Part 8

Meeting the boys

Eirin hummed to herself as she made breakfast for the two hungry boys sitting at the table. She was happy with these kind of moments…moments were normality seemed to have the upper hand and where she could forget about the drastic change that had happened to her in the last few days. She made three bowls of rice and some miso soup to accompany it and put them down on the table.

The boys, each in their own way, thanked for the meal and dug in. Eirin herself was a bit hesitant about eating at first, fearing that she would experience the same bland taste as before. She took a bite and was more than happy to discover that she was wrong. All of the flavours had returned and she could finally enjoy human food again. Perhaps it had to do with drinking blood? She thought. If she drunk it, her taste returned…if she didn't, everything went bland. She thought back to the night before and felt her cheeks heat up. She couldn't tell Mahiru about it, could she? But she had to bring it up somehow…she had to let him know that she needed to drink some blood from time to time.

"Are you okay? Your face is red," Mahiru suddenly remarked.

Kuro turned to look at her, an amused look in his eyes.

"Uh, it's nothing…," she said quickly. "Uhm…I was thinking…what am I supposed to do when I need blood?"

Mahiru looked at her, deep in thought. It seemed as if he had completely forgotten about the tiny little fact that she was a vampire.

"Thought of asking the brat," Kuro said, before Mahiru could even think of offering himself. She let out a small inaudible sigh of relief, happy that Kuro had intervened.

"You mean Misono?" The teen put a hand to his chin, considering the thought.

"Ah yes, Lily has quite a lot of subclass…if I remember it well, the maids take care of them. We could ask them to…foresee in your needs."

"That makes it sound really creepy," she said with a frown in his direction.

"Ah, sorry. Didn't mean to." Mahiru said as he scratched the back of his neck. "Anyway, we're meeting up with the others tonight, so we can ask Misono about it."

"The others?" she asked as she took another sip of her soup.

"My younger brothers and their Eves," Kuro enlightened.

"Ah, I remember you guys telling me about that. You're the oldest of seven servamps, right? And you each represent a sin…you're sloth…who are the others?"

"Pride and lust."

"And their Eves…Misono Alicein and Tetsu Sendagaya," Mahiru added. "We're meeting up at Tetsu's place tonight. There are some things we need to have a talk about."

"You, for example," Kuro said; the amused look still present in his eyes.

"Me?" Eirin felt nervous all of a sudden.

"We have to introduce you, of course," Mahiru said with a look in Kuro's direction. "But there are some other things as well…we really need to inform them about the Greed pair."

"The Greed pair?"

"My annoying little brother and his crazy Eve," Kuro said, as he laid his head down on the table.

"We would like them to join us to fight against Tsubaki."

"Tsubaki?" She was gobsmacked now. These guys were fighting someone?

"Oh, God…with all the things going on I totally forgot to tell you about it!" Mahiru said, shocked that he had forgotten about something of such a great importance.

"Do we have to tell her?" Kuro murmured without looking up. "She's a trouble magnet after all. Wouldn't want her to get hurt, right?"

"Hey, I'm right here, Kuro!" she said with a little wave of her hand. "It's sweet that you're worried, but I want to know!"

"He does have a point, you know."

"Mahiru!"

"Okay, okay…I'll tell you," Mahiru said, heaving his hands in defense.

*Time Skip

Eirin was all ears when Mahiru told her the story. She kept silent, only interjecting a question or two from time to time. At the end, she stretched a bit and said: "So, some psychopath vampire with weird mood swings, who says that he's the eight servamp, is trying to kill you all and you have no idea as to what his motive is?"

"That sums it up pretty well," Mahiru said, some sweat drops gliding down his face.

"And in order to fight him, you want to convince Kuro's siblings to help you out. You already have lust's and pride's help…"

"Yeah, but we still have to convince Greed…he might be a great asset," Mahiru said, the thoughtful look re-appearing in his brown orbs. "But first things first…we have to tell the others about having met the Greed pair…and like Kuro said…we have to introduce you to them as well."

"Don't make me feel any more nervous than I already feel."

"You'll be fine," Mahiru said with a reassuring smile.

*Time Skip

That evening the threesome made their way to the hot springs. The place itself was huge and spacey.

"Ah, I would love to spend my holiday here!" Eirin said in adoration. "It's so calm and relaxing!"

"Me too. Why don't we just stay here and ignore everything else?" Kuro piped in.

"Well, this is serious business, so please refrain from seeing this as some kind of trip."

"Spoiler," Kuro muttered, who was resting on top of Mahiru's head.

They ringed a bell and were met by a really tall, blonde guy. Eirin had to tilt back her neck to look him in the eye.

"Ah, big brother Mahiru," he said by means of a greeting. "Come right in. Shorty was already wondering when you would show up."

"Shorty?" Eirin had to suppress a snort.

"Good to see you, Tetsu," Mahiru said with a smile, as he entered. Eirin followed after him, walking shortly behind. Kuro had turned around on Mahiru's head and looked down at her. He stood up, stretched and then said: "Catch."

He jumped and Eirin caught him just in time.

"Crazy, what are you doing?" she asked softly. Kuro climbed up her shoulder, nuzzling his head against her neck.

"Making sure you don't die of nervousness."

"I'm not nervous," she stated in a soft hiss.

"Yes, you are. It's showing on your face."

"Huh, really!?" she asked, a bit alarmed. Normally, she didn't have any trouble meeting new people…sure she wasn't the most sociable person on earth, but she wasn't asocial either. But now…her stomach was turning around in weird painful twists…maybe she was a tad nervous.

What if they didn't approve of her?

"Relax, there is nothing to worry about," Kuro said, giving her a reassuring nudge with his head.

"That's sweet, thanks," she said as she reached out a hand to pat his head.

"Hi, guys! Sorry I'm late."

They arrived in a big room, which resembled a traditional Japanese living room. At the table in the middle three very different persons were seated. A boy with purple hair (of which a strand was standing up) and purple eyes carrying a serious expression within them. Then a tall slender man with a somewhat feminine constitution and a boy that still looked like a kid, dressed up in vampire clothing.

She stared at the trio for a while, before she realized that they were staring right back at her. She quickly diverted her eyes to Mahiru, sending him a somewhat panicking look.

"Who's the girl, Shirota?" The purple haired boy was the first one to speak up. He folded his arms over his chest; his face taking on an even graver look than before.

"Ah, he's going to be a difficult one," she thought silently.

Kuro jumped down her shoulder and turned back into a more human form, standing beside her.

"This is Shirai Eirin. She currently lives with us…she's Kuro's subclass."

"Huh?" The child and the tall man looked as if they had been struck by a lightning bolt. "Well, that's unexpected," the tall one said with a sweatdrop. "I thought you said…"

"What I said remains….she's the only exception," Kuro said. "I'm not turning anyone ever again."

"Ah, you must be quite special, Eirin-chan. For my brother to go through such a trouble. It's good to meet you," the man said with a kind smile. "I'm Snow Lily, the servamp of Lust…all of love…now…since this is a special occasion, shouldn't I be taking of my…" The man was hit on the head by the ahoge kid, as he yelled: "Don't go stripping, you pervert!"

Eirin smiled a somewhat awkward smile and said: "Ah, nice to meet you too."

"I'm sorry. This guy really has a thing about taking his clothes off…it's his disposition…," the kid said, still irritated. "I'm Alicein Misono. Lust's Eve." Eirin shook hands with him and then diverted her eyes to the other kid, who was keen to catch her attention. "And I'm Hugh Algernon the third, also Old Child. The Servamp of Pride. It's a pleasure to meet you, miss Shirai." This little guy was a servamp? "This big guy over here is my Eve. Tetsu Sendagaya. Do you want to hear how I met him?"

"Hell no," everyone said in unison.

"Ah, perhaps later," Eirin said with a small, but gentle smile.

"I'll hold you to it," Hugh said.

"Sure," she said, sheepishly scratching the back of her head.

An indefinite amount of time later Eirin had started to become used to the group and its -somewhat- weird members. At first she had kept herself at a certain distance, sitting in between Kuro and Mahiru and keeping quiet as the latter told his friends about the incident with the Greed pair and about how they had found her in that dark alleyway after she had been viciously attacked by an unknown person. An attack she could not remember...it didn't matter how hard she thought of it, she just couldn't get past the total blackness that obscured her mind.

What had happened to her before Mahiru and Kuro had showed up? Sure…they had told her what had happened…but how had she experienced the whole ordeal? Who had attacked her…and why? Mahiru had suggested that, because of the fact that her neck had been ripped apart, it was reasonable to assume that whoever had attacked her, had been of a vampiristic nature.

Somehow she felt that to be true. It was not uncommon that she found herself alone on the streets when it was already dark outside. She often went to the grocery store a few blocks away, after not having been able to do the groceries during the day (because of her work). In all those days she had never felt the city to be threatening in any way. Some vampire must have thought of her as an easy meal and attacked her…leaving her to die on the streets…alone and miserably.

She did not remember the pain and the agony she had been put through. The darkness in her mind was like a thick wall, shielding her from all the traumatic experiences that lied hidden in her subconscious. She dreaded the moment the wall would break down…releasing everything she couldn't and didn't want to remember.

Hearing about the attack slightly upset her, but she didn't give expression to those feelings. It was part of the story Mahiru had to inform the others upon and thus she listened in silence to the event she had been (and in a way had not been) part of.

Misono and the others listened attentively, the expressions on their faces growing more serious with every word that left the teen's mouth.

Kuro was the only one that wasn't playing attention (which wasn't that much of a surprise, really). Eirin looked at him, diverting her thought towards him instead of the story. For some reason that helped her to get rid of the anxiety she felt within her. The thread between them engulfed her in a warm fuzzy feeling, washing away the fear and making her feel a bit drowsy…as if she could sink away in a comfortable sleep. She wondered if that feeling stemmed from Kuro's presence rubbing of on her or whether it was just part of the thread itself. How did he experience her presence? Did it feel different from the way she felt it? Less drowsy perhaps?

Kuro, who had laid his head on the table, turned to look at her; his red orbs a bit worried. "It's okay," she tried to convey with a gentle look.

Mahiru had finished telling the whole of the story and then said in a serious voice: "Misono, I have a question to ask with regard to Eirin. Being a vampire, she needs blood from time to time. Perhaps you could convince one of your maids to…help her out?"

Eirin felt a little awkward at the way he asked that question. Misono shot her a look. "Yeah, I'll ask them. No problem."

"Thanks," she muttered quietly.

"It's a bit weird though, that you haven't experienced your first hunger yet…since you've been a vampire for what…three days now? Most of Lily's subclasses get hungry after two days."

Yes…definitely the troublesome guy-type. She got why Kuro called him bastard-chan. Really, why did he have to bring it up at all?

Mahiru turned towards her; his eyes a mix of confusion and worry. "How about that, Eirin? Do you feel hungry?"

"Aaah, not really….," she said, sweat gliding down her face. "Mahiru, there's something I have to tell you."

"I gave her some of my blood," Kuro said without lifting his head.

"You did what?" Mahiru deadpanned. "Why?"

"Didn't want her to starve?"

"You could have told me about it. I could have offered you some of my blood."

"Yeah, that's exactly why we didn't tell you," Eirin said apologetically. "I'm sorry, Mahiru. It's really kind of you, but I can't stand the thought of having to hurt you…even Kuro wasn't too fond of the idea."

"Ah, don't say that," Kuro said with a groan.

Mahiru looked at the two of them and then said: "Okay, I get that…I guess…but you can tell me when you have a problem. I want you to know that you can rely on me and that I'll try my best to help you out when you need it."

"I know…thanks," she said with a grateful smile.

"So…about drinking servamp blood…what does it do? Aren't you supposed to drink human blood only?"

"It's an uncommon practice since servamp blood is less sufficient in terms of…well…let's call it…nutrients," Hugh pondered. "But I guess it will do the trick for a short amount of time. How do you feel now?" The question was directed at Eirin.

"Quite well, thanks."

"The effect will probably last a few more days, but I wouldn't make a habit out of drinking my brother's blood…if it's the only thing you drink, the effects will gradually decrease...until there is no effect left at all. In order to stay healthy, you have to vary your diet with human blood."

"Vary your diet…that sounds so wrong," Eirin muttered. She remembered the addictive quality of Kuro's blood. It made her want to taste it again…she wanted to sink her teeth in that soft skin of his.

She blushed and looked down, so that no-one would notice the red glow on her face. Why did she think of something like that?

"I heard it strengthens the bond between servamp and subclass," Lily remarked. "Allowing a subclass to drink your blood…it's quite the intimate act." He added with a slightly suggestive smile.

"Don't go down that road, pervert," Misono warned; his hand balling into a fist.

Eirin's face had turned into the colour of a tomato and she felt as if her head was going to explode. "Don't…suggest…I…uh…"

"Don't worry, Eirin. He's just joking."

"Am I?" Lily said with a knowing smile…a little bit too knowingly.

Kuro muttered something that sounded a lot like: "Can't deal." And at the moment she really felt tempted to say it herself.

"Me neither," she said, as he rested her head on the table.

"Aah, let's talk about something else…there's another thing I really have to tell you guys," Mahiru said, leaning forward onto the table.

"Can't we have a bath first? And something to eat? I'm starving," Kuro mumbled, looking up.

"A dive in the springs would be nice," Eirin said…day-dreaming about the warm water. She would love to relax for some time.

Mahiru was perplexed and not too happy with that way of thinking. "Really, guys,…I told you this was a serious…"

"Actually, I'm not contrary to my brother's suggestion. A warm bath would be nice," Hugh said. Lily nodded in agreement.

Mahiru felt like hitting himself in the face. "Okay…fine…"

*Time skip

Eirin stood on the edge of the spring, watching the steam coming out of the water in little white clouds. She loosened her robe and let it fall to the ground, feeling the cool summer breeze stroke her skin, giving her goosebumps. She entered the waters, careful not to slip. The warmth embraced her figure and put her mind to rest. She sunk away, feeling as if she could fall asleep at any given moment. It felt good to relax…she bet Kuro thought the same…

*Time skip

When they had finished taking a bath, they had finished taking a bath, they gathered in the living room once more. Tetsu had switched on the tv to watch the news while drying Hugh's hair with a towel. Eirin absentmindedly stared at the screen. Her mind was a little bit too tired to progress anything that had happened in the world. She glanced at kitty Kuro, who was resting in her lap; purring contently as her fingers softly stroked his head.

Suddenly, Mahiru jumped up and said: "That guy! That's the guy I met. He's the Eve of Greed!"

Eirin turned her head to see what he meant. The news programme was still going, showing the image of a young man. She couldn't help but notice that he was quite handsome. His hair was raven black, with exception of one white lock, and he had intense blue eyes that carried a rather grave expression within them. This is a person you don't want to mess with, she thought silently. According to the news, the guy was a genius pianist from Austria named Licht Jekylland Todoroki.

"Of Greed, you say?" Hugh said in response to Mahiru. "That's too bad. The boy won't live for much longer."

"What do you mean, Hugh?" Eirin asked with a light frown.

Hugh's face darkened considerably. "Lawless kills his Eve once he grows tired of them. He's the only one among the servamps who does such a thing. He's already broken. It's better not to get involved with him."

Mahiru seemed absolutely horrified at that statement, but it was only visible on his face for a mere second. It was soon replaced by a look of pure determination. "All the more reason to talk to Licht then."

Notes from the author

Hi! I'm back with an update! It has taken me ages to do so (and, as much as I regret to say this, it might not be the last time something like this happens.) I can't tell when I'll be able to update. I thought it would be possible to combine fanfiction with university work, but it has proven much harder than I initially thought. Please be patient with me. I'll do my best to update as soon as possible.

Also…what did you think of this chapter? This is where my own storyline catches up with the actual storyline…I've decided I'll be using the anime as a reference point for dialogue and stuff.

I also would like to thank everyone who has favourited, followed or commented (on) this story so far. I have not been able to personally thank everyone so I thought I'd do it here. THANK YOU guys. You are amazing!