-Tsuki Kurenai-

By: Okami Cloud

A tall figure dressed in a long, black leather trench coat walked down the silent street with his pale hands slipped into his pockets for warmth. His lace-up boots went to his knees and his shoulder length, jet-black hair was lying on his back, occasionally being blown back by the cold night air.

The man closed his gray eyes, taking in the sweet sent of the blood that surrounded him. He removed his hands from his pockets and turned toward the wall. Before he could do anything, however, the sound of footsteps met his ears, and a figure turned the corner to his right, slamming into him.

He righted himself immediately, trying to regain his calm, which he had lost by the sudden appearance of the boy who now sat on the concrete before his feet. The boy looked like he was only seventeen and he was wearing a high school uniform, which was torn and bloody.

The boy rubbed his forehead and tried to get up, but he had twisted his ankle in the fall. He looked up at the man he had slammed into and gasped, "You're a-" more footsteps sounded from around the corner, stopping him before he could finish his sentence.

"There he is!" yelled the police officer that had turned the corner, "That's the boy the Emperor wants!" the boy made another attempt to get to his feet, but it was all in vain. The man spared him another glace before getting in between him and the police, "Stand down, you do not want to cross us. We work for the Emperor."

A smile graced the man's pale lips before he bowed to them and spoke in a strong, yet gentle voice, "I am quite aware of whom you work for, but you see, I have yet to feed and I get quite…demonic when I haven't fed." two long fangs slipped out of his mouth as his lips curled back.

"He's a vampire!" yelled the officer, freezing in place as the man walked calmly towards him and the others.

The boy sat on the ground, frozen from shock and pain. One thought was on his mind, 'This guy's going to kill me…' the vampire had finally reached the first officer, and was now bent over him, his fangs sunk into the man's neck, 'He's going to kill me once he's done with them…'

The boy fumbled with the top buttons of his jacket, trying to get at the silver crucifix he wore about his neck, 'V-vampires cannot look upon crucifixes…right?' the boy gulped. He doubted that very highly. He had seen a golden cross around the vampire's neck as he had fallen and it did not seem to be bothering him at all.

The vampire let the officer's body fall to the ground once he was done with him, licking his lips as he turned to the other officer, "Now, what does the Emperor want with a young man such as this?" he motioned to the boy without looking back at him.

"He failed to please the Emperor!" yelled the officer. The boy found his voice, his temper rising about his pain.

"I am not his pleasure slave!" he yelled, almost rising to his feet, "I refuse to continue my life like it is under the rule of our Emperor! Get someone else to do it and leave me be!"

The vampire closed his eyes, "I quite agree with the boy. Our Emperor has been abusing his power for far too long and something must be done about it," the officer snorted.

"And are you going to be the one who does something, vampire?" the vampire smiled, showing his fangs again.

"Maybe I am."

He grabbed the man by his arm, and sunk his teeth into the man's neck, drinking his blood.

The boy sat back, watching as the vampire finally let the man slip out of his arms and collapse onto the ground, slowly dying from the loss of blood. He turned to the boy now, his skin full of color unlike before, "Who are you?" asked the vampire once he reached him.

"A-Aoi Satoshi…" the vampire nodded.

"I am Kurenai Justin, and as you already know, I am a vampire." the boy nodded, "Do not fear me, I do not feel like killing another person tonight." Justin reached down and took hold of Satoshi's hand, lifting him up to his feet. He studied Satoshi's ankle, sighing, "This is what I hate about humans. They wound so very easily."

"It isn't our fault," muttered Satoshi timidly.

Justin smiled, "You are correct, but still, I do not like that part about being mortal. I, on the other hand, heal quickly and cannot be killed by normal means. It is very hard to kill a vampire."

"Why are you telling me all this?"

"You interest me, Aoi."

"Please, saved me, call me Satoshi."

"Very well. I haven't found many things interesting in quite some time, and it is a very rare occasion that I find a mortal being intriguing." the vampire sighed once more, "Have you a place to stay?"

Satoshi looked down at his feet, a light blush creeping onto his cheeks, "I always stayed at the castle before this…I guess I snapped today." Justin nodded, understandingly.

"Then…if you do no mind, you shall stay with me." the boy blinked up at the vampire, surprised by the sudden statement, "Do not look at me like that, Satoshi. If you have some other place to stay, perhaps with a family member, I am sure you would rather prefer that." Satoshi shook his white-blond locks from side to side, gazing up at Justin with a hopeful look in his violet eyes.

"No, no! I would like to stay with you, besides, I don't have any family. At least not in Japan that I know of…the Emperor killed my family to get to me." Justin leaned down and picked Satoshi up.

"You cannot walk with that ankle," explained Justin, "besides, it'll be faster if I were to carry you."

~*~*~*

Justin opened the door to his house and walked inside, still carrying Satoshi in his arms. He closed the door behind them and walked down the hall to the living room. Justin helped Satoshi sit on the couch and sat down next to him after removing his trench coat, "Do you go to high school?" asked Justin, leaning forward to bandage Satoshi's ankle.

"No…the Emperor just thought I look good in the high school uniforms," muttered Satoshi, "I graduated from college before the Emperor got to me."

"So you're very smart," commented the vampire, glancing up at him for a moment. He suddenly turned very serious, "May I ask you a question, Satoshi?"

"Sure, go ahead."

"How did you know that I was a vampire?" Satoshi turned away from Justin, seemingly lost in deep thought for a moment.

"Well…there is another reason that the Emperor wanted me in his company at the palace." he started, running a hand through his white-blond hair. The vampire watched him intently, listening to every beat of the boy's heart, "I have special powers that helped protect the palace from harm."

'Is that why I was never able to…' Satoshi took a breath, and leaned back against the couch.

"I suppose those powers help me do more, like tell who are vampires." Justin studied him for a second and then smiled down at him.

"You are truly an interesting person, Satoshi." Satoshi blushed lightly, "I haven't much to offer…but you can sleep in my room, I have a bed in there."

"No, no…that's quite alright. At the palace, they made me sleep on the floor in the dungeon when the Emperor was done with me…" Justin got to his feet and walked over to something in the corner of the room. He turned around and threw something at Satoshi. The boy caught it in his hands.

"What's this?"

"Money, you need to eat, don't you?" Satoshi blushed again.

"But…I couldn't possibly take your money…"

"Don't worry about it. I am rich anyway; I do not want you to die while you are in my care. You should get some new clothes while you are at it, but for now, you may wear my clothes. I apologize if they do not fit…"

"Could you help me? I don’t think I could get any pants on with this ankle."

"Very well, I suppose I'll have to come with you as well." he glances at the clock, "I have plenty of time before dawn."

~*~*~*

"Perfect!" exclaimed Satoshi, standing in front of a mirror in the store. Justin stood behind him, eyes closed with his arms folded neatly over his chest. Satoshi had found a long, white trench coat to go over a light blue turtleneck shirt and a dark pair of blue jeans. He spun around once and turned to look a Justin's reflection in the mirror, "What do you think, Justin-san?"

The vampire opened his gray eyes and smiled softly at the boy, "It suits you."

"Are you going to get anything?" he shook his head.

"I require anything."

Blinking, Satoshi suddenly realized that he was looking at Justin's reflection in the mirror. He turned around to face the vampire, "But, I thought-"      

"It was a lie."

"And the crucifixes?" Justin fingered the golden cross that hung around his neck.

"Yet another lie, very little of what they tell you is true. Sadly, there are very few vampires around anymore."

"Why?" asked Satoshi, his eyes softening. Justin smiled again and leaned forward, ruffling the boy's hair, "Did humans kill the others?"

"Humans cannot kill us, Satoshi. Only sunlight can destroy us."

"So…"

"They destroyed themselves most likely, probably because they didn't want to live another day on this earth, continuing to take the lives of mortals just to sustain themselves." Justin shrugged, "So many reasons."

"How old are you? How'd you become a vampire? What was it like when you were still mortal?" the vampire smiled at Satoshi's questions.

"I shall tell you everything you want to know when we are done here, but not in front of all these people."

"Okay."

~*~*~*

They returned to Justin's apartment with plenty of moonlight left before the sun rose. Justin helped Satoshi get the food into the refrigerator and both returned to their earlier conversation when they walked to the living room, "So…" started Satoshi as he sat down on the couch next to Justin again.

"As to how old I am," said Justin, turning to look at the boy, "I was born in Kyoto, Japan in 1730. I am 273-years-old."

"Sugoi…"

"I was training to become the best samurai in Japan so I could become a royal bodyguard and fight to protect them from any who dare oppose them," whispered Justin softly, "On the night of my nineteenth birthday, I was walking back home to take care of my younger brother because he was very ill. Anyway, I sensed something following behind me, but each time I turned around to see if anyone was following me, there would be nothing behind me. You see, I had a power similar to your own, Satoshi, and I believe that I still do, even though I haven't used it in quite some time."

"What happened next?" asked Satoshi, leaning forward. Justin smiled at the boy's intrigue.

"After turning the corner of the street, I drew my katana and turned back around to face the person whom had pursued me." he closed his eyes for a moment and then opened them, "It was a tall man in a dark green kimono, he had long black hair much like my own without my blue highlights. Immediately I charged forward to fight him, but it was useless, he was for to strong for me and could deflect each of my attacks without even using a katana to fight back. Regardless to say…the man was a vampire, a very old and very powerful one at that."

"He turned you into a vampire?" Justin nodded.

"I wanted so much to go home to look after my brother that night…but I never returned home for fear that it would break my mother's heart if she ever found out."

"That's so sad…" whispered Satoshi, resting his hand on Justin's knee. Both of them glanced at his hand and blushed.

"You should get some rest now," murmured Justin, smiling, "I fear that in a few moments I won't be much company." Satoshi glanced at the clock and jumped up.

"It's almost dawn-"

"Which is why I must go. Come with me, I will show you where you'll sleep."

~*~*~*

"What do you think?" asked a young man standing outside of Justin's apartment. Another young man stood next to him, his light brown hair billowing in the wind.

"Just leave them be for now. Justin will do what is required of him. My father believes in him, we should as well. Let's go home now, it's late."

~*~*~*

Satoshi sat up in his bed and looked around the unfamiliar room. In the corner, very close to the bed he was sitting on, he spotted a coffin, 'It wasn't just a dream…it was all real. I made it out of the palace alive…' he took a breath, 'Now I need to get back in there and reclaim my throne.'

He heard a noise over to his right and jumped. Justin was standing in front of him, arms folded over his chest; watching Satoshi with mild amusement, "I-I didn’t hear you…" the vampire nodded.

"I wouldn’t expect you to have heard me, I didn't want you to. You seemed deep in thought, I didn't wish to disturb you." Satoshi smiled sweetly.

"That's okay, I was just wondering how I could get back into the palace without the guards catching me again." Justin looked at him for a second and then kneels in front of him, taking his hand in his.

"You're very brave, Satoshi. I can sense that when I look at you. However, there is a difference between being brave and being foolish. Going into that palace for revenge is foolish."

"But you said before…"

"I am immortal, you are not. I am safe from harm, they cannot hurt me with their weapons."

"Then let me go with you."

"With that ankle, you will only slow me down."

"I am protected, they can't hurt me either."

"Then why were you running from them?"

"Because they drain me of magic and make sure that it goes into the energy that they use to shield the castle." explained Satoshi, his eyes searching Justin's for a moment, "Why do you care so much about it? I'm just a stupid little mortal."

The vampire gave him a weak smile, "I told you, I find you interesting, for a human that is."

"You're drawn to my magic, that's all," said Satoshi, frowning slightly at Justin's comment.

"You said that they drained you of your magic, correct? How could I possibly have been drawn to you if you hadn't any magic the other night? Hmm?"

Satoshi turned away from him, wondering if it possibly could work that way.

Justin got to his feet, interrupting Satoshi's thoughts, "Where are you going, Justin?"

"I've got to feed, I don’t think you want to come with me." Satoshi shook his head feebly.

"No…I suppose I'll just wait here until you return…"

"Eat, I don’t want you to get sick while you're in my care."

"You mustn't worry about me." Justin bowed to him and walked out, 'This is so weird…why's he being so nice to men?'

~*~*~*

Justin let the drained body slip from his fingertips and took a step back, looking up at the blood red moon that hung in the night sky above him, bathing him in a reddish glow, "Very curious…a blood red moon…but that must mean…" He took his attention away from the moon quickly and saw a young man standing at the edge of the alleyway. The man had short dirty blond hair and deep blue eyes. He wore a black leather trench coat, a soft black turtleneck, sleeveless shirt and long black leather pants.

"Kurenai, have you found him yet?" asked the man, crossing his arms over his chest. Justin glanced around him and sighed in relief, "I asked you a question."

"Still working with your little fairy spirits, eh?" he lifted his hand and caught a golden light that had flown by his ear.

"Kurenai!"

"I found him…why do you want me to look after him? I grant you that he is interesting, but come on."

"Fool," spat the man, losing his composure, "Do you know nothing? Do you not know how important he is to us?"

"Us? We are nothing. What is it to be immortal? Taking the lives of others to live for another day?"

"He, Aoi Satoshi, is the prince."

"What?"

"Our Emperor ordered his family to be killed so he could rule over Japan in their place, but he decided to spare Aoi because he thought he would become an interesting…toy when he got older."

"That's sick."

"Mortals can be that way, Justin."

"What do you want me to do now?"

"You're listening to me now?" the man asked, smiling.

"Yes I am."

"You will know what to do when the time is right. Justin, just don’t wait too long, he is a mortal and his time on this earth is limited." the man turned away from him and started to walk away.

"Where are you going?"

"Away, you won't see me until you need me once again. Sayonara."

"Sayonara…"

To Be Continued

Heh, what do you think, minna-san? Good? Bad? R/R please.