Chapter Text
The hunger was eating away at his stomach, causing a fresh wave of aching pain to shoot through his body. He must be as thin as a stick by now, after having refused meals for three days straight. It wasn’t as if he didn’t experience starvation before, back in his days of poverty, but it was the first time Sakura had allowed himself to deteriorate to this level of weakness. To his surprise, the vampires didn’t quite force him to eat, simply leaving meals at the door which he either kicked at or ignored, although the one called Endo would drop in occasionally and hand-feed him soup or water from plastic bottles. He was too tired to resist, so he let the liquids trickle down his parched throat, providing the momentary relief that he still selfishly craved even in his quest to die.
For some reason, Endo kept coming to visit him even as he slowly wasted away. The vampire had been patient, even when Sakura tried to refuse or coughed out the liquids that were given, never scolding or hitting him even as he retched over his lap. And he’d also keep talking to him. Sharing about his day-to-day life, about some vampire called Takishii, and occasionally those back at Bofurin. Whenever this happened, Sakura would cling to every word desperately as if they were lifelines. Even if Endo’s account may be biased, it seemed as if Suo, Nirei and the rest of his class had returned to normalcy, conducting patrols as usual. As if his absence hadn’t mattered or impacted them in any way. As if Sakura himself never existed.
(It hurts. It hurt more than he thought it would. He should be used to being abandoned or forgotten already.)
If Sakura wasn’t starved out of his mind right now, he’d call Endo out for being so damn lonely that he had to use a prisoner as his (one-sided) conversational partner. Still, he’d grown to find Endo’s yapping a welcome distraction, away from negative thoughts of Bofurin that threatened to swallow his heart and mind whole.
Although, it had been a while since Endo’s last visit. It’s not as if Sakura wanted him to visit, but this routine was something he got used to in his captivity and it was easy to notice once broken. He tried to shelve away the unbidden feelings of concern and anxiety, because if Endo was gone for a long time, it could only mean one thing: that war against Bofurin had begun.
His consciousness, too weak to sustain long periods with his lack of nutrients, was starting to drift off into darkness again. He thought he heard voices approaching, but he couldn’t be sure. Oh well. It’s not his problem. It won’t be his problem anytime soon.
The door to his cell slid open with a smooth sound. Okay, maybe it is his problem now. Still, all Sakura could do was to open one weary eye, hoping that whoever it is would go away quickly.
…
Is he hallucinating?
“Sakura!”
He must be hallucinating.
Umemiya’s visage was somehow in his vision, concern etched in his youthful face as he fussed over Sakura. There was an odd ringing starting up in Sakura’s ears that drowned out the rest of whatever Umemiya said to him.
Umemiya’s head suddenly turned, speaking to someone behind him.
“Untie me.”
“You must be out of your mind if you think we’d—”
“I swear I won’t do anything when Sakura’s in danger. You bastards can’t even care for him properly, so just let me do it instead.” It was an intimidating tone that Umemiya rarely used, and the vampire hesitated for a while before he presumably began undoing the Bofurin leader’s restraints. Umemiya immediately sprung into action the moment his bonds were freed, not by overpowering the singular vampire guard, but by scooping up Sakura into a sitting position against his chest, hugging his cold body against his warmth.
“It’s okay, Sakura,” he kept saying, over and over again, and Sakura felt the long-repressed tears well up in his dry eyes. “I’m here now. You’re okay, Sakura.”
You’re okay, Sakura.
With these simple words, relief seemed to sweep through his entire being. The weary boy chose to believe in these words, and he finally let the tears fall.
*
“Umemiya-san.”
The white-haired agent turned when his name was called by a firm voice. There was an unreadable expression on Suo’s face as he regarded him.
“What’s up?”
“…” It was rare to see this enigmatic agent look so speechless. Umemiya was patient, however, and waited for the other to gather his thoughts. The others have all left the roof after his proclamation, although not before resisting his rather blunt and straightforward strategy of using himself as a hostage. They’d repeated the same platitudes of danger and risk that he himself had cautioned Suo against, but Umemiya had waved them off with tremendous effort, reassuring them that he’d already made up his mind. And his plan.
“It’s about the attack.”
Ah. “I suppose you and Nirei haven’t been completely honest with us back there, hmm?”
“Well, yes. I cannot expose his identity on a whim. That said, I do intend to reveal it to my class, during which I will take responsibility for his safety at all costs.”
Umemiya couldn’t help but smile proudly. “Alright. I trust you on that.”
“And another thing…” Suo hesitated, a rare frown creasing his features. “I… did get paralysed by the vampire. I was careless. Nirei was actually the one who managed to drive him away. Then afterwards, Nirei managed to heal my paralysis with his saliva. That’s why I wanted him to come out of the shadows and work with us that way — I’m willing to bet on his hidden potential. One that may help us turn the tides of the battle in our favour.”
Umemiya’s eyes widened in surprise. He’d never heard of vampire saliva remedying the catatonic effects brought about by it in the first place. In his mind, he was already sorting through strategies and solutions. If they could process and mass produce it into a salve, the agents could easily combat their biggest disadvantage which was the swift paralysis from vampires. “That’s big news. If it really works, we can produce antidotes to their venom. Then we’ll only have to worry about their strength.”
His expression dropped as he voiced out his biggest worry. “But I’m afraid we don’t have the luxury of time.”
“Pardon?”
Umemiya ran a hand through his hair. “We’ll need to work quickly. Mizuki is in charge of the research department for Furin. Let him know about Nirei’s condition. Actually, you can let the Four Kings know about it if you wish — they all have my trust. There isn’t enough time to undergo proper procedure and protocol regarding Nirei’s rights throughout the experimentation, especially given his special case — therefore, we’ll have to proceed somewhat unlawfully, and it’s up to him whether he wants to put himself through it. I can’t guarantee there won’t be any pain or side effects, but I’m sure Mizuki will ensure they are kept to a minimum.”
“I…” Suo trailed off, clearly not expecting this ethical hurdle. “I will have to discuss this.”
“Let Mizuki know latest by tomorrow,” Umemiya reminded him with a wry smile. “After I’m gone, any last minute changes would be extremely difficult to implement, after all.”
There was silence from the other party for so long that Umemiya wondered if Suo had wandered off without him knowing. “About… what you said earlier. You’re really sure you’re giving yourself up? You, the leader of Bofurin? Isn’t this exactly what the prime vampires want? It’ll be better to bait them out, won’t it? I don’t mind being the bait. I can handle missions in that regard.”
Umemiya raised a curious eyebrow. He certainly hadn’t expected such personal concerns to come from a clan member. In his experience, their upbringing usually caused them to be bloodthirsty and ruthless, trained to exploit anything and anyone for their end goals with little regard for collateral, cunning enough to never consider self-sacrifices. “Hmm, all I can say is that I have a plan in motion. It won’t work if you went in my place.”
“But—”
“You should focus on Nirei’s situation instead. Your discovery would aid our side greatly, as you’ve conjectured. Focus on what you can do and trust me to do my job, alright?”
Suo was suddenly struck by a memory that felt long ago; when Kaji had scolded Sakura back in their tussle with KEEL. That had been an ordinary gang fight, but it was scary how fast they’d lost their cool over their apparent helplessness, Suo himself included. He felt a small smile tug at his lips. Seems like he, too, needed the same lesson as his Grade Captain.
“Alright. I will pray for your success.”
“Hehe, thanks!”
*
Endo winced as he looked back at his wounded hand, which he had stuffed into his pants pocket in a poor attempt to appear non-suspicious as he hurried back to base. If he didn’t get a taste of human blood soon to start up his healing factor, he might actually pass out from blood loss. Vampires may have insane physical and toxic abilities, but their undead bodies are still horrifyingly dependent on their blood sources, making vampires more prone to the effects of blood loss than humans. Humans will take a while to bleed out; a vampire could immediately faint if he sustained a large enough wound that couldn’t be healed in time. Their bodies would be as vulnerable as fragile newborns, and it would be free game for the humans to either end them or cart them off to their labs.
He should be able to make it. A sip of Sakura’s blood would be enough to fix him right up. Except, he was quite sure that the boss would not be happy with his failure. Tatsuya had provided him Class 1-1’s patrolling details, filched from the classroom by some underling skilled in reconnaissance and stealth, and Endo had still failed. But in exchange, he had gained important information.
That blonde boy who arrived after was definitely a vampire. And either Bofurin was in cahoots with a vampire, or he was in hiding — he doubted that that vampire was on their side given how he was hostile against Endo. If it was the latter, he could cause discord and infighting by exposing that agent at the right moment. It was not as useful as securing a hostage to get Sakura to behave, but it was information the boss could potentially use.
He took calculated shortcuts through the red light district, careful to avoid patrollers from Roppo Ichiza now that the street was coming alive with the night sky. It was with effort that he forced himself to keep moving, to ignore the stinging pain in his hand and the way his blood had seeped all the way down his trousers. It would be a pain to wash it off.
Thankfully, he managed to reach the base in time, because his consciousness was wavering dangerously. One of the Noroshis on guard saw him and gaped in shock.
“Fuck, move aside already. You want me to faint on you?” Endo hissed impatiently.
“Okay, relax,” Chihiro relented immediately, pressing his palm against the biometric and pushing the door open for him. “Someone isn’t gonna be happy, though…”
“Argh, I know. This is the shittiest day of my life,” Endo grumbled, pale faced as he tottered down the neat but dusty hallway. This was some office building that Tatsuya had bought off a landowner, nothing like the mansion they previously gathered at. They had to move their base of operations closer to Furin, Tatsuya had claimed. Ugh. Endo sorely missed the luxurious interiors of that mansion.
“Endo?”
Ah, speak of the devil. Endo should probably start thinking about what he wanted his last words to be. Something poetic and about Takishii’s beauty, ideally.
Tatsuya stood at a doorway to another room, a rare expression of bewilderment on his face. Endo would’ve laughed at him if not for the fact that he was on the verge of passing out and in pain. Shitty combination, really. “Hello there, Bossie~” Endo only managed out a rasp before he crumpled against the wall nearby.
“I don’t see a hostage with you. Did you perhaps let them run off? Despite all the information I armed you with, and you. Still. Failed?”
“Heh… maybe…” Everything was starting to appear in twos; it was getting harder to concentrate. “Spare me some blood first, will ya?”
Tatsuya didn’t move, watching unsympathetically as Endo crumpled into a sitting position, leaving bloodstains on the white floor and wall. He had no use for a soldier who couldn’t even get a simple task done right, and came back injured on top of it. Although Endo had been arguably useful to him until now, the ambitious leader couldn’t help but feel cold disappointment. Useless.
He spotted someone lingering nearby and called him curtly to take care of the injured vampire, not sparing another glance as Endo was dragged away. The one who obliged was white-haired, tall but lean. Hmm. Had he seen him around before? Tatsuya realised he didn’t really know most of their names. They were simply nameless followers to him, and he adjusted his attitude based on their usefulness to him. Endo’s name had only stuck because he obsessed over Tatsuya’s power and authority in the same creepy and inexplicable manner he revered the quiet, red-haired one with. Well, whatever. They were all disposable anyway. With his blood acting as the pioneer reagent in the drug that raised the Noroshis to prime statuses, he was at liberty to make any vampire a prime vampire. In order to achieve complete victory against Umemiya, he would need to be ruthless, willing to cull the incapable at any time. Now that he had Haruka, he was not going to let any shortcomings impede his path.
The problem with the hostage remained; an immediate, glaring barrier that could throw all that he’d carefully planned for years into jeopardy. He had already expressly forbidden any vampire to drink from Haruka. Endo had told him he’d managed to get Haruka to drink some water at least, but the stubborn brat was still actively resisting sustenance. His thoughts wandered dangerously back to the hospital — he recalled there being some sort of machine that patients were hooked up on to sustain them while they were unconscious. Perhaps he could use one on Haruka…? Usually, he loathed to rely on contraptions intended for humans, but things were getting desperate.
“Don’t move!”
Tatsuya’s head snapped up as he heard someone cry out a warning. Was it from their side, or an enemy’s? Cursing at his lack of familiarity with his lackeys, he rushed out towards the entrance.
And felt disbelief and fury surge at once.
“Yo, Tatsuya,” Umemiya acknowledged calmly, as if greeting an old pal.
*
“You!” Tatsuya spat, unable to keep his fists from curling. The ugly feelings of betrayal and revenge that were long buried within him came alive in bitter torrents, and he was sure his face had flushed hot red from anger. “Are you finally here to declare war, you traitor?”
Umemiya cocked his head slightly, exuding his usual insufferable air of laidback confidence and amicability. “No, but I heard you’re having trouble taking care of one of my precious juniors, so I’ve come to step in before your ineptitude kills him off.”
A vein in his temple was throbbing. “A likely tale. Let us fight, right here and now, and determine the victor in this war once and for all.” Tatsuya was already fired up with adrenaline from his lingering frustration for Endo, which only bubbled and intensified until he was ready to rampage. “No more games!”
To his utter shock, instead of readying himself for a duel, Umemiya had raised both his arms in surrender. “Like I said, I’m only here to take care of Sakura. I’m sure you’d rather not let him perish at this critical juncture.”
The mention of Sakura’s wellbeing as well as the sense in his tone calmed some of his fury, but Tatsuya remained on guard with good reason. Umemiya was the only one who’d managed to dupe him, running off to form Bofurin and overall being a huge pain in the ass for the vampire society. “How’d you know he’s starving himself?” he demanded, mind flashing in panic at the possibility of a potential security breach within their midst.
“Well, you’ll probably find this hard to believe, but I simply predicted that Sakura would do this sort of thing,” Umemiya’s smile never wavered, but his tone had grown severe. “He’s the type to throw himself into danger for his friends and allies, after all. You barely understand his character, so it’s no surprise you didn’t prepare for that possibility.”
Tatsuya bit back another growl at the quip, but internally he warred with himself: clearly, his best interests lay in Sakura’s survival, even as his pride, tempted by the chance to settle scores, beleaguered his decision-making.
“And I’m supposed to believe that you’d waltz into my territory without a plan? You do realise you’re giving me an easy pass at Bofurin, don’t you?”
“Don’t underestimate Bofurin,” Umemiya simply retorted calmly. “Don’t get this wrong: I’m not betraying Bofurin to you. But if I let my precious agent die like this due to your shocking clumsiness, I’ll be betraying myself.”
Tatsuya’s fists shook with ill-suppressed bloodlust, but he recognised the painfully familiar earnest manner of his past companion. And, for the first time in a decade, their interests had aligned once again.
“…You better make sure Haruka stays alive. And don’t think for a second that you’ll be walking free from here afterwards.”
*
Something isn’t right.
Takishii barely concerned himself with mortal matters, but something had been bugging him since that morning, when their leader had them all stationed on standby.
Ah. It must be that guy’s absence. Endo Yamato.
Where did he go?
Takishii had forgotten when exactly they’d joined that white-haired prime vampire’s group and how long they had been under him. Well, he didn’t really care for it, but Endo had been adamant on joining for some reason or another, and had convinced him by saying that that guy would give him a lot of opportunities to fight agents. Fortunately, Endo had been right in that regard, because Takishii did get his fair share of fights that satiated his fighting spirit. Especially when he went against that other white-haired man — but he wasn’t another prime vampire despite the characteristic snowy white hair that symbolised its nature, he was merely an agent from Bofurin — the only mortal who could keep up with his strength and speed. Even after getting his leader’s blood, which supposedly boosted his power even further, that mortal was still at his level. It thrilled Takishii, and even got him lusting for that human’s blood, and he wholeheartedly looked forward to their next clash.
But right now, he couldn’t displace the feeling of… wrongness, so to speak. He knew Endo had been sent out on a mission, but it was rare that he hadn’t returned. Endo was good at gauging how long he’d take to clear a mission, and he would always let Takishii know in advance if he’d be away for more than a day. And Takishii was sure that it had almost been a day since Endo left.
He surprised himself when he stood up from where he lounged at the common area. Other Noroshis’ heads perked up at his sudden movement, whether motivated by fear or respect he cared not — before returning to their conversations or businesses. The red-haired vampire left the area quietly, and with each step he took in search for his missing companion, the feeling of unease grew.
Something isn’t right.