Staying here wasn't going to do any one any good... they had to do something. Go somewhere. He let go of his shoulder and rubbed at his eyes, harshly, trying to think. It was like fighting the tide - alien swells of emotion threatened to overturn his objectivity, and that upset him more than what he'd seen - a ghost woman - or how she'd touched him - painful, dead fingers - or what she could have done to him - how easily all the doubts tied down and left for later came clawing to the surface.
Or maybe it all upset him, and he just couldn't tell anymore. It could be his weakness. Now isn't the time, is what his voice said, but there it was again, whispering, I promised to protect him, but he never lets me in. Maybe it's not that he can't trust me. It's that I'm not worth trusting.
Pulling down the collar of the grey Landel's uniform, he took one look at the indigo markings on his fair skin and blanched, not daring to breathe. A serpent and a flowering plant: holly. Gods, it really did hurt. It was expanding from a small point on his flesh, growing ever larger, bringing fresh pain with it, like it was being imprinted by cruel, invisible hands as he watched.
Is this what the boy had been screaming about? The pain? Or maybe... a different kind of pain. Was it the same?
The girl's voice broke through his thoughts, clear as a bell, and the vampire made a titantic effort to clear his mind... something he'd never really been good at. There was still the girl; she was still here and alive. Still bleeding. It was too dark for her to see; she wouldn't have noticed the tattoo. He pulled the shirt back up over it.
"I'm fine." Not even a fool was so docile a lamb in this situation, so she still had to be immobile. Not even a twitch from her. "More importantly, your lips and tongue feel normal? It's too early to tell, but I suspect if your facial muscles are still active, then it may not have been a severe paralyzing agent. Probably not fatal." No way to tell that, and if her injuries went untreated, there was more to worry about than others feeding on her.
If only she could see the torment that the boy was currently going through, or the frightening tattoo that had suddenly appeared on his pale skin. If she had seen it, she was sure she would have at least tried to do some kind of act of comfort, at least offer a hug. Sadly, because she could not move her limbs, that wouldn’t be happening any time soon.
“I can move my head and mouth just fine, but …” Looking down at her fingers (or where she thought they’d be) she tried to lift her hand, and her fingers simply shook slightly. It took a lot of effort to even try that little bit, so by the time she stopped moving, she was feeling a bit tired. Then again, that could have also been from the blood loss, but she wasn’t thinking about that that moment.
Leaning her head back against the wall, she let out a sigh, shutting her eyes. “Man, this sucks.”
Just then, a wave of nausea passed over her, followed by a dizzy feeling. It was then she remembered that she was still cut up and wasn’t properly bandaged, so she was still bleeding. Letting out an oddly calm sigh, she turned her head back towards her unknown savior and tilted her head to the side. “What’s your name? I’m Bella … Bella Swan.”
A mild paralysis, maybe. Just enough to incapacitate prey without stopping their bodily functions - devouring them alive, and fresh. And so like Cross Yuki, to use the word 'sucks' in a situation like that - surrounded by enemies, and yet appearing not to notice.
Silly that about the only thing holding him steady was the oblivious normalcy of a human - and that was a tenuous normalcy at best. It was just a figment of the imagination, after all. 'A beast in human form' was what the hunters tended to call their difference in species, and from their point of view, it was fairly true. Humans couldn't survive without food, and vampires couldn't survive without the blood derived from humans.
A tablet - smaller than a coin - was the only thing that kept the peace at Cross Academy.
The irony had never struck Aidou so blatantly as it did then. It was a fragile stopgap, and just one noble who decided not to their dosage one day, just one noble who chose to defy Kaname-sama... if it weren't for the risks involved with feeding here, Aidou would have long since ravaged his meals as he saw fit, all because the usual methods of eating were closed to him. At full strength, it would be quite the sight yet. And it was hardly a passing thought to a vampire, and yet such a tremendous occurrence to a human.
He rubbed at his eyes again, and the scent of Hio Shizuka's blood seemed to fill his nose.
No, no, I have to do something. Pausing is ridiculous. I can't be...
"You can call me Aidou, and we're leaving." When he reached for her waist again, he had to do with his other arm; it hurt too much to use his other, where Reika's tattoo was still causing him pain. If he'd only thought ahead, that would have never have happened. "If you feel tingling in your fingers and toes, that's a sign it's receding." His voice grew softer and softer until it was hardly above a whisper of sound. "There's a storage room down here. It should have the necessary items."
Bella nodded her head, forcing herself to remember the name through the haze that was currently settling in her mind. Aidou, huh? She had never heard of such a name before. Then again, she couldn’t really say anything, considering she had met some people with names even stranger.
At the mention of her fingers and toes tingling, Bella let out a soft laugh, allowing the boy to hold her without saying anything. “Well, that’s good. That way I won’t think I’m dying from blood loss.” She was trying to lighten the mood; that much was obvious. But the fact was that she was losing a lot of blood, and it needed to be taken care of quickly. The words “storage room” made her sigh in relief; there had to be bandages or something … anything to get rid of the horrible blood that was currently staining her skin and her clothes. At least the pain was starting to dull … but she soon realized that this was because there was so much pain that her body was just letting out it’s endorphins so she wouldn’t have to suffer too much.
Though, upon thinking this, it just made the nausea come rushing back, and she sighed, shutting her eyes. Damn, who’d have know that crazy Haruhi girl was right?
Humour wasn't registering well with him - in fact, it seemed so horribly out of place - that he overlooked the laughter. Hadn't Yuki done something similar? Spilled blood and pushed him to the brink of losing control. He just hadn't be able to resist her blood, and Kaname-sama's cold fury had put the entire Night Class on such edge. It seemed wherever he went, or whatever he did, he was eternally stepping on the coattails of Kaname-sama's plans.
Never knowing what they were. Never knowing how to relieve Kaname-sama's anguish. It was there, always present, but he never spoke of it. Never let it weaken or lower him.
Aidou lifted Bella easily, despite an extra wound to add to his collection. She'd probably pass out soon, which may be a better death over something like bronchoconstriction. Had he not been planning to venture into this area in the beginning, he would have thought twice about taking the girl with him at all. This was his original task. This was something he could focus on.
Still, all his little plans now seemed superfluous at best, and he cursed the thought of being even weaker now then when the moon had first risen.
Or maybe it all upset him, and he just couldn't tell anymore. It could be his weakness. Now isn't the time, is what his voice said, but there it was again, whispering, I promised to protect him, but he never lets me in. Maybe it's not that he can't trust me. It's that I'm not worth trusting.
Pulling down the collar of the grey Landel's uniform, he took one look at the indigo markings on his fair skin and blanched, not daring to breathe. A serpent and a flowering plant: holly. Gods, it really did hurt. It was expanding from a small point on his flesh, growing ever larger, bringing fresh pain with it, like it was being imprinted by cruel, invisible hands as he watched.
Is this what the boy had been screaming about? The pain? Or maybe... a different kind of pain. Was it the same?
The girl's voice broke through his thoughts, clear as a bell, and the vampire made a titantic effort to clear his mind... something he'd never really been good at. There was still the girl; she was still here and alive. Still bleeding. It was too dark for her to see; she wouldn't have noticed the tattoo. He pulled the shirt back up over it.
"I'm fine." Not even a fool was so docile a lamb in this situation, so she still had to be immobile. Not even a twitch from her. "More importantly, your lips and tongue feel normal? It's too early to tell, but I suspect if your facial muscles are still active, then it may not have been a severe paralyzing agent. Probably not fatal." No way to tell that, and if her injuries went untreated, there was more to worry about than others feeding on her.
Theorizing was good. It made use of his presence.
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“I can move my head and mouth just fine, but …” Looking down at her fingers (or where she thought they’d be) she tried to lift her hand, and her fingers simply shook slightly. It took a lot of effort to even try that little bit, so by the time she stopped moving, she was feeling a bit tired. Then again, that could have also been from the blood loss, but she wasn’t thinking about that that moment.
Leaning her head back against the wall, she let out a sigh, shutting her eyes. “Man, this sucks.”
Just then, a wave of nausea passed over her, followed by a dizzy feeling. It was then she remembered that she was still cut up and wasn’t properly bandaged, so she was still bleeding. Letting out an oddly calm sigh, she turned her head back towards her unknown savior and tilted her head to the side. “What’s your name? I’m Bella … Bella Swan.”
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Silly that about the only thing holding him steady was the oblivious normalcy of a human - and that was a tenuous normalcy at best. It was just a figment of the imagination, after all. 'A beast in human form' was what the hunters tended to call their difference in species, and from their point of view, it was fairly true. Humans couldn't survive without food, and vampires couldn't survive without the blood derived from humans.
A tablet - smaller than a coin - was the only thing that kept the peace at Cross Academy.
The irony had never struck Aidou so blatantly as it did then. It was a fragile stopgap, and just one noble who decided not to their dosage one day, just one noble who chose to defy Kaname-sama... if it weren't for the risks involved with feeding here, Aidou would have long since ravaged his meals as he saw fit, all because the usual methods of eating were closed to him. At full strength, it would be quite the sight yet. And it was hardly a passing thought to a vampire, and yet such a tremendous occurrence to a human.
He rubbed at his eyes again, and the scent of Hio Shizuka's blood seemed to fill his nose.
No, no, I have to do something. Pausing is ridiculous. I can't be...
"You can call me Aidou, and we're leaving." When he reached for her waist again, he had to do with his other arm; it hurt too much to use his other, where Reika's tattoo was still causing him pain. If he'd only thought ahead, that would have never have happened. "If you feel tingling in your fingers and toes, that's a sign it's receding." His voice grew softer and softer until it was hardly above a whisper of sound. "There's a storage room down here. It should have the necessary items."
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At the mention of her fingers and toes tingling, Bella let out a soft laugh, allowing the boy to hold her without saying anything. “Well, that’s good. That way I won’t think I’m dying from blood loss.” She was trying to lighten the mood; that much was obvious. But the fact was that she was losing a lot of blood, and it needed to be taken care of quickly. The words “storage room” made her sigh in relief; there had to be bandages or something … anything to get rid of the horrible blood that was currently staining her skin and her clothes. At least the pain was starting to dull … but she soon realized that this was because there was so much pain that her body was just letting out it’s endorphins so she wouldn’t have to suffer too much.
Though, upon thinking this, it just made the nausea come rushing back, and she sighed, shutting her eyes. Damn, who’d have know that crazy Haruhi girl was right?
"Storage room sounds ... fine with me."
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Never knowing what they were. Never knowing how to relieve Kaname-sama's anguish. It was there, always present, but he never spoke of it. Never let it weaken or lower him.
Aidou lifted Bella easily, despite an extra wound to add to his collection. She'd probably pass out soon, which may be a better death over something like bronchoconstriction. Had he not been planning to venture into this area in the beginning, he would have thought twice about taking the girl with him at all. This was his original task. This was something he could focus on.
Still, all his little plans now seemed superfluous at best, and he cursed the thought of being even weaker now then when the moon had first risen.
[creeping like a vampire ninja here]
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