Author's Note: So here I am, starting another story when I have several that haven't been updated in years. This was an older project I started and forgot about… before I actually thought up a plot. Yay!

I'm for the idea that vampires are kind of like wild animals. They're unpredictable, untamable, and, often times, dangerous. Obviously, they still have human qualities, but they don't necessarily think the same way as human beings.

This is sort of an experiment, so I'll update it depending on the amount of feedback I get. If you like it and want to see an update, please review. If you don't like it, please review anyway and tell me why you don't like it. If I don't get much interest in it, I won't continue. Yep, it's going to be like that.

Warning: language, death, and mentions of rape. This is going to be pretty dark, so if you don't like that kind of thing, turn back now. There are no sparkling vampires here. ^_^

Prologue: Cold

Haruno Sakura's eyes fluttered open, and she jolted forward, feeling alarmed. She instinctively pulled a kunai from her belt and turned to assess her surroundings, relaxing only slightly when she remembered where she was. She was in the Forest of Death against her better judgment, waiting on someone who might not even show up. She checked her watch and calculated that she'd been waiting nearly twenty five minutes already. That meant that fifteen of those minutes had been spent in a state of unconsciousness, leaving her totally open and vulnerable to anyone or anything that happened to wander by.

Sakura shuddered. That could have ended badly. She shifted on the branch she'd been sitting on and peered around at the shadowy trees. Now, the only thing left was to find the source that had disturbed her sleep.

A cold tremor raced across her flesh, and she wrapped her arms around herself, contemplating going back to her village. She hopped lightly to the ground and flinched as the dead foliage crackled under her feet, too loud against the heavy stillness. She felt uneasy being out here by herself at night, especially with everything that had been going on.

Several brutal murders had been committed in the village of Konoha in the past month, and though that wasn't necessarily unheard of, it was the nature of these murders that had people talking.

"Did you hear what happened to Kishimoto-san last night?"

"My God, I know. They've been playing the footage on the news all morning. I just can't believe something like that could happen to someone like him."

"He was visiting his wife's grave."

"Yeah, it's so sad… That just goes to show that no one around here is safe."

The victims had been drained of blood with various limbs detached from their bodies. The most disturbing part, however, was that all five had been marked with the symbol of the Uchiha, the legendary vampire clan that was supposed to have been disbanded seven years ago.

During the time of their reign, chaos and death had spread like a plague across Konohagure. The Uchiha frequently visited the village of Konoha, killing as they pleased and taking with them villagers they used to force the village's leader, the Yondaime, to comply with their demands. If it hadn't been for the Hyuuga, a clan of vampires that sided with Konoha, the village would have died out long ago.

Unfortunately, Hiashi, the leader of the Hyuuga Clan, had been assassinated a year ago, and one of the elders had taken his place. While some of the Hyuuga still supported the humans living in Konoha, many others were leaning toward allying themselves with the Uchiha, believing that a vampire uprising would occur.

With her senses on overdrive, any little sound or movement sent Sakura's heart beating rapidly in her chest as if the adrenaline coursing through her body magnified it tenfold. It was always the way she felt before he arrived. When the cold sweat trickling down her neck made her jump in fear, she nearly gave into the urge to sprint back toward the safety of the village. However, fear and curiosity kept her rooted to her bench.

When he finally revealed himself, as she knew he eventually would, it was from the shadows of the trees on her right. She didn't understand what was so significant about the right side to him, whether it was arrogance, superiority, or perhaps, the need to block her exit, but for whatever reason he always seemed to appear on her right.

For a moment they both just stared, neither saying anything nor making a move to approach the other. The moon was bright overhead, thrusting eerie shadows across his torso and giving the illusion that he had no legs. It gave him a frightening appearance.

"Hi," she finally whispered, feeling her voice waver, "Sasuke-sama."

His face was dead, emotionless like a manikin, and she felt unnerved, having always been one to display her emotions openly. She glanced away from the coldness of his eyes and began to fidget nervously with her sleeves.

"It's been awhile," he said at last.

"Yeah... I've been busy," she lied. In truth she'd just been too afraid to leave the village since the breakout of vampirish murders. "I just... well... I didn't want-"

"It's ok," he replied, coolly, "You don't need to explain."

Sakura nodded and glanced back down at her hands. This was when things always took an awkward turn. Uchiha Sasuke was the only one of his kind Sakura had ever met, and she wasn't quite sure how to approach him. He was very good looking, with his dark hair and fair complexion. His eyes startled her, though. She'd seen them change from black to red and back again more than once during their brief encounters. She eventually figured out that it was better if his eyes remained black. And, of course, there were the fangs. Sakura was fascinated by them but didn't have the gall to ask to see them, and he didn't offer to show them to her.

She had quickly learned that vampires were arrogant creatures by nature and looked down at anything they felt beneath them. Apparently this included humans. Referring to Sasuke with anything less than his self appointed title pissed him off. Physical contact was completely off limits, though Sakura had yet to understand why. Eye contact was ok as long as he didn't feel that Sakura was challenging him. Most importantly, she made an effort to move slowly around him. Too much movement too fast ignited a vampire's primal instincts to hunt and kill. Thankfully, she'd learned this from a book and not from personal experience.

Sakura reached into the bag she'd brought, ignoring Sasuke's pointed stare. She pulled out a large, ripe tomato and offered it to him with a shy smile. "I got you something, today."

He stared at it for a moment as though trying to figure out a difficult puzzle. "...What... is it?"

She blinked in surprise. "A tomato." When he continued to stare at her blankly, she elaborated, "You told me last time you've always been curious about their taste, so I just thought..."

He stared at her until her smile slipped, and she began to wonder if she'd made a mistake. But then he made an amused sound, something between a grunt and a chuckle, and Sakura couldn't help but giggle herself. She offered the tomato, again, and Sasuke walked forward to take it.

The tips of his fingers brushed hers and lingered there a little longer than necessary before he took a step back, red eyes fixed intently on hers. Sakura felt her stomach clench uncomfortably as he brought the tomato to his mouth and bit into it slowly, sucking away the juice that flowed from the punctured skin. She wanted to look away but his empty eyes pulled her in. It was alluring, like something from a dream.

She nearly jumped out of her skin when her cell phone beeped, and after an apologetic glance at Sasuke, she pulled it out and flipped it open. She knew by instinct that it was her best friend, Uzumaki Naruto, sending her a text message. She read it over briefly and smiled.

"Who was that?" Sasuke asked casually as she turned off her phone.

Sakura subconsciously tucked a strand of pink hair behind her ear, a gesture of her uneasiness, and giggled nervously. "Oh, that was just my friend, Naruto. He likes to check up on me from time to time. Especially since... Well, you know..."

"Does he know about me?" he asked, sharply.

"Um, no, I haven't told him. I haven't told anyone, actually."

Sasuke blinked and looked down, narrowing his eyes at her. "Why not?" He almost sounded insulted.

"Well..." Sakura hesitated, suddenly felling ashamed and guilty, though she wasn't quite sure why. "You're a vampire, and I don't think he or anyone else would be happy knowing I've been spending time with you." She looked up at him curiously. "Why? Have you told any of your clan members about me?" She was careful to avoid saying 'friends' or 'family', having never heard Sasuke mention them. She wasn't even sure if vampires had friends.

Sasuke grunted and shoved his hands into his pant pockets, staring at something over her head. "It isn't any of their business."

She smiled and turned her attention back to her hands. "Sasuke-kun, I've been meaning to ask you something," she said, completely oblivious to the stiffening of his body. "These recent murders... It wasn't you, who-" before she could finish her sentence, before she could even react Sasuke lunged forward and grabbed her throat, leaning down near her face. Sakura made a small, fearful noise and felt her heart skip a beat.

"Don't ever call me that," he said coldly. "Unless you're implying the desire for something more intimate." His eyes suddenly narrowed, and his lips quirked up in a cold smile.

Feeling the pressure on her throat increase, Sakura's hands shot to his as she tried to pry them off her. "Sasuke...! What are you doing?" she gasped. "Please... Stop!"

"Why should I?" he leered at her. She could see his fangs, now. "Tell me why I shouldn't snap your neck? What's to stop me," he leaned closer, breathing in her ear, "from fucking the life out of you. Right here? On this bench?"

"You… you wouldn't really do that, would you?" Sakura's jade eyes were wide as she stared at him.

"Why not?" he breathed softly, relaxing his grip on her neck and leaning in to kiss her pulse point. "I've done worse."

She tried to wriggle out of his grasp, but he pinned her against the tree of the trunk, his gaze never wavering from her fearful eyes. "Isn't that what you wanted?" he taunted cruelly. "When you called me 'Sasuke-kun'?"

"No! It wasn't!" she pleaded, struggling against him. This wasn't the Sasuke she'd come to consider a friend. "Get off—you're hurting me! Please, snap out of it!"

"No one will hear you scream out here, and when your little friends finally find your body, they won't even be able to recognize it." He gave her a wicked grin, and his eyes glinted red in the moonlight.

She felt a sense of panic as she realized he wasn't in control of his instincts. He would rape her and then kill her, and no one would ever know what happened. She wouldn't let herself go down that way. Summoning chakra into her hands, she used her inhumane strength to push him off her. "Get away!"

Sasuke grunted in surprise and jumped back one or two steps before regaining his composure. He stared at her in shock for a fleeting moment before his lips curled into a smirk, and he folded his arms over his chest smugly. "...So you're not just a simpering, little girl," he said appraisingly, "There is some fight in you, after all."

Sakura's eyes narrowed as she watched him. He seemed more relaxed than he'd ever been during their previous encounters, and the red had completely bled into his black irises, which meant his vampire side had complete control. "Only when I have to." She was standing now, quivering in anger or perhaps fear. She wasn't sure at this point.

Sasuke gave an indifferent shrug. "I admit I underestimated you, but that won't happen, again."

"I won't give you the chance to try, again," she snapped, taking a step back and raising a fist.

He gave a humorless chuckle and shoved his hands back into his pockets. "There's no reason to try and act tough. Unless, you truly wish to die."

"Bastard! If you think you're so powerful," Sakura snapped, adrenaline and anger taking control of her logical senses, "then try dodging this!" With a yell she slammed her fist into the ground. The earth shook and split while the aftershock of the punch sent tremors racing toward Sasuke. He vanished before they reached him, and Sakura looked around wildly, trying to calculate where he'd next appear.

"...Sakura..."

She froze as the tip of his katana was pushed into her lower back, and his breath tingled against her neck. "It's over. Don't move." She felt her shoulders slump in despair and took a slow, steady breath. She hadn't even sensed him behind her. "In a real fight you'd be dead in less than two minutes."

"I don't think you'd really kill me," she said boldly, sensing a change in him. He was back in control of himself, or rather, his logical, dominant side was in control over his instincts.

"Is that so? You didn't sound so confident a moment ago."

"You saved me that day, remember?" Sakura said, turning to face him. "And I've been coming to see you since last September. You've had plenty of chances to kill me." She paused before adding, "Why would you do it now?"

"...Sakura..." Sasuke cocked his head as if observing something mildly interesting. "Why do you come?"

She felt startled at the use of her name and blinked in surprise. "What?"

"You know what I am," he said, pointing at himself, "You know what I've done. And yet, you keep coming back. Why?"

"Well, I..." Sakura stuttered, feeling blood rush to her cheeks. The worst part was she knew he could probably sense it. She took a deep breath and started over. "You won't come to the village, and I... I like seeing you." She stared hard at the ground, suddenly finding the leaves and brush around her feet very interesting.

It was a long time before he said anything, and when she finally looked up, he was watching her with an unreadable expression. "You should listen to your Naruto friend," he told her bluntly. Sakura only looked at him expectantly, waiting for him to continue. "If you keep coming back, I'll end up killing you one day. Like I almost did tonight." It was as close to an apology as she'd ever get.

"But you didn't," she protested, staring him straight in the eye. "Your dominant side has more control."

"Which is something you shouldn't rely on. If my instincts kick in, again, I could murder you in cold blood. The more you struggle and beg, the more thrilling the kill."

"Would you really kill me?" she asked, her face serious.

"I would."

"I don't believe that."

Sasuke scoffed and turned his back on her. "You're annoying..." he finally said.

"I know," she murmured, smiling sadly. It was the way they always parted.

"Don't expect to see me, again," he said, starting to walk back in to the trees. "By the way..." he added, throwing a last glance at her over his shoulder, "Those murders you mentioned earlier... That wasn't me." Then he was gone as quickly and quietly as he'd come, leaving her alone in the forest with her thoughts.

She didn't see him again for three years.

Author's Note: Well, there you have it. Thanks for reading, and please leave a review on your way out. Comments and constructive criticism are always appreciated!