Kit wandered until dawn had bloomed bright and pink, the sun doing its best to reclaim the sky from the dark and clouds. She managed to finally fall asleep around six, appreciating the black-out backing to the curtains, keeping out the light of day. Tired enough to fall asleep fast and hard, Kit woke again around noon, too revved to stay down any longer. Cleaning and taking stock of her weapons helped calm nerves frazzled by this prolonged exposure to vampires she couldn't kill. Checking and rechecking the wards around her room reassured her enough to take the chance to clean up and get dressed. Calm enough for company, Kit decided to seek out Yui.

It was unlikely that she would run into a Sakimaki now; although they were likely too well bred to disintegrate in the sun, it would probably be pretty damn uncomfortable. Besides, they couldn't stalk around being sexy and bloodthirsty all the time. Trotting downstairs in what she hoped was the general direction of sustenance, Kit thought about her encounters last night. Beating the crap out of Laito had gotten her blood up nicely. That confrontation with the albino spaz had made her confused, and a little maternal. The way you could feel maternal towards a baby alligator; they were cute and a little pathetic, but you always maintained the understanding that killing was written in their bones.

As for Reiji…Oh, they had gotten in some solid hits last night. It was silently acknowledged that they'd both been pretty on the money with their scathing assessments of each other's personalities. Despite the touchy subjects, it was understood that the confrontation hadn't been personal – it was a play for strategic dominance. Knowing the character of your opponent was just as important as knowing their strengths and weaknesses, and last night had been a quick and dirty way to feel out just what they were up against in the other. The other five vamps Kit could probably juggle without too much trouble. But Reiji? His blood was sub-zero, and he would match every move she made with a very lethal maneuver of his own. If anybody could completely fuck this whole thing up, it was him.

Any other hunt, and Kit had a feeling she would have enjoyed this enormously.

"Oh. Good morning." Turning, she saw Yui approaching, looking fresh and delicate in a thin pink sweater and brown skirt, both adorned with small black bows. In her own dark jeans and indigo blouse with rolled up sleeves left halfway open over a black camisole, Kit felt like a hulking clod compared to her maidenly charge.

"Or good afternoon," she amended with a slightly embarrassed laugh, gesturing out the window to the sunshine-filled courtyard. Kit just rolled her shoulders.

"Depends on who you ask, I guess. You on the vampires' schedules?" Yui's shoulders rounded, and she looked abashed.

"Yes, I… they insisted on it as soon as I started staying here."

"No respect for diurnals" Kit said lightly. "So where can I get some food?

"Of course, I'm sorry." Yui led the way to the breakfast room, which Kit imagined went sadly unused in this house. Which was a shame, because it was sunny, warm, and quite cozy. Eggs, toast, sausage and bacon, fresh fruit, and coffee waited for them. Kit was surprised, as she hadn't seen hide or hair of any staff, and she would bet serious money that none of the guys had managed this. It was quite a bit for one person to pull off, so it probably wasn't Yui. Deciding to investigate that another time, Kit snagged at least one serving of everything, piling her durable but pretty china plate, white with small violets, high with food and balancing a tall mug of coffee, doctored with a splash of milk, over to the gate leg table overlooking the gardens and a pond.

Yui joined her with a small bowl of fruit and something warm in a mug – the scent told her it was black tea. Apparently, they both preferred their caffeinated drinks with milk. For a while, they ate in relative silence, Kit observing the house, the landscape outside, and her breakfast mate. Finally, Yui broke the quiet.

"You must have been hungry," she offered, stammering slightly as she pointed with her fork towards Kit's place, with was steadily being demolished. She didn't even bother looking chagrined. There was no point apologizing or feeling ashamed for something she couldn't control.

"I need a lot of protein. We've all got metabolisms like lightning, and if hunters want to stay on top of our game, we have to eat like horses. That, and I just really like food," she said with a shrug and a lopsided grin as she scooped up another bite of cheesy eggs.

"All hunters?" Yui asked lightly. She was a little taken aback, however, when Kit's smile faded away, and she swung her eyes out to the gardens as she chewed.

"Yep. CQ's are worse than your usual slayers, but any Order hunter has been… altered."

"What do you mean?" Yui asked, growing more and more reluctant, and yet, perversely more interested, as Kit's face slid into an expression of cold distance.

"Humans are pretty fragile when you think about it. If we have any hope of going up against vamps and surviving, we have to be more than human. An average hunter will go through some sensory augmentation, some muscular advancement during the course of frankly brutal physical training. Crimson Quarters… well. We're the best because we can survive anything. And that includes dark magics and some fucked up science to make us better hunters. A side result of all the crap we've gone through is that our bodies burn through fuel much faster than a normal person. Our tolerance to lack of food compared to the average human is about halved. You could say that dieting will never, ever be a concern for us."

"But why would the High Order do such terrible things to you?" Yui protested. Taking a crunching bite of bacon, Kit sternly met her eyes.

"Like I said. A regular human can't cut it when it comes to battling vampires. You know the old saying, right? Something along the lines of 'In order to defeat monsters, we must become monsters.' Those of the Crimson Quarter do that so the rest of humanity doesn't have to. It's just the way things are. So we deal, as best we can." Taking a deep drink of coffee, Kit held Yui's eyes with intent.

"Speaking of fragile," she said as she set her mug back down and picked up her fork. "You should think about some steps you can take to keep yourself safe here."

"What do you mean?" Yui asked feebly. Kit just sighed hugely.

"I mean you shouldn't let them bite you whenever they want. Clearly your consent is completely irrelevant. Rapey McRapersons. Anyway, if you don't want them to bite you, you're going to have to be aggressive about it."

"I don't see what I can do to stop them," Yui said weakly. Kit held out her hand expectantly.

"You've got a cross, right?" Nodding, Yui produced the pink cross she usually carried and set it in Kit's palm, the chain clinking as it gathered. Closing her fingers and shaking her fist like she was shuffling dice, Kit frowned.

"They told me a cross was useless," she told Kit.

"This one is. It's stainless steel and ceramic. Might as well be cardboard when it comes to warding off a vampire," she explained as she dumped it back into Yui's hand.

"But you didn't even look at it. How did you know what it's made of?" Lifting her hips off the chair, Kit rummaged in her back pocket as she answered.

"Because, like vampires, hunters can sense silver. And a Crimson Quarter is also sensitive to crosses – that's how I can tell the composition." Taking Yui's other hand, Kit pooled another chain and cross, this one very simple, even delicate, into her grasp. "Now you can keep the other one if it has sentimental value, but I want you to have this with you at all times. Both the chain and the crucifix are pure silver. They can't bite you on the throat if you wear it around your neck, and if you wrap your fist with the chain and punch, even slap them, they'll think twice about going after you."

"Are you sure silver's effective, even just to the touch?" she asked. Kit finished the last of her food, washing it down with coffee.

"There aren't many advantages in combat against vampires, but the rule of silver never changes, no matter the kind of vamp you're up against." Slowly running the chain through her fingers, Yui thought it over.

"But I've seen them handle a silver knife without issue before."

"Really? Do you have it with you now?" Nodding, she pulled out the blade from the pocket of her skirt. Subaru had been insistent that she always carry it. Plucking it out of Yui's hands, Kit inspected it with narrow-eyed precision. Running her thumb down the spine, testing the edge, and tracing the wrappings on the hilt, finally Kit returned it with a nod.

"They probably only handled the hilt, right? I mean, what's so odd about that? It's a knife. You're supposed to only touch the hilt. It's made of iron. Only the blade itself is silver. The wrappings help, too. That's why they can touch it without incident." Digesting that information, Yui returned the blade to her pocket.

"I'd also like to teach you some basic defensive maneuvers. Flailing and flapping isn't going to do anything but get them worked up." Yui winced.

"I don't think that's necessary." Gathering up her dishes as she finished off her coffee, Kit carried them to the sink, where she began running water and hunting up dish soap. So stunned by the display of domestic responsibility, it took Yui a moment to recover and clear her place as well.

"Whether or not you think it's necessary is irrelevant." Fast as a viper, Kit reached over and tugged down the neck of her sweater, revealing the bruising stamped over her neck and collarbone, most of the marks bisected by two incisions. Fang marks. Jerking away, Yui yanked her sweater back into place, color staining her cheeks like spilled wine.

"The fact is, the only way I'm going to let you stay here is if I'm confident you'll be safe. And the only ones who can ensure that safety are you or the vampires. And protection isn't in a vampire's nature."

"They're not as bad as you think. They've defended me before, even saved me." Kit just shrugged as she scrubbed plates and silverware.

"Maybe, but you've got to remember I'm coming at this from an outsider's perspective. And all I see are six psychotic brothers doing what needs to be done to stop a usurper from taking over control of the family, and them, by any means necessary. Not to mention, their toy had been altered without their permission into something nasty they'd thought had already been disposed of. If nothing else, that reeks of wounded masculine pride." Setting the dishes on a rack to dry, Kit turned to face Yui as she dried her hands, her face irrevocably set. Yui wasn't quite sure why, but she felt compelled to defend that pride.

"You can't understand what Cordelia's resurrection did to them. The awakening drove the brothers a little crazy, and it was painful, for all of them." Setting down the towel, Kit crossed her arms.

"That's assuming that you prescribe to the theory that vampires can feel emotional pain."

"Of course they can!" Yui protested, unsure why she was so certain about this. "You have no idea what they've suffered, what was done to them when they were so young."

"Bad pasts are reasons, not excuses," Kit replied, her voice and face utterly unyielding. "There's a big damn difference. Some people just get dealt a crappy hand. But it's up to the individual how it gets played. And those guys didn't even consider picking a path that didn't involve bloodshed and destruction. Full bloods have a choice not many vamps ever get to consider. Most don't take it, but it's still there. The Sakimakis didn't even give it a second glance. And that's on them." Remembering what she'd seen, what she'd discovered, Yui was shocked.

"How can you be so cruel?" she whispered. Kit's face hardly changed, but her eyes flashed, like lightning cutting through the rain as her eyelids dropped ever so slightly. Her voice lowered, and although she didn't move an inch, Yui suddenly felt danger curling off of her in waves.

"You have no idea just how cruel I can be." With that, she turned and strode out, leaving Yui with the sensation of sand coating her throat and tears weighing heavy in her eyes. The brothers often frightened her, but that had been… terrifying. Ten little words had made her blood run cold.

Kit's luck held; she didn't encounter anyone on the way back to her room. She wasn't mad, not really. She just wasn't sure why Yui's breathy accusation, made with the naïve certainty of someone still in possession of youthful faith and innocence, had dug so deeply under her skin. She wasn't ashamed of her capacity for cruelty; she couldn't be. No soldier could. Doubt was a paralytic, and a damn fine way to get yourself killed.

So, no, she wasn't angry. But she was wound tight enough to do damage that she had sworn to restrain herself from inflicting. And the perfect way to snap the last thread of control was to come across an ill-behaved, pretty vampire. Kit reached her room unmolested, however. A little too aggressive to quite settle into the tai chi sets that would kill her bloodlust, she decided to check in with the remainder of her team and see when they were due. She wasn't sure what she would do if she wasn't reminded what reason and loyalty sounded like.

The phone was only programmed with three numbers: her two team members and their commanding officer, Father Gage Brandt. She dialed the oldest member of the team and paced with long, stressed strides. After what seemed like forever, there was the click of the call being answered.

"Hello, Kit," a soft, gentle voice answered, somehow always managing to calm Kit's rougher edges.

"Anna," she acknowledged, still struggling to keep her suddenly ugly attitude from manifesting in her voice. Pronounced with a long "A" in the tradition of the colder realms of Europe, Anna was the eldest of the group, but the least experienced. She had been nine when she joined the Order, and hadn't been inducted into the Crimson Quarter until she was nearly sixteen. Both Kit and the last member of the team had been CQ hunters since before they were in their teens.

"How are things?" she asked, sympathy coloring her tone, knowing without having to be told that Kit was struggling. After all, what hunter wouldn't be losing their marbles while stuck with their hands tied in a vampires' lair?

"Shitty. Surprised?" Anna chuckled quietly.

"Not really. That's why you were sent in first, after all. You're probably the only one of us who could still follow orders in that situation. No one else would take being hobbled when you're alone very well." The sound Kit made was somewhere between a chuckle and a sigh.

"I wouldn't say I'm taking it well."

"If you've gone this long without shooting any of them, I'd say you're doing beautifully." Even though Anna wasn't there to see her sarcastic reaction, Kit still let the expression move over her face anyway.

"Gee, thanks. Any idea when you guys will be getting here?" She could hear Anna faintly conferring with someone in the background.

"Deet says we should be there tomorrow if the weather's good."

"Oh, thank God." Kit could almost hear Anna's smile over the phone.

"Just keep it together a little longer, and then you'll have all the back-up you could ask for." Kit hummed, leashing the last of her venom under control with Anna's promise of their imminent arrival. If Kit stood as the best all-around fighter of their trio, then Anna acted as something of their strategist and field medic while Deet was the weapons master. They'd been a team for nearly three years, and had one of the highest success rates of the Crimson Quarter. Kit didn't consider herself much of a people person, but her team were the two people on this planet she could actually spend a significant amount of time around without becoming irritated enough to puncture lungs. How she was supposed to survive this assignment without being demoted for disobedience because she ripped one of those vampire's throat out, she didn't know. But she'd stand a better chance of keeping her rank once her comrades got here.

"Haul ass, alright?" she demanded gruffly. Anna just clicked her tongue.

"Deet's driving. Which means, living up to that reputation of driving like a bat-out-of-hell, we'll be there before you know it."

"Can't be soon enough," Kit growled, secretly relieved by the reassurance.

"Whining is unattractive, Christine. You might as well take the time and enjoy the scenery. I've heard it's quite spectacular." Kit just rolled her eyes. Anna was the only person who could call her Christine and not end up with their eyes gouged out.

"Not worth the big ass mouths they're attached to, if you ask me. If I wanted to ogle some pretty man-meat, there are much easier places to do so."

"Just trying to think positive," Anna said lightly. Kit nearly smiled. It was surprising, considering the world they lived in and the things they'd done, but she somehow managed to do just that. Deet played like it was all a joke, Kit's sense of humor was dry as dust and sported sharp fangs, while Anna fought and struggled to maintain the most human, most balanced outlook on the world, not just among their team, but in the entire Order. Shockingly enough, she often succeeded.

"You do that, Anna. I'll see you soon."

"Ta, Kit." The connection went dead, and Kit slowly lowered the phone as she heaved a huge sigh. It wasn't exactly like the relief of going home with a mission completed, but she felt the weight on her shoulders a little less keenly now.

This is pretty much all I've got. Could play with this some more eventually. Depending on how much you guys and I like it.

Hope you like it!

Love, Tango