing’s going on with me!” he said and gave his friend what he hoped was a reassuring smile.

Sorry to frighten you, Tsubaki. But I’ll be fine.

Seemingly content with Mahiru’s answer, Tsubaki rushed off in the direction of his house, waving behind him and throwing a, “See you later!” at Mahiru.

“In that moment, I was happy about how things were going. I now controlled a power that could keep people safe. But…”

As Tsubaki continued on his way home alone, he absentmindedly scrolled through his phone, completely unaware of the shadowy figure creeping up behind him until it was too late. The creature lunged, and Tsubaki’s umbrella fell to the cement.

“…Things don’t always turn out how you think they will.”

Chapter Text

“Lies, I’m astounded by your laziness,” said Misono. He and Mahiru were seated at a large dining room table while Sakuya and Snow Lily stood obediently next to their Eves. “You haven’t even given your Eve a weapon yet.”

The green-haired vampire averted his eyes. “I…didn’t see the need,” he said. “I didn’t think we’d get caught up in a war like this.”

“That’s no excuse!” said the purple-haired boy, causing Sakuya to flinch. “You should know that your mere presence would attract danger! If not by other vampires, then by hunters!”

“So,” Mahiru interjected, “Sakuya’s supposed to give me the weapon?” He looked up at the Servamp beside him. “How does that work?”

“Lily walked me through the process. It’s…a little difficult to explain.”

Great. Mahiru hated complicated. “There’s still a lot I don’t know about vampires,” he said. “But what I do know is there are things I want to protect. I don’t want to just stand by doing nothing only to regret it later on.”

Sakuya was beginning to look nervous. “But…do you really need a weapon for that?” he asked.

“It would definitely make things easier. Now quit stalling.” He turned to Misono. “So, what do I need to do?”

“Close your eyes,” Misono replied. Mahiru hesitantly obliged.

Sakuya sighed. I guess we’re really doing this… “Just… Keep in mind, I’ve never actually…done this before… I don’t know what you’ll see in here.”

“In where?” Mahiru asked. “What are you going to d-!” A loud pop was heard. Mahiru’s eyes shot open. He was no longer in Misono’s mansion. In fact, he didn’t know where he was.

The whole world around him stretched out into an endless pitch black. Trees and flowers of all sorts stood and floated all around him, like chalk scribbles on a blackboard. They looked like they were right next to him and miles away at the same time. There were words scrawled all around the air. Most of it was illegible, but he could make out things like coward, liar, and runaway. He blinked several times, trying to get rid of the grainy watercolor filter that seemed to be placed directly over his eyeballs, but it was a fruitless effort.

“Happy birthday,” said a voice from right in front of him. It sounded distorted, unnerving; pitched both too high and too low. Before the boy stood what looked like Sakuya’s raccoon form, but also…not. Its body was green. It had little sakura flowers tucked along its tail. Where its head should have been was a large, pink lotus flower. It was up on its hind legs, its front paws holding a party popper. So that was the source of the noise.

Mahiru blinked again. Instead of the creature disappearing, a grassy pathway lined with candles appeared behind it.

“Happy birthday,” the raccoon repeated. “Welcome to the Inner of Lies.” Lowering itself to all fours, the creature turned toward a mess of scribbled trees. “Come, come. This way.” It scurried off into the woods, Mahiru trailing behind. “You’ve come for a gift, right? Your very own birthday gift.”

“It’s not my birthday,” said Mahiru. “But you’re talking about a weapon, right? If that’s the case, then yes.” The creature continued down the candle-lit path through the chalkboard-drawing trees, flowers, and mushrooms. “Who are you, anyway?”

“I am part of Sakuya. I am his strength and his weakness. I am his bravery and his cowardice. I am all the stories he has told and all the truths he keeps hidden from the world. You may call me Shinji.”

Mahiru could see a large pile of presents up ahead. As soon as he laid his eyes upon it, however, a tangle of thorn bush branches sprung up from the ground, blocking off the rest of the path, and Shinji whipped around to face the boy.

“Must we fight?” said the raccoon. “Do you really need a weapon now? We could always just stay in here. This forest is strange, but it is nice, no? I will tell you stories, as many as you want.”

“Shinji, I know Sakuya doesn’t like fighting, but if there’s something more that I can do to protect my friends, then I’m going to do it. If I can fight for them, then I want to fight.”

Shinji was silent for a moment before saying, “Very well,” and lowering the barrier, giving Mahiru access to the gifts. Shinji scampered over to the pile. “Now comes the choice of fate.” He stood on his hind legs again and gestured to the presents. “Choose whichever one you like.”

“Out of this mountain?!” said Mahiru.

Shinji reached into the pile and pulled out a birthday cake with the boy’s name written on it in icing. “Happy birthday, Mahiru,” he said once again. “It may not be your true birthday, but this occasion will serve as a rebirth for you. Not the day you were born as a human, but the day you truly became an Eve. Now you will obtain your very own power. You’ll become an adult with the ability to protect.” He put the cake down beside him. “But choose wisely. You cannot return here once you have made your choice.”

Mahiru gulped. Sakuya was right, this was complicated.

“No matter what you choose,” Shinji continued, “the end will be the same. But how you get there is entirely up to you. After all, it is not the destination that matters, but the journey. What journey will you take, I wonder? Your choice will reflect who you are.”

Who I am? “Then in that case,” said Mahiru, “I’ll pick the simplest-looking one.” He reached toward the gift that was wrapped in plain, white paper with a single, red ribbon tied around it. It was perfect. No complex patterns, no fancy wrapping tricks. Once his hand touched the box, it burst open, and Mahiru was blinded by a green light.

When he opened his eyes, he was back in Misono’s dining room. There was a weight in his hands. He looked down to see...

“A shovel…?” Sakuya asked.

In Mahiru’s hands was a black shovel with the same green glow as Sakuya’s vines and branches.

“A fitting weapon for a commoner,” Misono commented dismissively. The shovel jumped out of Mahiru’s hands and flew around the room.

“Come to think of it,” said Sakuya, “you did attack me with a mop when we first met. Do you usually use typical housework items as weapons?”

The brunette tore his eyes away from the shovel to glare at his Servamp. “Definitely not!” The shovel flew at him and shrunk down, twisting itself around his wrist before disappearing in a shower of green sparks. There was now a black mark imprinted into his skin like a tattoo. It looked similar to the thorny vines he’d seen Sakuya summon before. Recalling his run-in with Tsubaki earlier, Mahiru pulled his new wrist band out of his pocket and used it to cover the mark.

So, this is my weapon. Will I be able to fight with this?

——————

“You’re not supposed to return a plate once you’ve touched it, moron,” Kuro said lazily as Belkia attempted to put his half-finished plate of sushi onto the conveyor belt.

“Seriously?! Japanese culture is so nitpicky!” said the pink-haired magician, who had finally regained the energy to return to his human form. Honestly, he was so much less of a pain when Kuro could just stuff him in his coat, but there was nothing he could do now. Setting his plate back down in front of him, Belkia turned to the Servamp. “By the way, Kuronya, where’s that storyteller at? He’s awfully late, isn’t he?”

At that moment, the doors to the sushi shop slid open, revealing the storyteller himself.

“Speak of the devil,” Kuro said, turning his head to look at his other subclass. The boy was dragging a bloody body along with him. No doubt, the poor sap was dead. The other’s face was covered with his blood.

“Welco-“ the shop owner cut himself off when he saw what the new customer had in his right hand. The other patrons (there were only two, what with it being so late) quickly excused themselves and fled the restaurant.

“So, Kuro-san,” said the newcomer, “what did you need?”

“First,” said the blue-haired vampire, pointing nonchalantly to the corpse, “explain that.”

“It seems he was some kind of scout,” answered the other.

“Someone’s subclass?” asked Kuro.

“No idea.” He dropped the body to the floor, letting the rest of his blood spill onto the tile.

Kuro sighed. “You have to stop these random killing sprees. If someone from your school finds out you’re a vampire, it’ll be a huge pain. I thought you didn’t want anyone knowing you’re a vampire.”

“Ah, but wouldn’t that be such an interesting plot twist? A poor soul, fooled into thinking I’m their friend, catching me soaked with someone else’s blood! Running off and telling all our classmates there’s a monster in their midst!” He burst out laughing at the thought.

“Seriously…” said the Servamp of Sloth with a yawn. “I don’t get you, Tsubaki…”

Chapter Text

“Power of Lies, ACTIVATE!” Mahiru shouted, striking a pose that wouldn’t look out of place in a bad shounen anime. Misono was watching the pathetic display from his chair. Snow Lily and Sakuya had grown bored of Mahiru’s failed attempts to summon his shovel and were occupying themselves by playing tag in their animal forms.

“GAH!” Mahiru shouted in frustration. “Why won’t it come back out?!”

“This is a problem,” said Misono. “You’re going to need to be able to summon your weapon at will before you can even begin learning how to fight.”

Mahiru turned toward his Servamp, who was currently leaning his front paws against the wall, Snow Lily having unfairly flown too high for him to catch. “Sakuya, isn’t there some kind of trick to this?”

“Huh?” said the raccoon. “Oh, I don’t know. Like I said, I’ve never had an Eve before. All of this is a big first for me, too.” His attention fell back to his brother as Snow Lily poofed into his human form.

“Mahiru,” said the blonde, “why don’t you try imagining exactly why you wanted this power?”

“Your Servamp lacks the will to fight because you lack resolve,” Misono added.

“So, Lily tries to strip all the time because you secretly want to?!” Mahiru asked the other teen in shock. Misono immediately went on the defensive.

“No! That’s just because he’s a damn pervert!” he shouted. Content with that response, Mahiru looked down at the mark on his wrist.

Why did I want this power…?

His mind once again flashed to his friends. Ryuusei, Koyuki, Tsubaki. He wanted this power so he could keep them safe, even in the face of dangers that were beyond human. They were more than just companions. Aside from his uncle, they were the closest thing to family Mahiru had. The mere thought of anything happening to any of them made him sick to his stomach. He explained as much to Misono and Snow Lily. A glimmer of understanding lit up the other boy’s violet eyes.

“I’ll introduce you to them sometime!” said Mahiru. “Tsubaki first! He’s been my friend the longest, after all.”

“No,” said Misono. “You’ll just get them involved. The only thing that connects the two of us is Kuro. Introducing them to me would only put them on his radar.”

“But,” Mahiru interjected, “there’s no reason friends of friends can’t be friends.” Misono’s eyes widened, as if that thought had never occurred to him. “I want to protect everyone important to me; friends and family. No matter the threat, I know we’ll be able to face it together!” He turned to Sakuya, who was back in his human form. “Right, Sakuya?”

The green-haired vampire started as the spotlight was suddenly placed on him. “D-don’t rally me out of nowhere like that! I wasn’t ready!” He nervously played with the curl of his hair and averted his eyes. “I mean, it’s not like I have much of a choice. Even if I didn’t agree with your motivations, I have to follow your orders.”

“Are you…really that dependent?” Mahiru asked. The mark on his wrist flashed green, and Mahiru felt a slight tingle shoot up his arm before it faded. “Just now, was that…?”

“Ah,” Misono said, “that was…” he trailed off before falling slightly forward, eyes shut.

“Huh?” said Mahiru. “Misono?”

“Oh dear, it’s already this late?” Snow Lily said with a chuckle. “Misono always falls asleep at 9:00 sharp every night.”

“How old is he again?!”

“Unfortunately, we’ll have to wrap up for today,” said the Servamp of Lust.

“Yeah,” said Mahiru, “I understand. Thanks for helping me out. Misono, too.”

“Don’t mention it,” said Snow Lily.

“Let’s go home, Sakuya.”

Sakuya nodded and approached his Eve. He hugged Snow Lily on his way. “Bye, aniki,” he said. “We’ll be back soon.”

“You’d better be, little flower,” said the blonde, petting the grassy mess on top of the other vampire’s head. “It’s been far too long since I last saw you.”

Mahiru noticed Sakuya tense at that. Without another word, Sakuya stepped away from his older brother, switched to his raccoon form, and climbed onto Mahiru’s shoulder. Both of them were mostly silent on the way back to their apartment. The only exchange was Mahiru asking why he seemed so tense at Lily’s parting words, to which Sakuya replied that it was nothing. However, there was something else weighing on Mahiru’s mind. A question he needed to ask if he wanted to sleep that night.

“Hey, Sakuya?” he asked the once again humanoid vampire whe they were safely inside his apartment. Sakuya hummed in response.
“You’re the Servamp of Lies, right?”

“Uh, yeah,” said Sakuya, brows furrowing in confusion. “I thought that was pretty obvious by now.”

Without looking at his Servamp, Mahiru asked, “Have you told any lies to me?”

Sakuya was silent for a few seconds before responding with a simple, “Yes.”

Finally, Mahiru looked at him. His red eyes were glued to the floor. “Look, Sakuya,” Mahiru started, “I know it’s probably in your nature to lie, but if we’re going to work together, I need to be able to trust you. So…” He took a few steps toward the vampire, still keeping some distance between them. “I’m giving you another order. You can still lie to everyone else, but from now on, you’re not allowed to lie to me.”

Just like with his last order, Sakuya’s eyes lit up with his signature green color, and a wail left his throat. It only lasted a moment, and when Sakuya calmed down, he fell to his knees, his hair hiding his eyes from the human. A bitter chuckle left his lips.

“You’re cruel, Mahiru,” he said. He raised his head, his eyes watery and his smile broken. “What do you want to know?”

“How much do you really know about Kuro?” Mahiru asked.

Sakuya sighed before answering. “I wasn’t lying when I said I never met him, but I did hear of him before our fight. I only know what my siblings have told me. Apparently, he grew distant after I was made. Just up and vanished. The next time anyone in the family heard about him, he’d killed our creator. Old Child told me he was spouting some rhetoric about ‘seven being enough’ and ‘we were mistakes.’ After that, he disappeared again. That’s all I know, for real.”

Mahiru nodded, satisfied with Sakuya’s answer. Cautiously, he approached the other and squatted down to be at eye level with him before wrapping him in a hug. “I’m sorry I had to do this to you, Sakuya,” he said.

“No, I get it,” Sakuya responded, returning the hug. “Like you said, we need to be able to trust each other, and me constantly spitting bullshit at you isn’t gonna accomplish that.” He pulled away to give his Eve a genuine smile. “Now go to sleep. You have school tomorrow.”

Mahiru rolled his eyes and gave a sarcastic, “Okay, mom,” but obliged nonetheless. With his worries about Sakuya’s honestly quelled, he was able to rest fairly easily.

Chapter Text

“Huh?” asked Mahiru. “Tsubaki didn’t show up today, either?”

Koyuki and Ryuusei looked at each other before looking back at their friend.

“It’s unusual for him to miss so many days in a row,” said Koyuki.

“Maybe he’s stuck in bed with the flu or something?” Ryuusei suggested.

“I tried calling him yesterday, but he didn’t answer,” Mahiru added before reaching into his book bag. “I even finished this for him, too.” He pulled out the costume he’d made for Tsubaki for the upcoming school festival. The other two marveled at Mahiru’s handiwork. The outfit was a creative blend of “butler” and “waiter”; perfect for the maid/butler cafe they had planned for the event. “I guess I’ll just have to drop it off at his house after school and have him try it on there,” Mahiru said when Koyuki and Ryuusei were finished applauding him.

——————

The sun was nearly set as Mahiru exited the store and jogged down the sidewalk in the direction of Tsubaki’s place. Sakuya crawled onto his arm to peek into the bag.

“Ooh, you got chips?” the raccoon said, one of his front paws reaching for the snack. Mahiru swatted it away with his free hand.

“No, that’s for Tsubaki!” said the brunet.

“Tsubaki’s the one who always carries those sunglasses with him, right?” asked Sakuya. “I’m not sure he’d get along with aniki’s Eve all that well. He seems a little…over the top.”

“Still,” said Mahiru, “I probably should’ve asked him what happened last time I saw him. I haven’t been such a great friend lately, have I? I remember ever since we were little, he would turn everything into a story. It really helped me to deal with my own grief, to think of everything as a storybook. I think he started saying he wanted to be a writer before we hit double digits.”

“That young, huh?”

“Yeah. We’ve known each other since elementary school.” Something flickered in Mahiru’s brain. Elementary… No, that wasn’t right. It wasn’t that early, was it? “Or maybe it was middle school…”

Sakuya seemed to notice something was off. “Mahiru?” He asked, his little black brows furrowing with worry. But the boy ignored him.

“Tsubaki’s an orphan, just like me.” Another flicker. How did Tsubaki’s parents…

“Mahiru…?” Sakuya tried again.

“I…can’t remember how Tsubaki’s parents passed away,” Mahiru said. Isn’t that something a best friend would know? Especially one who was in the same situation? The loss of their parents was how they first bonded after all…

Wasn’t it…?

Another flicker, this one persisting as Mahiru slowed to a stop. Where was he even going?

“Where did Tsubaki live again…?” He shook his head, and the flickering stopped. “What am I saying? I’ve been to his house hundreds of times!” Another long series of flickers. “When… When was the last time I was there…?”

He closed his eyes and sifted through his memories of Tsubaki, but they were all distorted. The further back he went, the more Tsubaki’s image looked less like a person and more like a static-y mess of nothing. Why couldn’t he remember? They’d been best friends since childhood.

…Right?

RIGHT??

“Mahiru?! What’s wrong? Talk to me!” Sakuya was crying out for him, but Mahiru could barely hear him over the pounding of his own head. The flickering turned to a feeling of electricity; like his brain was frying inside his skull. He pressed his palm against his forehead, but it did nothing to help.

Do I…really even know Tsubaki at all?

Mahiru was finally pulled out of his head when a hand grabbed his shoulder. He whipped around, heart pounding, only to see Tsubaki standing there, concern clear on his face.

“Oh, Tsubaki,” he said, breathing out a sigh of relief. “It’s just you.”

“Mahiru, are you feeling alright?” asked the black-haired boy. “You seemed to be having quite the internal monologue there. Standing around out here this late, stuck in your own head, you might find yourself in a dangerous conflict.”

“I should be asking you if you’re alright!” Mahiru scolded. “You haven’t come to school in days! Everyone’s worried about you!”

“Ah, that,” said Tsubaki. “Well, you know how I said there are vampires wandering around this area?” The street lights flickered on as the last sliver of sunlight disappeared behind the horizon. “As chance would have it, I was attacked recently!”

“What?!”

“A kind character came to my rescue, however. But I’ve been too frightened by the ordeal to leave my house!” Mahiru and Sakuya simply stared at him, wide-eyed, before Tsubaki burst into laughter. “Pretty great story, huh?” he asked through his mirth. Mahiru promptly smashed the bag of food over his head.

“I should’ve known!” Mahiru said. “Here, I brought you some food. I assume you’ve been too busy ‘perfecting your story’ to eat dinner, right?” He softened his expression as Tsubaki rubbed his head. “Seriously, if something ever actually happens to you, no one will believe you.” A shriek in the distance cut through the early night air. Both teens turned their heads toward the source. “A scream?”

Without warning, Tsubaki grabbed Mahiru’s wrist and started pulling him down the sidewalk, causing him to drop the food. “This way!” he said. Mahiru had never heard him sound so serious before. Did Tsubaki somehow know what was going on?

“Whoa, wait!” Mahiru said. “Where are we going?!” Tsubaki was silent the whole time. He rounded a corner, leading the two of them into an alleyway.

“It’s alright, Mahiru,” Tsubaki spoke at last. “We’re friends, after all. You trust me, right?”

“Tsubaki…” The black-haired boy let go of his wrist once they reached a dead end, blocked by a chain-link fence. Tsubaki took a few steps toward the middle of the clearing, his back to Mahiru.

“You didn’t answer my question,” he said. “Do you trust me?” Mahiru wasn’t given a chance to answer. “If you trusted me, you wouldn’t have kept such a major plot point from me…”

“You’re acting weird,” Mahiru said. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“The truth is, Mahiru,” Tsubaki said, “I’ve been hiding a big part of my story from you, as well. My real story.”

With no time to react, Mahiru and Sakuya were suddenly wrapped up in a tangle of strings. They both struggled, but it was useless. “What?! What is this?!”

A pair of familiar-looking swords dropped down from above, narrowly missing Sakuya and lodging themselves into the ground. And from the rooftops… That laugh. Mahiru remembered that laugh.

“Let’s hear some applause!” came the voice of the pink-haired magician. “The Spectacle of Skewering begins now!” Belkia leaped down to land beside Tsubaki, who turned around to face his friend, a sinister smile on his face.

“Mahiru, I did tell you there were vampires lurking about, didn’t I? I gave you all the foreshadowing you could have possibly needed, but you’re just…so dense. So now that we’ve reached the climax, here’s a plot twist that will bring it all together for you!”

“Mahiru…” Sakuya said. “Your friend is Kuro’s subclass!”

Chapter Text

Mahiru couldn’t believe it. It had to be another prank. A dream. There was no way this was happening! He’d known Tsubaki for years! They were best friends!

“Mahiru,” said Tsubaki, “do you ever get the feeling that the world was created only five minutes ago?”

“Huh…?”

“‘Impossible!’ you cry. ‘I have memories of our past!’ Buuuut what if those memories were simply planted in your brain a mere five minutes ago? What if our friendship was only one chapter long, and all of your memories of the chapters before it were fake? How can you prove something like that to be false? That’s impossible.”

“What are you even saying?” Mahiru asked. Tsubaki had a tendency to be cryptic, but now he was deliberately messing with Mahiru’s head, he was sure of it.

“What did I say to you after your mother passed away?” Tsubaki asked. “Think back. Back to that chapter of your story. Can you remember?” The wicked smile on the raven-haired boy’s face grew. “Was I even there?”

Mahiru tried. He did remember. He remembered every detail of the day after his mother’s death. He remembered Ryuusei inviting him to play soccer with him and Koyuki. Just the three of them. Tsubaki wasn’t there. He wasn’t in any of Mahiru’s childhood memories.

“So, tell me, Mahiru,” Tsubaki said as he slid a katana out from one of the sleeves of his uniform jacket. “Just how much of our friendship was a fairy tale?!” He lunged for Mahiru, katana at the ready. Sakuya transformed into his human form. The rapid growth of his body snapped the strings holding him captive, and he was able to leap in front of his Eve to take Tsubaki’s sword straight through the chest.

“Sakuya!” Mahiru shouted. Tsubaki withdrew his katana and leaped backward in time for Belkia to launch himself into the air and bring his broadswords down on the Servamp’s spine, running him through and pinning him to the concrete. Mahiru was unable to even react to Sakuya’s blood splattering all over his face and clothing as he kept his eyes on Tsubaki. The raven-haired teen performed a backflip to keep himself clean of the carnage.

Tsubaki just stabbed Sakuya. He was aiming for me. Tsubaki has been killing people?!

This was too much. Everything was happening way too fast. There was no way this was real!

“THIS IS ALL JUST ANOTHER ONE OF YOUR TWISTED STORIES, RIGHT TSUBAKI?!” Mahiru shouted. “YOU’RE NOT ACTUALLY A VAMPIRE!”

Tsubaki landed gracefully on the pavement and grinned at the brunet, baring his fangs and shattering Mahiru’s hopes.

“Everything would be so much easier for you if that were the case, wouldn’t it?” he said, his tone condescending; as if he were talking to a child. “Humans will always cling to the stories that fit best with their world view. We vampires take advantage of that mentality and use it to hypnotize humans.”

Suddenly, Mahiru could recall a slightly earlier memory of Tsubaki. Tsubaki’s image was fuzzy, and his voice sounded like it was coming from a broken speaker within Mahiru’s own head, and he knew this must have been one of the fake memories Tsubaki was referring to.

It was some unspecified day in middle school. Most everyone had cleared out to go home for the afternoon. Mahiru and Tsubaki were loitering in the hallway. Tsubaki had finally opened up to Mahiru about the loss of his parents.

“I’m an orphan, too!” Mahiru said. “Maybe you could come over to my house for dinner sometime! That way, neither of us will have to be alone.”

“You were such an easy target,” said Tsubaki. “Your desire was so strong. You wanted so desperately to connect with someone who understood your pain.” The smile fell from his face. “I know how badly you want to believe this is all an elaborate joke. Unfortunately, this story isn’t a comedy. It never was. This is a pure horror show.”

Mahiru merely blinked in response. He was still processing everything. He didn’t want to believe it, but the fangs, the red eyes. Really, Mahiru should have known from the start. There was always something…off about Tsubaki, but he could never quite put his finger on it. Now it was all clear.

“Mahiru…” Tsubaki cast his eyes downward. He almost looked like he was about to cry. “Why did it have to be you? If you hadn’t picked up that raccoon… If you hadn’t spun your own story about it being an ordinary animal… Our story could have stayed on the path I had set for it. I could still be playing the role of your best friend right now. Tomorrow. For a thousand tomorrows. But one unforeseen plot twist has changed the entire course of the tale.”

“I just didn’t want to get you involved with vampires!” Mahiru shouted. “How was I supposed to know you were one of them?!”

“QUIET!!” Tsubaki screamed. Mahiru flinched. He’d never heard the other raise his voice like that before. “I’ve had enough of your stories! Enough circumventing! If you don’t trust me, then just tell me! Stop trying to spin me around with your fiction!” The black-haired vampire strode over to a discarded, broken mirror. “There’s an art to telling a good story. Lying to the person who was supposed to be your best friend is not how that art should be used.” He placed a hand on the cracked glass. His hair hid his eyes from Mahiru’s sight. “I never took you for a storyteller, Mahiru. But now that you’ve shown me your true character, I can never take another word out of your mouth as anything but pure fable.”

Mahiru winced as Tsubaki dragged his nails across the glass, adding four more scratches to the already heavily damaged surface. “It hurts,” Tsubaki continued. “To know I’ve been spun in a tale of someone else’s making. My heart is in shards. Broken and thrown away, just like this mirror.” For whatever reason, the twisted grin from before spread across his face once again as he stared Mahiru dead in the eye. “Would you like to hear one last funny story?! Nine times out of ten, people can tell when they’re being lied to! Plot twist: I knew from the beginning that little pet of yours wasn’t really a raccoon! But I wanted so badly to keep my own plotline going that I feigned ignorance! But now, you’ve left me no choice! It’s time for a new chapter!”

Still scratching the mirror, Tsubaki burst into a fit of maniacal laughter. Mahiru looked to Sakuya, who still lay before him, impaled and bleeding on the ground. He knew what had to be done. It didn’t matter that Tsubaki was his best friend. If he was taking innocent lives, he had to be stopped.

“Sakuya-“

“Don’t bother…” the green-haired vampire choked out.

“What?!”

“Remember what Misono said…about your resolve… Servamps consume not only the blood of our Eves but the resolve that flows with it…” He paused to cough up more blood. “I can only be as strong as your resolve…and right now, I can’t tell…if you want to kill Tsubaki…or protect him… Drinking your blood now…wouldn’t do anything…”

It’s because I still see him as a friend, Mahiru realized. I wanted to protect my friends, but… Tsubaki is… I don’t have the resolve to fight him. This is it. There’s nothing I can do! Sakuya… I’m sorry!

Chapter Text

Suddenly, the strings holding Mahiru hostage were severed. In the same instance, Belkia’s swords were yanked out of Sakuya’s spine. Standing between the Lies pair and the subclasses was…

“Misono?”

“Stand back, Shirota,” said the purple-haired boy. Snow Lily stood beside him, Belkia’s swords in hand, a black chain with a magenta glow connecting his neck to Misono’s wrist. “I’ll handle this!”

“Hold on a second!” Mahiru shouted. “You can’t! That’s Tsubaki! That’s my friend!”

Tsubaki flashed Misono a sinister grin. “That’s right,” he said. “I’m his best friend in the whole world! So, what will you do with me?”

Misono furrowed his brows. “This guy is one of your friends? What a shame. Seems we won’t get along after all, vampire.”

Tsubaki merely laughed in response.

“I’m not very good at fighting,” Snow Lily confessed as Belkia’s swords disintegrated into pink mist, “but I’ll do my best. For your viewing pleasure.” Snow Lily summoned his scythe as Belkia pulled two more swords from his hat. While the two of them did battle, Misono and Tsubaki were staring each other down. Tsubaki had his katana at the ready, his sunglasses pushed up to hide his eyes.

“This is a terrible plan,” the black-haired vampire taunted. “Do you really think you can take me down yourself? Your arrogance will be your fatal flaw!”

It was obvious the subclass was just trying to aggravate him. Misono would be an idiot if he took the bait. “What was your aim in getting so close to Shirota?” he asked. “What was your mission?” There must have been some kind of ulterior motive. But why go after Mahiru so long before he was even involved with vampires?

Tsubaki was taken aback by that. But after a moment, he chuckled. “You sound like the jealous lover who just found out his other half has been cheating on him! Why do you care so much? You just met him yesterday!”

“When we met doesn’t matter,” Misono retorted. “It was what he said that matters! He called me friend!”

Tsubaki’s smile fell for a moment, a pensive look forming on his face. “Friend, huh?” The manic grin was back, as though it had never left Tsubaki’s face. “Another fable, huh, Mahiru?! You’re really outdoing me, here! How childish can you be to believe the utter fairy tale people call ‘friendship?!’”

Misono said nothing as the vampire burst into crazed laugher. Instead, he raised the arm that linked him to his Servamp. The manacle around his wrist began to spark.

“Oh?” said the black-haired vampire, tilting his head. “A turn of events? What do you have in store for me?”

“Not for you,” said Misono. “For your buddy over there.” He gestured with his head to Belkia, who was in the heat of battle with Snow Lily. “You think I’d put so much distance between myself and Lily for no reason?”

Belkia leaped into the air as Snow Lily swung his scythe, flying over the Servamp of Lust and straight toward Misono.

“Some applause, if you please!” announced the pink-haired magician as he removed his hat. “Prepare to be amazed by the Duke of Skewering, Belkia!” He reached into his hat and pulled out a massive box littered with slots meant for a sword stunt. ”And his Magic Murder Box! Let’s impale the boy with the stupid cowlick!”

Misono didn’t budge, unfazed by the threat of death.

“Watch closely, Shirota,” he said. “This is one way I can use my power. If an enemy target comes in between Lily and I, this weapon activates.” From the ground, a flash of magenta light sprung up around Belkia, taking the form of…

“Misono’s chair?!” Mahiru exclaimed. “You’re kidding me! That’s his weapon?!”

Belkia struggled as claws made of pink light fastened him to the throne. “What the hell is this thing?!”

Misono and Lily spoke in perfect unison as the Servamp readied his scythe.

“Good night and sweet dreams.”

Lily placed the blade of his weapon under the magician’s chin, his serene smile looking terrifyingly out of place for this apparent beheading.

“Have a good dream~!” he sing-songed before slicing his scythe through Belkia’s neck.

“One down,” said Misono as the pink-haired vampire fell to the ground. Mahiru screamed out of instinct, but upon closer inspection, he saw that Belkia’s head was still attached to his body. In fact, there wasn’t even any blood.

“Am I going crazy or… It looked like you chopped his head off,” said the brunette.

Snow Lily turned his attention from Tsubaki to face Mahiru. “My weapon is only designed to destroy the mind, not the body. Much like our Little Flower, I’m out of practice, but it’s good to know we can still put up a fight. Misono really wanted to show off for you, Mahiru.”

“Quiet!” shouted the violet-haired Eve before turning his attention back to Tsubaki. “It’s unfortunate. Shirota was so excited to introduce me to his friends. You most of all.”

Tsubaki had dropped his manic expression at some point of witnessing his partner be felled by the Lust pair. “He…really wanted to introduce us?” he asked. “I see… I wish we could have stayed friends, even if only for a little while longer. Even a week would have been fine. That way, I could have gone to the school festival. Perhaps then we could have been friends as well, Misono Alicein. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the role I was written for.”

Misono’s eyes widened. Tsubaki really did miss his friend, didn’t he?

“Misono!” Snow Lily called out. “Do not let him distract you!”

“Mahiru,” said Tsubaki, ignoring the blonde, “I wonder what your new friend’s intentions are. It sounds to me like he wants us to fight. I didn’t take him for an action type.”

This isn’t right, Misono thought. Friends don’t hurt their friends’ companions. The chain connecting him to Snow Lily vanished, sending the Servamp into a panic.

“What are you doing?!” he cried. As he made to rush toward his Eve, he noticed that Belkia’s body had disappeared. “Where’d he go?”

A shadow appeared behind Snow Lily. Before he could react, a blade sliced through his leg, cutting it clean off just below the knee.

“Aniki!” Sakuya cried out. He tried to run to the other Servamp, but as soon as he got to his feet, he fell right back to the ground. Between Mahiru’s lack of resolve and the wounds on his back, he was severely weakened. Useless.

Just like I always have been.

Belkia swung back and forth, suspended by more strings.

“I’m the Grand Duke of Skewering, Belkia,” spoke a voice that was clearly not his. It was too feminine. “Looks like something’s wrong with your leg!” Belkia’s arm was pulled up to show off Snow Lily’s severed leg impaled on one of his swords.

“Those strings…” said Snow Lily. “Who’s moving you?”

Before he could get any response out of the puppeteer, Tsubaki surged forward and brought his katana down, slicing a large gash into Misono’s face.

“Misono!!” cried Snow Lily as he leaped to catch his Eve.

“Oh, I may have forgotten to mention,” said Tsubaki. “There’s another character in this scene.”

On the other end of the strings, a young woman with short, white hair and red eyes, dressed up like a nurse, adjusted the strings attached to her toes. “It’s difficult to impersonate the strange way Belkia talks,” she said through the string held between her teeth. “It’s a problem…”

“Tsubaki…” said Mahiru. “Why are you doing this to us?! What the hell happened to you?! I thought maybe the three of us could be friends. Why ruin that? You can stop this!”

“Shirota…” came Misono’s voice, weak and strained. Blood was dripping from his mouth. “Did I…do something out of line…? I just wanted…to protect my new friend…”

Mahiru stood and looked Misono in the eye. “You weren’t out of line!” he said. “You were just trying to do the right thing!” He clenched his fist. He needed to do something! He didn’t care what Sakuya said! He didn’t care if Sakuya didn’t want to fight! He could do it without him!

Or so he thought. Until Tsubaki had the blade of his katana pressed to Mahiru’s throat, his free hand holding the brunet’s arms behind his back.

“That’s not how this works, Mahiru,” he said. “Just like there are rules to storytelling, there are rules to being a subclass. The more time I spent with you and the others, the drier my throat would get. My cravings would get so bad that I’d considered killing one of you on several occasions. That’s the role I was written for. The role all vampires were written for. So, Mahiru, I hope you understand now…” He removed his sword before shoving Mahiru to the ground, holding him down with his foot.

“This is where your story ends!”

Chapter Text

“Still telling fables, Tsubaki?”

That voice made the black-haired vampire freeze. There was no way… She’s been dead ever since… The bomb… The house… The fire… He could faintly feel her hand over his, holding the katana steady so he wouldn’t drop it. Her other hand carded through his hair like it did all those years ago.

When he snapped out of his shock enough to move, he lifted his foot off of Mahiru’s head to whip himself around and face her, but just as suddenly as she had appeared, she was gone. He looked around for any trace of her. Nothing.

While Tsubaki was distracted, Sakuya quietly stumbled over to Mahiru.

“Let’s go,” he whispered. “While he’s not looking. Now’s our chance.”

“Wait, what about your wounds?” asked Mahiru.

“They’re mostly healed now. Come on. He won’t be distracted forever.”

Mahiru glared at his Servamp as he stood. How could he be such a coward?! Kuro’s subclasses hurt Misono and Snow Lily! Something had to be done!

“No way, Sakuya!” He approached Tsubaki, ready to fight, but Sakuya grabbed hold of his writ before he even took three steps.

“Mahiru,” he growled, “for once will you just listen to me? You still don’t want to fight him. Not really. I can feel it. Your resolve is flimsy at best. If you take action now, I can’t help you. Don’t be stupid.”

Sakuya’s grip was weak, Mahiru noticed as he yanked his arm away. “I can’t just sit here and do nothing! He hurt my friend! He hurt your brother!”

In a last ditch effort, Sakuya wrapped his arms around his Eve to hold him back and tried to drag him out of the alleyway. But he was still weak, and Mahiru was putting up a fight. A well-placed elbow to the stomach sent Sakuya falling back onto the pavement, coughing and gasping for air before staring up at Mahiru in horror. He was already too far gone.

“Tsubaki!” Mahiru shouted to get his former friend’s attention. When the subclass turned toward him, Mahiru tore off the sweatband Tsubaki had given him and tossed it to the other boy, who caught it just before it made contact with his face. In a flash of green light, Mahiru summoned his shovel.

To his surprise, Tsubaki laughed maniacally up at the moon. “Ah, it’s that time, isn’t it?!” he said. “Time for the valiant hero to slay the wicked monster! Let the climactic battle at the end of my story commence!”

Otogiri looked up as black clouds blotted out the moon.

“There were no clouds just a minute ago,” she mused through the string held between her teeth. “I thought you were back home taking a cat nap.”

“I wish,” said Kuro as he took his place next to her. “But this is too important to miss. Betraying one friend to protect one he just met. How much does this boy truly care? I wonder… Could he be the key?”

Back down on the ground, Mahiru swung at Tsubaki full force with his shovel, sending him flying and knocking him to the ground. Sakuya pleaded for him to stop, but his words went unheard as Mahiru processed what he had just done.

I hit Tsubaki…

“How many graves…?” Sakuya’s own distorted voice taunted inside his mind. The green-haired vampire clutched at his head and cried louder for his Eve in a futile attempt to drown him out.

I don’t feel like I’m the one swinging… Mahiru thought. His body moved on its own, posing to strike the black-haired storyteller again. It feels more like I’m being swung around.

Tsubaki sat up with a grunt and rubbed at the wound on his temple. His eye stung as blood continued to pour down his face.

“The bleeding should have stopped already,” he said to himself. “Is it because of that shovel?” A deranged, joyless smile split across his face as he looked up at Mahiru. “Perhaps my story can finally end after all! Maybe you really will be able to kill me, here and now!”

Wait a second, Mahiru thought. What does he mean by that? I’m not gonna kill Tsubaki! The shovel began to dissipate into a green mist. In a brief moment of clarity, he could hear Sakuya and Tsubaki’s voices pulling him in different directions.

“No, no!” said Tsubaki. “Keep going!”

“Good, Mahiru!” said Sakuya. “Put it away!”

“You have the power to kill things that aren’t human now!”

“If you let your power consume you, you won’t be able to stay human!”

“Finish what you started!”

“It’s not too late to turn back!”

“You can do this!”

“You can stop this!”

Mahiru felt like he was boing torn in two.

I don’t want to kill anyone! Especially not him! We were friends! This isn’t the power I asked for!

In his confusion, the shovel became solid again and pulled him toward Tsubaki to land blow after blow before sending the vampire crashing into the chain-link fence.

I can’t do this! I wanted to protect people!

As Tsubaki sat there, battered and bleeding, he couldn’t help but chuckle. His story had been foiled. He’d planned to go through high school and graduate with Mahiru and the others, and then quietly slip away from their lives, taking his memory with him. But he supposed this was a much more fitting end for someone like him. Violent, bloody, and far too early. Just like last time.

Chapter Text

“End him.”

Seed of Deceit could see him, standing on his hind legs, his non-existent eyes boring into his soul. Their soul. As much as he hated to admit it, Shinji was part of him.

And the fact that part of him was telling him to kill Mahiru terrified him.

“No,” he told the lotus-headed raccoon. “I don’t want to!”

“He has lost himself,” said Shinji. “He has allowed our power to consume him. He is no longer the boy who took you in. He is no longer human”

“Shut up! You’re wrong!” He pressed his hands over his ears, a futile gesture, as he knew Shinji’s voice was in his head.

“He is gone, Sakuya. He is going to fight. He is going to kill! Would our Mahiru do that?!”

Seed of Deceit lowered his hands and opened his eyes, unaware that he’d clenched them shut. “N-no… He wouldn’t…”

“You see?” Shinji asked, the hallucination before Seed of Deceit lowering himself to all fours before sitting. “He is no longer himself. He is no longer Mahiru Shirota.” His tail began to swish back and forth as his voice took on a sing-song-y tone. “How many graves will he dig with that shovel of his before he finally digs his own, I wonder~?” His tail stilled. “Right now, that number is zero. You can stop him before he reaches one. But you must hurry.” The sounds of Mahiru and Tsubaki’s fight slowly crept back into Seed of Deceit’s ears. “That time is coming upon us as we speak.”

The Servamp of Lies looked to his Eve. Red eyes zeroed in on his neck. The next thing he knew, he was sinking his fangs into Mahiru’s flesh.

I have to end this before he drags me into a war.

“Sakuya,” Mahiru gasped out.

Hearing his name brought the green-haired Servamp back to his senses for a moment, and he shoved Mahiru out of the way.

I can’t do it…

“Then I will,” said Shinji.

No! Look at him! He’s not fighting anymore! He’s come back to himself!

“He lost control once! It will only be easier for him to lose himself again from here on out! If you are truly too much of a coward to prevent the inevitable, then I WILL DO IT FOR YOU!”

“NO!!”

Sakuya fought at hard as he could to stay in control, but when fighting the embodiment of your own power, you’re bound to lose. Sakuya’s eyes went black before he stumbled, black, intertwining branches shooting from his back like twisted, broken wings as he screamed in agony, his own body ripped away from his grasp. As Sakuya stood hunched over, the branches began to ooze something resembling black sap. A single drop hit the pavement, then a steady stream of it, and suddenly, black fog overtook everything in the alleyway.

Kuro and Otogiri watched from their safe perch on the rooftops.

“This is unexpected,” said the nurse, the slightest lilt of surprise in her voice the only indication of her sincerity. “A surprise. That’s a problem. What should we do now, Kuro?” She turned to her right, where Kuro had just been, but the Servamp of Sloth was nowhere to be seen. “I guess he changed his mind. That’s a problem.”

The tree branches protruding from Sakuya’s spine were constantly twisting around themselves as if trying to get a feel for their environment. Mahiru could barely see him through the fog. And it was so loud. Like rushing water.

“Sakuya!” Mahiru shouted over the noise. “What the hell is going on?! What is that thing?!” Sakuya gave him no response. He couldn’t respond even if he wanted to. He was locked away in his own mind. Shinji, his power, his cowardice, his desire to stay out of Kuro’s conflict, was driving his body now. Mahiru was swept away by a wave of mist. Was it even really mist? It felt more like water

This is bad, Mahiru thought as he was thrown around by an ocean of ink. I feel like I’m drowning! Just as he was pulled under into the seemingly endless darkness…

“MAHIRU!!”

Tsubaki’s voice cried out to him. Mahiru, disoriented as he was, struggled to figure out where it had come from until he found him, clinging to Otogiri’s strings and stretching out his hand. “Take my hand! Hurry!”

“You’re trying to save the enemy?” The vibrations of Otogiri’s voice traveled through the strings to her black-haired ally.

“Shut up!” Tsubaki shouted back at her. “Come on, Mahiru! Order your Servamp to kill me! While you still have the chance! That’s the reason I brought you here in the first place! This is where my story needs to end! If you give him an order now, he’ll go back to normal!”

Mahiru was faced with another conflict. He had no idea what was happening to Sakuya, and he wanted the feeling of drowning to stop, but not if it meant killing Tsubaki!

Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, it seemed Mahiru wouldn’t have to make that choice. A gunshot rang out, cutting through the commotion.