Tokyo Babylon Fan Fiction / X/1999 Fan Fiction ❯ Even in Death ❯ Chapter 2 ( Chapter 2 )

Xandra and KrystalRose present Even in Death.

Chapter 2

Sakurazuka Seishirou didn't wake up until late the next morning. Shaking the fog of sleep from his head, he crawled out of bed and sluggishly walked to the bathroom for a long, hot shower. His body ached unusually. He couldn't remember the last time when he'd felt that way. Thankfully, the blast of steaming hot water helped soothe the kinks from his stiff muscles. He sighed with pleasure and ran his hand over the base of his neck--when the events from the night before hit home.

Two bite marks.

Seishirou shivered in spite of the steam around him. So his Subaru-kun really was a vampire.

After a quick breakfast--he was surprisingly hungry--he decided to head straight for his study to consult his sizable library. The assassin may have been caught uninformed once but he wasn't going to make that mistake again. Quickly he picked out the several large volumes on vampires off his shelves and began his careful study.

After a while, Seishirou straightened, much enlightened. How very interesting, he mused. Apparently, garlic and running water were useless against such creatures of the night. With a will, he returned to the books, occasionally taking notes, fascinated by the things he had never taken the time to learn in his youth. As he read, Seishirou easily lost track of the hours, barely noticing when the sun sank low in the winter sky.

Promises were made to be kept, Subaru reflected to himself, as he ghosted his way into Seishirou's residence.

And keeping this one was going to be so enjoyable.

He paused slightly and frowned when the barrier around Seishirou's house blocked his way, but a twist of power soon unraveled them. They would have held against a talented onmyouji, and very possibly a vampire too, but since he was both with the two powers combined, they were hardly an obstacle. They felt no worse than a rush of cool air across his brow when he passed through them.

Once in, he swept rapidly into the room where Seishirou sat. The Sakurazukamori had apparently been hard at work-the evidence of his productivity lying scattered in a semi-circle of documents around him.

"Good evening, Seishirou-san," Subaru said with cordial good humor to rouse the man slumped over his desk. He was amused to think that he had managed to tire the poor man out last night.

Seishirou started awake and shook his head to revive himself hastily. He'd been feeling safe in his sanctum, warded by his barriers and had allowed himself to doze off. But somehow, Subaru had made his way past them. Nevertheless, he regained his composure quickly and stood to greet his houseguest.

"Good evening, Subaru-kun," he replied good-naturedly, the very picture of a gracious host. "Why don't you have a seat? I'd offer you some tea, but it would just sit in your stomach." He walked over to the sofa and sat on it, studying Subaru closely. The vampire just raised an ironic brow at the mention of his diet change.

For some reason, that gesture annoyed Seishirou. Time to shake Subaru's self-control loose.

"Perhaps I could offer you something more appropriate," he added smoothly with a grin. He pulled his tie loose and slowly unbuttoned the top buttons of his shirt, revealing most of his neck. "Or is it not as much fun, when the victim is willing?"

Subaru had to pause and blink at Seishirou's offer. Was this a trap? He was naturally suspicious. On the other hand, he'd heard that some humans actually liked being bitten. Not that he'd ever let Seishirou suspect, but he was somewhat lacking when it came to knowing how to deal with vampire victims.

"It's always fun, Seishirou-san, whether the victim is willing or not. You should know that better than I," he finally said, pasting an ironic smile on his face. Seishirou ought to know exactly how it felt to take an unwilling victim given his experience as an assassin. The vampire was stalling for time but the sight of that firm neck, the throbbing pulse and scent of blood so close to the surface, pulled him a step nearer to Seishirou.

"I've done a little research," the Sakurazukamori said, pleased that Subaru was obviously enticed by his offer. "Drinking my blood has linked us much in the way that my marks upon you have. So now, according to many accounts, I'm supposed to lust after you until you either kill me, or turn me." It was a very blunt thing to say, and probably not entirely accurate, but Subaru needed some shocking. Seishirou sat there looking quite pleased with himself to see that he'd succeeded.

Subaru's eyes widened, betraying that he hadn't known of this side effect. He glided closer until he was just inches away from Seishirou, so close that he could feel the heat of the other's body radiating from him.

"So…do you lust after me? Do you want me to take your blood from you?" he purred. His guard was still up. Seishirou was acting too calm for a man in such a hopeless situation. He fully expected the hunted to try to find some way to turn the tables on the hunter. Seishirou was too proud a man not to try.

"Perhaps," the Sakurazukamori replied quietly. He abruptly stood up and closed the remaining distance between them to gently press his lips against Subaru's cool ones. It felt a little strange, like kissing a corpse, but he persisted, gently working at those lips until they were receptive to his probing tongue.

The temptation to kiss back was too great. Seishirou's lips were as soft velvet and the heat of his mouth a sweet inducement. Subaru was tired of feeling cold all the time, even if it was part of his nature now. He closed his eyes and kissed back, and showed clearly that this was not the shy young virgin Seishirou had once known.

Drawing Subaru in closer, Seishirou wrapped his arms around his waist, warming him with his heat. While it was true Seishirou felt the effects of the blood drinking, he was confident it didn't make much of a difference with him. He was still in control. Now, his goal was to lull the young vampire into feeling secure around him, whereupon he could figure out a plan of action. There was no way he would let Subaru keep the upper hand in any relationship between them.

"You may drink all you like," he whispered against Subaru's lips, playfully blowing a stream of warm breath through them.

Subaru hadn't intended to ask for permission but receiving it was oddly gratifying. That Seishirou was turning out to be so plaint and passive a prey astounded him. Still, the giddy knowledge that Seishirou wanted him to take from him, overcame Subaru's inherent wariness.

The protrusion of his fangs was awkward and changed his expression to something frighteningly feral, but it was only exposed to Seishirou for an instant before Subaru bit. Soon the rush of blood, salty and coppery in taste-Seishirou's life-giving blood-- filled his senses. For one who was consuming, it was strange how he felt as if he was the one being eaten up.

Even through the drinking, his moan of pleasure was obvious.

The delicious mix of bliss and pain from the bite made Seishirou nearly dizzy. His arms tightened around Subaru's waist, keeping himself from falling over backwards. He closed his eyes and smiled, having put one of his theories to the test. The paralysis from last night was induced at the vampire's will, not from the bite itself. At least they were both enjoying themselves today.

On his part, the vampire was enjoying himself immensely. He drank steadily, his throat working as each sip of the warm blood filled his mouth. However, he took pains not to draw too much blood, satisfying himself with just the tiny trickle flowing from Seishirou. Subaru wanted to draw this out for as long as possible, to maximize the pleasure from this intimate act for the two of them.

Life…Seishirou was giving him life. The thought was so delicious that he practically reeled from it. It warmed him as little had done in the lonely days since his independence from his maker. The gentle grip of the arms tightening around his waist told him that his counterpart was enjoying this just as much.

Seishirou let out a long breath as the pleasure wrapped around him. Tingling radiated out from the bite down his spine and through his body, flooding every pore. It was too good, but threatened to overwhelm him. He was however, unable to stop from shivering with delight at the experience.

Once his initial craving for the life giving liquid was satiated, Subaru's senses returned. No, he didn't intend to drink Seishirou dry. The man had fed him twice yesterday and it was unlikely he'd healed quickly enough to sustain a thorough draining today. Sakurazukamori or not, Seishirou was still human.

Unlike Subaru.

With cold self-control, he withdrew his teeth and pulled back, supporting the limp form in his arms. Eyes half-lidded with satisfaction observed Seishirou. It was amazing how very fragile he could look.

"So, Seishirou-san, are you still so eager to die?" Subaru whispered.

"I don't so much wish to die, as I do not care either way," he replied, breathless from both the blood loss and the effects of the bite. Seishirou's shaking subsided moments later, as be broke free of the arms that held him and sank back into his chair.

"So I suppose the question I should ask you, is why you've come looking for me?" Seishirou asked, glad for his fast ability to recover from injury.

The Sumeragi didn't respond immediately. That was an answer for later. Instead, he strolled around the room, taking it in, composing himself into a blank, not giving Seishirou a clue to his motives. Everything in the room was immaculate of course, shelves neatly placed with a few tasteful decorations, save for the messy stack of opened books scattered at the desk. Subaru picked one up and skimmed through the pages.

"So you've been studying," he said with a thin smile. "You'll find that a lot of what's written is myth." He had already seen how lacking Seishirou was with dealing with his kind.

Seishirou shook his head, his confident in his resources. "You'll find very little mythology in my collection," Seishirou replied dryly. "Therefore you won't find me wielding cloves of garlic or religious symbols any time soon."

He watched Subaru, impressed with his ability to mask his feelings. If circumstances were different, he would have allowed himself to admit that he was proud of the young man, in a rather twisted way. Seishirou leaned back, deciding to wait until the Sumeragi answered his question.

He was going to wait in vain. Subaru didn't intend to do so. Not tonight at least. Before he'd left Seishirou last night, he told him to figure it out and meant it. He wasn't going to let him off the hook so easily. His shuttered face showed no hint of his emotions as he gracefully glided around the room. All traces of the awkward teenaged boy were gone. He'd grown up into an elegant figure--taller, slimmer; his features having developed into a different beauty from Seishirou's memory but no less attractive, which was a good thing since he was never going to change.

Carelessly, he dropped the book, allowing it to fall with a soft thump beside a pile on the floor.

"So what will I find you wielding against me? Or will you welcome me with open arms every time that I visit?" he asked, his head tilted to one side while an ironic twist pulled at his lips.

"I see no reason for hostility," Seishirou replied, shrugging his shoulders slightly. "If it's blood you want, I'm not in short supply of it." He paused, grinning suggestively. "And I certainly don't mind donating."

He settled himself into a seat and gestured to the other chair beside the desk. "Please sit down, or I shall feel like an ungracious host."

Subaru paused long enough to imply to Seishirou that he was thinking about the offer before he condescendingly nodded his head and sat.

"You don't mind donating? How very kind," Subaru said, tipping his head politely as if it was an honor he would be bestowing on Seishirou, instead of the other way around. He let the silence drag out once more between them before adding, "How do you feel about me being in this condition? Aren't you disappointed that someone else got to me first?" His tone was bland, but something in the set of his shoulders conveyed the attitude that he thought this was all Seishirou's own fault.

Seishirou's smile didn't falter a bit. Now he was finally getting at least a partial answer.

"I imagine it must have been hard for you adjusting to the lifestyle, but I can't say that I'm disappointed that you will stay beautiful forever," he said, folding his hands neatly on the desk. "As for whoever sired you, I'll try not to hold too much of a grudge. You will still belong to me regardless."

Of that he was confident. Seishirou was certain that he had sunk his hooks so deep into Subaru's psyche, that the young vampire would never be free of him. Seishirou wondered if the Sumeragi would still be fixated on him, even after his own death.

It was a good thing the young vampire didn't know Seishirou's peculiar speculation about Subaru's posthumous affections or he'd have had a hard time maintaining his bland stance. Instead, he allowed only a flash of surprise to show. He'd not thought himself worthy of Seishirou's attention, so it was strange to have the other tell him that he belonged to him.

"Oh? I thought that you didn't care for me in the least. I recall our parting very well," he pointed out. "You said you felt nothing for me."

"That is still true," the Sakurazukamori shot back, his expression incongruously friendly and upbeat in contrast to his words. "But the marks still haven't faded from your hands, even though you are technically dead. I'm merely stating a fact."

Despite his affable look, Seishirou's inner thoughts were somewhere along the lines how he'd like to get a hold of the man who 'killed' his Subaru-kun and do unspeakable things to him. He idly wondered if the Tree would enjoy a dose of vampire blood.

Subaru bowed his head, acknowledging the point scored for Seishirou. "That is true. So if you don't care one way or another, you're always welcome to remove them," he said, holding his hands out to Seishirou. "And I am dead. There is no technical to it."

It had taken him some time to reconcile himself to that terrible fact. It was a good thing that his grandmother had somehow taken the latest development to befall him in her stride and given her support. Subaru thought that at this point, she probably didn't think there could be anything worse that could happen to her grandson short of total annihilation. Their experiences with Seishirou had somewhat numbed them to new tragedy.

"No," Seishirou said evenly. "I don't think I will." His smile took on a somewhat mysterious quality. Besides, the assassin hardly thought it would be fair for the Sumeragi to have a blood link to him if he didn't maintain a link in return.

This was exactly the sort of attitude that confused the young vampire. Did the man want him or not? To think that he did would set Subaru up for disappointment again if he didn't. The other man was so full of unexplained things that Subaru was hard pressed not to scream with frustration. But he'd done his screaming already and it hadn't done him one bit of good. Now, he'd learned to bide his time and get what he wanted by other means.

He heaved a deep sigh even though he knew Seishirou would interpret that as a victory in their game for him. "Is this what you've come to? Isn't it petty to hold onto something broken that you don't want anymore?" he said, trying to sound as insulting as he could. If entreaties didn't work with Seishirou, perhaps discourtesy would.

"Perhaps I'm being petty," the other replied dryly, seemingly unfazed by Subaru's defiance. "But let's just say I'm one of those people who won't throw anything away." Seishirou repressed a chuckle, very glad that he was getting Subaru to show signs of distress. It seemed that the Sumeragi had a long ways to go before he could make himself emotionally invulnerable.

Subaru was forced to shrug to show he didn't care one way or another. Even if Seishirou cast him away, the assassin was tied to Subaru. It didn't matter if the vampire was tied back.

"Packrat," he threw at Seishirou, although not in any vicious manner. Instead, there was a surprising element of good humor in his voice, though the joke was on himself this round.

"At any rate, it doesn't matter. You have no control over my actions anymore. Rather the other way around, no? Did you enjoy it when I left you in that alley last night?" He knew the reminder of Seishirou's helplessness against Subaru would gall him. The man had far too much pride to feel otherwise.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I had a rather nice nap," Seishirou chuckled, knowing an obvious dig when he heard one but refusing to be drawn. "Though for next time, I know a rather nice hotel we could try. The accommodations are excellent."

He eyed Subaru, beginning to grow tired of their banter. There had to be a point to this visit beyond the young vampire's yearning for him, but whatever that was, Seishirou didn't know. He stifled a yawn.

"Do forgive me, it's rather late and I happen to sleep at night. We shall have to continue this some other time," he said dismissively, rising from his seat. "Though you're welcome to stay as long as you like after I've retired to my bed."

Subaru moved so quickly he was scarcely a blur before he pressed up against Seishirou, one hand grasped around his throat. Well, he cheated a bit; employing a mind trick, but it served his purpose-which was to let Seishirou know that he wasn't so easily dismissed.

"You'll leave when I am ready to let you leave," Subaru grated out, his voice barely a whisper breathed in the stillness of the suddenly quiet room. His hand tightened infinitesimally around Seishirou's neck, fingers pressing in hard enough to leave marks, vivid on top of the bites on the delicate flesh. He shrugged away the damage he was doing to his prey, not in the least bit sorry.

Seishirou stiffened in his grasp. He should have known better than to take the Sumeragi lightly for a second time. Remaining perfectly still, he looked at Subaru with a hard and steady gaze.

"Then what else do you wish to discuss?" he asked simply. His dignity was wounded, but the Sakurazukamori wasn't about to make an issue out of it.

The response from the other was an enigmatic smile.

"Have you thought about what I asked you last night? Do you know what I really want?" The Sumeragi flipped a thumb to rub against Seishirou's lower lip before he suddenly let go and stepped away. The abruptness of the release, coupled with a push from Subaru's mind saw Seishirou toppling back to his seat.

It was a mistake for the Sakurazukamori to underestimate him. But Seishirou wasn't learning very well. He was too caught up in his old mindset of Subaru as an innocent onmyouji. Old habits died hard, but Subaru was very glad they existed for him to take advantage.

"Yes I have," Seishirou replied carefully. "And I can't say that I know your new self well enough to be able to come up with a reasonable answer. So I'll admit that I don't know what you want."

He was still fairly sure that Subaru was out for revenge, but with the dramatic changes the youth had undergone, nothing would surprise him.

Subaru rocked back, disappointed by the answer. "My new self…" he whispered. The realization of how very different he was now, not least being dead, made him very sad. He'd never had a chance with Seishirou before, and now there was no chance again.

"I'll leave you to think on it," he said gruffly, before turning on his heels and fleeing from Seishirou's presence. He would return but only because he no longer knew what he was going to do with himself.

Seishirou reached out a hand to stop him, but Subaru was already gone. He paused, wondering how any further thought was going to bring him any closer to the answer that Subaru wanted him to give. Slightly troubled from the encounter, he got up and went to wash up before bed.

The Sumeragi fled from Seishirou's home as if expecting the other to be right on his heels. Logically he knew Seishirou didn't care, but he just couldn't help hoping. It was so pathetic of him, but his heart was frozen in this state of yearning. Four years of searching and two years of death hadn't changed it in any way.

Reaching the basement apartment where he spent his time hiding out these days, Subaru tossed off his jacket and moved to the small fridge. Yanking the door open, he removed a small dark red packet and cut it open, sloshing out its contents to a glass. He winced as he drank it; unable to stop himself from comparing the cold liquid to the wonderfully delicious, warm lifeblood Seishirou had given to him. Well, maybe not given, but taken forcibly. The thought made Subaru guilty. Taking from someone unwilling wasn't in his nature, and being a vampire didn't change it. Seishirou was the only one he did this to…

He tossed the empty packet away and washed his glass before going over to flop down on the bed. There was little else for him to do while he whiled his time away until the next evening. Nothing except remember what happened.

------

You can find Chapter 1 and other stuff at:

Xandra's fics --> http://www.midnightrevolution.org/xandra/
Krystal's Fics --> http://www.punyan.net/fic/